Lady Cougars win two, boys one as both look to close regular season strong

by Rhett Sifford
Sports Editor
The Monument Valley High School girls basketball team picked up two home wins over Region 19 opponents this past week, defeating Green River 67-32 on February 3 and Pinnacle 69-26 on February 6.
The Lady Cougars improved to 13-8 on the season with the victories and were ranked ninth in the 1A standings as of Tuesday, February 10. The team has won three of their last four games.
On Tuesday, February 3 the girls got off to a quick start against Green River, opening a 14-8 lead after one quarter. They stretched that lead to 39-17 at halftime.
The domination continued through the second half for Monument Valley as they outscored the Lady Pirates 28-15 in the third and fourth quarters to close out the win.
Three Lady Cougars scored in double figures for the game, including LeighAn Atene with 17, Dakotah Cly with 16, and Taylor Stanley with ten.
Malaya Blackmountain added eight points for Monument Valley and Ayainna Cly, Peyton Tome, Naomi White, and Natalin Russell all scored four apiece.
The game against Pinnacle this past Friday, February 6 was very similar to the contest with Green River. The Lady Cougars opened with a 17-6 first quarter, then exploded for 31 second-quarter points to lead 48-9 at the break.
Several players came off the bench to close out the game in the second half as Monument Valley outscored the Lady Panthers 21-17 in the final two quarters.
Blackwater led scoring for the team with 17 points, including two three-point buckets. Dakotah Cly poured in ten points in the win.
Peyton Tome and LeighAn Atene scored nine points apiece with Tome draining a team-high three triples. Teylor Stanley and Ayainna Cly both got six points on the night.
Naomi White scored five for the Lady Cougars, Nizhoni Yazzie added three, and Alaqua Holiday and Natalin Russell scored two each. Atene and Yazzie hit one three-pointer apiece.
The Monument Valley girls will close out their regular season this week. They played local rival Monticello on Tuesday, February 10 after the San Juan Record print deadline.
Coming into that game the Lady Cougars were looking to sweep their season series with the Lady Buckaroos. They beat Monticello 73-36 on January 13.
The final game of the regular season is set for Thursday, February 12 and it’ll be a fun one as they pay a visit to Whitehorse in Montezuma Creek.
Barring another meeting between the longtime rivals in the postseason it will be the final basketball Battle of the Drum this year. The Lady Cougars lost to the Lady Raiders 71-44 on January 7.
Monument Valley has already earned a bye in the first round of the 1A state tournament. If they pull off an upset against their rivals this Thursday there’s a distinct possibility they might face them again in their second-round game next Friday, February 21.
The Cougar boys played three games at home in the past week, suffering losses to Green River and Milford on February 3 and 7 but defeating Pinnacle in a tight 58-56 final on February 6. The team is 4-17 on the year, ranked 22nd in the 1A standings.
Against the #8 Pirates on Tuesday, February 3 Monument Valley was slow out of the gate and they ultimately fell by a final of 76-24.
On Friday, February 6 the boys beat the Pinnacle Panthers 58-56 in a Region 19 contest. Caleb Cly had an outstanding night, leading Cougar scoring with 25 points.
Jake Deswood poured in 15 points, Alex Hicks and Tarkale Tsosie both scored six, Riley Stanley got four, and Alex Holiday got two. Cly hit an impressive five threes in the win and Deswood got three.
Against #17 Milford the next night on Friday, February 7 Monument Valley was only down by four after one quarter, 16-12. But the Tigers outscored them 36-15 in the middle quarters, ultimately distancing the Cougars 67-45.
Like the girls the Monument Valley boys will close out their regular season this week with games against Monticello on February 10 and at Whitehorse for the Battle of the Drum on Thursday, February 12.
If nothing changes in the standings before the state tournament seedings are set, there is a good chance the Cougars would travel to face Monticello in their first-round matchup next Tuesday, February 17.