Apaches split road trip falling short to Mesa and defeating South Mountain
The Cochise College Apaches were on the road this past week, taking on the Thunderbirds of Mesa Community College and the Cougars of South Mountain Community College. The Apaches found themselves in a dogfight versus the Thunderbirds that ultimately resulted in the Apaches collecting their third loss overall; second in the ACCAC. The game started off rocky for both teams, as neither team scored in the first 3 minutes of the contest. The Apaches broke the ice with a basket by Sophomore Jessenia Lawson who subbed in after Freshman Alayna Contreras went down with an ankle injury. Later in the 3rd quarter, Lawson went down with an ankle injury of her own. The Apaches controlled the game for the first three quarters as the #5 NJCAA DII Team was down by 15 points going into the 3rd quarter but stayed hungry and determined for the win. The Thunderbirds scored 28 points in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime.
Overtime was filled with excitement as the two teams traded baskets. A late foul call sent the Thunderbirds to the free-throw line where they made 1 of the 2 free throws. Down by 1 point, the Apaches were not able to score and fouled the Thunderbirds to put them at the line for another 2 free throws where both were made to put the Thunderbirds up 3. A perfectly drawn play by Head Coach Misty Opat gave the Apaches a look at a 3-point basket, but they could not score the basket needed to tie the game.
Big-time performances from Sophomores Deja Jones, Jess Lawson, Tatjana Tatar, and Freshman Chana Paxixe carried the Apaches. Jones led all scorers with 21 points and added 6 assists. Lawson added 14 points and 6 rebounds; Tatar scored a season-high 10 points, shooting 50% from the 3-point line; and Paxixe poured in 12 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
Looking to get back in the win column, the Apaches traveled to Phoenix, AZ to take on the Cougars of South Mountain. Cochise ended the game with 5 Apaches scoring in double figures; Freshman Clara Gonzalez led the team in scoring and filled the stat sheet with 15 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 6 steals. Freshman Fortuna Ngnawo helped lead the charge with 15 points. Sophomore Deja Jones also filled the stat sheet with 14 points, 5 assists, and 5 steals. Freshman Chana Paxixe and Sophomore Tatjana Tatar also scored in double figures with 10 and 11 points respectively.
At the end of the game, the scoreboard displayed an 88-50 win for the Apaches and the Apaches moved to 16-3 overall. The Apaches begin round 2 of ACCAC play Wednesday, January 25th, and travel to Yuma. AZ to take on Arizona Western College at 7:30 pm. This game will air live on ESPN+. Saturday, January 28th the Apaches will travel to Glendale, AZ to take on Glendale Community College at 4:00 pm.