Lady Cougars break out of slump, both teams look for strong finish

by Rhett Sifford
Sports Editor
The Monument Valley girls basketball team picked up two wins in six recent games. On January 21 the Lady Cougars defeated Grand County 60-45.
Four Lady Cougars scored in double figures, including Dakotah Cly with 18, LeighAn Atene with 16, Nesbah Hunt with 12, and Malaya Blackmountain with ten. Taylor Stanley added four points.
On January 23, the girls led Escalante 34-20 at halftime, but the Lady Moquis rallied to beat the Lady Cougars 51-50.
Dakotah Cly scored 19 points in the loss, with Atene adding 12, Blackmountain five, Hunt four, Stanley four, and Ayainna Cly two.
The Lady Cougars concluded their road trip with a 60-45 loss at Piute. Blackmountain scored 21, Dakotah Cly ten, Hunt eight, Atene four, and Ayainna Cly two.
Monument Valley suffered a 79-53 loss to the San Juan Lady Broncos on January 27.
Dakotah Cly poured in 13 points, while Blackmountain and Hunt both tallied 11, Ayainna Cly added ten, and Atene scored eight.
On January 30 the Lady Cougars broke a three-game skid with a 69-46 win over Bryce Valley. Dakotah Cly led the team with 22 points, Blackmountain poured in 16, and Atene scored 14.
Nesbah Hunt added eight points, Ayainna Cly got five, and Naomi White tallied four points.
On January 31, Monument Valley closed out their second road trip in as many weekends with a hard-fought battle against Valley in Orderville.
The Lady Cougars fought valiantly and the game was close throughout, but they fell 56-51.
Hunt led the way offensively with 15 points, Dakotah Cly added 14, Blackmountain scored 12, Ayainna Cly seven, and Atene three.
The Lady Cougars are 11-8 on the season, ranked ninth in the 1A standings.
The girls hosted Green River this week after the San Juan Record deadline. They close the week at home against Pinnacle on Thursday.
The Monument Valley boys were scheduled to play two games dating back to January 18, but no result was available for the Shiprock game on January 26.
It was a knock-down, drag-out affair at Rough Rock High School on January 29, a rematch of a 48-47 Cougar win on December 20.
This time it was another close battle with Rough Rock winning 62-61.
The Monument Valley boys are 3-15 on the season, ranked 22nd in the 1A standings. The team hosted Green River on February 3 after the print deadline.
The team hosts Pinnacle on Friday, February 6, then welcomes Milford to town on Saturday, February 7.