Author: Travis Armstrong

There’s a small school just off of the highway, as you drive through Ft Thomas in Southeastern Arizona.  If you blink, you may just miss it, such as many small schools around the state.  If you are fortunate enough to get into their gym and meet Coach Lee Haws, you’ll immediately realize why he’s such a perfect fit to run the school’s sports program as the Athletic Director and the Head Coach of the Ladies’ basketball team.  I first met Coach Haws when he brought his team up to our summer tournament.  He greeted me with a smile and a…

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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…

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Shay Ijiwoye is Arizona’s top freshman prospect and is highly ranked among the nation’s finest ball players, and her character is even higher than her on court skills.   Shay has been playing 17u basketball since she was 12, and since she was 12, she has been able to not only compete, but, in most cases, control the court against other players usually 4-5 years older than her.  That’s quite a statement for an athlete, and a statement that the world should pay attention to.  Her father told me “She’s grown up with Arizona Elite and we love them.”  I recently…

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I love to see the lesser known smaller school competitors emerge as the season unfolds, and especially during this Covid-stricken season, and hits playoff mode.  Covid squashed many seasons before they got the chance to start. I’m curious to see who will step into the spotlight… 3A –  The 3A is REAL and likely going to be won by Page High School.  Page is pretty much the only school from the usually 3A dominating Northern Rez schools competing this year, because of the Covid-19 issues.  Page is well coached and very very tough to beat. Senior Torrance Begay and junior…

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Miyah Verse is a 15-year old sophomore that plays for the Arizona Elite. She is among the state’s elite-level talents and is on the rise in the state, after averaging 13.5 points and 9.7 rebounds per/game as a freshman. That’s the plain, on paper stats that many like to talk about when talking about an athlete. Well I wanted to meet Miyah and see her on the court before putting pen to paper. The number of female athletes dunking a basketball are likely counted on less than the (10) fingers I have, and I have yet to see more than…

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Scottsdale’s Notre Dame Prep Ladies Basketball has a new coach this year. Dell Mims has taken the job and has serious intentions to develop a squad that makes noise, competes, aims for the ship and teaches these young athletes the game of life – on and off the court. Coach Mims has been excited for the process, so much in fact that he had tons of specifics about each individual player to share. Coach went on to share the following “This year we have great senior leadership that set the tone for the underclassmen in the program,” said Mims.…

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Naomi Hernandez is a senior guard at Valley Lutheran High School.  This past Friday night she set a new school scoring record.   Naomi has increased her scoring each year and is sitting a shade under 25 points per/game this season, but Naomi isn’t just a basketball player. Like so many other small-school athletes, she has been a key player on her volleyball and softball teams, and above all, an excellent student with a 4.0 CUM GPA.  Her head coach, Ed Measel, has had nothing but great things to say about her on and off the court.   I talked to coach…

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Sophomore guard Amelie Cartagena plays for the 2020 4A State Champs, Seton Catholic High School, and also the Arizona Elite 16U club program.  Playing for a state championship team as a freshman isn’t easy, but Amelie did, and had some nice numbers to show for it. She helped lead Seton to an impressive 26-3 overall record last season, and a state title, while also making her AZ Elite 16U team a very tough team to beat also.   Amelie is a tough guard that sees the floor well, which makes it impressive when she’s distributing the ball.  She is also an…

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Mesquite High School’s senior combo-guard Gaby Solis is a tough guard who sees the court well, and often facilitates the offense for the Mesquite lady’s team. Make no mistake about it, she’s also a tough defender – limiting opponents to dismal scoring outings, as well as finding their pockets picked clean. Gaby has come up learning from one of the better programs in the Division – a team that’s produced some of the states top talent over the years. Last year as a junior, Gaby had some dependable numbers as a starter. Gaby played in the Arizona Preps 22nd Annual Fall…

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Rori Hoffmeyer is a gifted 6-foot-1 sophomore student-athlete that plays for Cibola High School in Yuma, Arizona. Positioned down in the very Southwest corner of Arizona, Cibola High School has a tougher time than many valley schools getting exposure, and especially for the level of talent that is usually all over the media. I caught up with Rori at the Arizona Preps 22nd Annual Fall Showcase, and as I spoke with Rori, I realized that she was so selfless, and hadn’t thought of what to say about herself . Instead, she spoke highly of her teammates. A breath of fresh…

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