With the start to the AIA Playoffs for many of the high school varsity girl's programs in the state on Tuesday evening, here is a recap from the first round by girl's Arizona Preps' scout Travis Armstrong . . .
6A - Teams that were expected to win did just that, with the exception of #7 seed Highland losing to #10 seed Rincon. The highlight game of Round 1 was #6 seed Mesa winning in OT vs #11 seed Pinnacle. Mesa's Coach Fonseca has her girls well-coached, and they managed to fight off Pinnacle's best efforts.
5A - Every top seed won and by convincing margins. Round 2 will definitely have some must-watch games.
4A - #8 seed Estrella Foothills vs #9 seed Coconino was a close one! Estrella was edged out by Coconino at the final buzzer, 49-52. Much the same as 5A, as all of the other top seeds won handily in their 1st round match-ups.
3A - #8 seed Yuma Catholic scrapped their way to a narrow 45-44 win over #9 seed Gilbert Christian, while the rest of the games were walkaways.
2A - The “play in,” as they’re calling the first round, was full of landslides, with the exception of #16 seed Scottsdale Prep's 37-29 victory over #17 seed Kingman Academy.
1A - A couple close games between #8 seed Joseph City and #9 seed San Manuel, 47-43. #4 seed Williams nearly was upset by #13 seed Mayer, 54-51. Aside from those two close games, it was business as usual for the 1A.