Camp Verde’s girls basketball team wrapped up its season on Thursday, March 4, losing 76-33 to Winslow. That concluded a campaign that in some ways must have felt like two seasons.
The start to the season was rough, with the Cowboys losing their first seven games. But while the final game against the highly ranked Bulldogs didn’t go especially well, the later portion of the season was much better, with Camp Verde going 5-5 over the final 10 games to finish the year 5-12 overall, 4-9 in the 3A Conference and 3-5 in the 3A North Central Region.
“Throughout the season, one of the things you look at is whether a group of kids — regardless of the record — improve as a team,” coach Mark Showers said following the season finale. “And this team improved. They learned to execute better. They got more competitive and were able to win more in the last eight or nine games. That’s an important thing to know.”
The struggles, particularly those in the early season, were not entirely unpredictable. The Cowboys team that reached the 2A state championship from a season ago was senior heavy. With that, nearly everyone on this year’s team was either new to varsity or in a much bigger role than in previous years. That was compounded when the season was delayed twice, forcing practices to shut down. The later start to the season also meant a limited preseason and no tournaments.
That left some of the more experienced players on the team somewhat unsure of what the season would look like.
“In the beginning, I had a lot of doubts with this team — it was kind of funny,” Bridgette Fitzgerald said. “But now I absolutely love this team and I’m very grateful that I got to play with them this year. I think it was an experience. It was fun. It was fun meeting all the new girls. And I think they’ll be ready for next year.”
Looking forward to next year, the turnover won’t be nearly as high. Fitzgerald and Caira Poseyesva are the only two seniors from this year’s team.
Next year’s senior class will be deep — featuring Shelly Warfield, Addy Herrera, Daijah Thompson, McKenna Martin and Summer Bast.
“I’m excited. I think that we’re all in the same age group,” Warfield said. “We’ve been playing each other for a while. Me and Addy have been playing together since fifth grade. It’s something that I’m looking forward to. I feel like we’re all going to bond and have a great season.”
Showers is similarly looking forward to working with that group — as well as the younger players — again. But he also took time to express his gratitude toward the two girls who will graduate.
“Bridgette Fitzgerald has played for me for four years,” Showers said. “And I told her tonight that as long as I have a Bridgette Fitzgerald playing, I’m coaching. A kid with that kind of work ethic and heart, I love to be around.”
“The other, Caira Poseyesva, is probably the most improved player on the team,” he added. “She continued to work hard, got into shape and was able to help us in different situations down in the post. Just very happy and excited about her improvement over the course of the season.”
While Warfield’s 13 points against the Bulldogs led the Cowboys in scoring, both seniors got moments to shine, as well. Fitzgerald scored five points while Poseyesva got a layup and a big rebound in the game’s final minutes.
In addition to playing in a new conference, Camp Verde faced a number of challenges through the year. Much of the early season struggles can be attributed to the Cowboys rarely having a full roster or consistent rotation through the first half of the season.
In the long run, Warfield credited Showers with his ability to work with a younger, lesser experienced team than normal. She also noted that the struggles were ultimately a good learning experience for the Cowboys.
“Coach Showers was the biggest help that we could have asked for in my opinion,” Warfield said. “He’s used to having a larger team, an older team. He really adapted well with the younger girls and helped us out very much.”
“I feel like as the season went on, we all improved,” she added. “We tried to find the positives in negative situations. When we had girls out because of ineligibility or COVID, it was hard. But I feel like we all learned to have a positive mindset. And that rolled over into our games. We learned how to stay positive through it all.”
