‘One-of-kind moment’: Page beats Lady Scouts for 3A state crown

WINDOW ROCK – The circle is now complete for Page coach Celeste “Boka” Claw.

On Saturday Claw steered the Page Lady Sand Devils (23-5) to the school’s eighth state crown with a victory over region rival Window Rock (27-5) in a low-scoring affair in the 3A championship game.

The Sand Devils took the lead for good midway through the third period and held on for a 35-29 win at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

Claw now has two state titles under her belt, one as a player and the other as the head coach.

“It’s a feeling that I can’t describe,” Claw said in a telephone interview with the Navajo Times on Sunday afternoon. “I’m still trying to figure out how I should feel about that, but I’m more excited for the girls that played.

“It’s well-earned and seeing their emotions on their faces after we won is something I won’t forget,” she added. “It warms my heart that they were able to fulfill a goal that they’ve been dreaming about since they were little girls.”

Sand Devil senior guard Alyssa Harris said winning the state title was bittersweet as the Diné basketball player is committed to play for Husson University in Bangor, Maine, next season.

“It definitely means a lot, especially for coach Boka,” Harris said. “This is her first state title as a coach, and this is my last state title so to bring the title back home to Page is something special.

“I honestly didn’t think I would get emotional about it, but I was overcome with joy,” she added. “After my teammates were hugging me, I started to cry a little bit more. We were all crying; it was just a one-of-kind moment.”

With the six-point win, Page evened the season series with Window Rock at 2-2. The Sand Devils avenged a 57-51 loss to Window Rock during the 3A North Region tournament finale.

Unlike Page’s previous meetings with the Scouts, points were hard to come by as both clubs scored 12 points in the opening half.

“We both missed some key shots, some wide-open opportunities,” the Page coach said. “I think both of our defenses’ frustrated each other. I have to credit Window Rock; they played a fantastic game.

“We had some long media breaks that we’re not used to, but that allowed us to remind the girls that they had to stick to our game plan,” Boka continued. “We had to focus on the things we’ve been focusing on since we lost to Window Rock in the region tournament.”

Buoyed by senior Jayme Tso, who hit three treys and made 1-of-2 free throws, Window Rock took an early 10-8 lead.

“That is what you call a motivated senior right there,” Claw said. “I mean, Jayme Tso came out hitting some threes and she was attacking. She scored 10 points for them in that first quarter, so we had to make some adjustments.”

Page utilized its best defenders on Tso with senior Jade Reid, junior LeLaura Yazzie and Harris taking turns defending the Window Rock player. That scheme worked as Tso did not score again.

“We made some small tweaks, but we had to remind the girls that Window Rock is a strong transition team,” Claw said. “They’re great shooters and they can run the ball down and get quick buckets, so we had to get back on ‘D.’ That was the adjustments we made.”

Tso was the lone Window Rock player in double figures. Her teammate Melicia Nelson added eight points, eight rebounds and three assists.

For Page, senior post Sofia Cambridge led the team with nine points and eight rebounds. Harris, who was saddled with two early fouls in the first period, finished with an all-around game of 10 rebounds, seven points and three assists.

“I really didn’t want to lose to Window Rock so I kind of woke myself up,” Harris said of her production. “I found my rhythm in the second period, and I felt like I gave my team a spark.”

The Sand Devils also received seven markers from sophomore guard Tayla Franklin and six from junior post Leikara Yazzie, as both players put in some quality minutes off the bench.

For the game, Page received 13 points from its reserves while Window Rock did not have any bench points.

“We definitely have a really deep bench, bigger than what most teams have,” Harris said. “We trust those girls in these really big moments. We really needed them to contribute, and they showed up.”

Window Rock coach Gabrielle Whitney was not available for comment. Earlier in the week the third-year coach did acknowledge the difficulties of getting past an opponent after playing them several times.

“It’s always hard to beat a team that you know, that’s in our conference because you’re constantly playing them,” Whitney told the Navajo Times after the Scouts posted a 45-38 win over Show Low in the state semifinals.

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