In each of the prior two seasons, Camp Verde’s girls basketball team has held a significant edge in varsity starting experience in its games against Sedona Red Rock High School. That was a key factor in the 4-0 record that the Cowboys had over the Scorpions over those seasons. But when the two teams played on Saturday, Feb. 20, it was a much different story.
This time, the more experienced team belonged to Sedona — and it showed on the scoreboard. Camp Verde fell behind big early and while the Cowboys did show signs of life as the game went on, the early deficit was too big to overcome and Camp Verde lost 55-38.
“I thought we played a really solid second half,” Cowboys coach Mark Showers said. “In the first half, I accused the girls of being scared to death — and they kind of looked that way. In the second half they settled in, played harder and executed a little better, and we were able to do a better job.”
The clearest positive for Camp Verde was that the offense did improve each quarter. After scoring four points in the first quarter and five in the second, the Cowboys scored 11 in the third quarter and 15 in the fourth.
While that wasn’t enough to overcome the 35-9 halftime deficit, it did leave Camp Verde with a better feeling after the game.
“We were being so much more selfless,” junior forward Shelly Warfield said. “We were passing the ball more. We weren’t trying to throw up just any kind of shot. We were really helping each other as a team.”
Offensive depth was arguably the biggest difference in this game. Warfield scored 15 points, which tied Sedona’s sophomore guard, Annabelle Cook, for the game high. But while the Scorpions had two other players finish the game in double digits, the Cowboys’ next highest scorers were junior forwards Daijah Thompson and McKenna Martin, who finished with seven and six, respectively.
The loss moved Camp Verde to 2-10 overall. The Cowboys 2-7 record in the 3A Conference and 2-4 mark in the 3A North Central Region were unchanged against the 2A Scorpions.
One of the challenges for Camp Verde has been an inconsistent lineup. Warfield missed time at the start of the season while the game with Sedona was Thompson’s second of the season. Showers noted that each time a player comes back, it’s essentially a reset. That’s led to struggles finding a rotation, which has contributed to the Cowboys record.
“As of right now I don’t think that we’re at our full potential,” Warfield said. “But I feel like it’s coming soon, it’s coming. After the hard teams that we’ve played, it’s made us open our eyes. I think we’re going to get a lot better really soon. I’m just very proud of my team.”
Camp Verde bounced back well in its next game, defeating Parker 44-23 on Tuesday, Feb. 23.
The Cowboys will next host Fountain Hills on Thursday, Feb. 25, will go on the road for a game against Page on Friday, Feb. 26, and will return home to finish the season with games against Tonopah Valley on Tuesday, March 2, and Winslow on Thursday, March 4. The Fountain Hills game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. All other remaining games will start at 5:30 p.m.
