By Greg Perkins The Roadrunners have fallen on tough times. A three-game skid last week has really jeopardized their chances of qualifying for the 3A state tournament this year. With four games left on the schedule, the Roadrunners will more than likely need to run the table and get some outside help to climb into the 16-team state tournament bracket. Hosting unbeaten Snowflake on Tuesday, the Roadrunners struggled against the Lobos defense through the first three periods, netting seven points in each of those frames. They scored 19 in the fourth, but the Lobo lead was too much to overcome. Noah Brown led Holbrook with 10; Quentin Thomas added 9, Tapaha, 9; Nick Begay, 7; and Damien Clark helped with 5. Holbrook made five three-point field goals and connected on seven of 13 charity tosses. Snowflake was paced by Noah Baum’s 11 points. The Lobos made no three-point field goals and hit on eight of 12 free throws. The following night Holbrook was in Springerville taking on the one-win Round Valley Elks. By the time the night was over Round Valley had their second win of the season thanks to a 65-64 come-from-behind win over the Birds in the dome. Holbrook was on fire from the perimeter, making 11 three-point field goals, four from senior guard Anthony Nelson, but on the defensive end the Birds struggled with Round Valley’s size in the paint. Treyson Merrell scored a game-high 26 points helping the Elks upset the Roadrunners by a point. Holbrook went three for 11 at the free-throw line really hurting their chances for a win. Thomas led three Roadrunners in double figures with 13 points. Nelson and Tapaha each had 12, sharing eight three-point field goals between them. Brown finished with nine as did Caden Tom. Clark added 5, and Begay helped with 4. Friday night in Payson Holbrook again found themselves in a close game. With the Roadrunners connecting from three-point land, especially in the second half where they canned seven of their 10 treys they stayed close with the Longhorns who got a career night from Hunter Lee. Lee finished with a game high 27 points. Teammate Easton Redford added 19. Their first meeting just three weeks prior saw Holbrook dominate the Longhorns, 52-19. This time it took overtime, but Payson netted 70 points in the 70-65 overtime win. Holbrook got good scoring from Brown who scored all 17 of his points in the first half. In the second Thomas took over pouring in 11 of his team-high 19 in the final two periods. Tapaha netted 15; Begay canned three treys for 9; Nelson finished with 5; Clark, 2, and Malik Bahe added 2. Holbrook did not score in the overtime period. The Roadrunners made 15 of 20 free throws and again shot well from deep, connecting on 10 three-point field goals. Payson made seven of 14 free throws and hit on just two treys, with one of them coming in overtime. After hosting a talented Winslow team on Tuesday, the Roadrunners will host Show Low on Friday night. On Saturday they are scheduled for a long trip to Chino Valley. Next Tuesday Holbrook will close out the regular season with a home game against Page. If they can’t win all four remaining games, Page may also be their final game of the season. Holbrook heads into this week’s action with an overall record of 4-8.
