With football winding down, and volleyball and cross country now complete, area fans will be turning their attention indoors as their teams prepare for the winter sports seasons. Basketball and wrestling will be occupying the headlines for the next four months. Area schools have a rich tradition in boys’ and girls’ basketball, as well as wrestling.
Holbrook has won both a boys’ state basketball title and a wrestling title in the past four years. The girls’ basketball team is a perennial favorite for a deep post-season run, having made it to a final four and an elite eight in two of the past three years. The Roadrunner wrestling team is competing in Division III this year and will face stiff competition from bigger schools, but should remain competitive.
The Snowflake boys’ basketball team enters this year as the defending state champion in Division III and the girls’ team has also been to state the past two seasons. The Lobo wrestling team is always tough and will once again be considered one of the tougher contenders in Division IV.
The Joseph City girls’ basketball team has been a constant member of the state tournament bracket and the boys’ team is hoping to make a return to the post-season after missing out on the playoffs in recent years. The wrestling program is traditionally very tough, although this year the Wildcats will be competing against some larger schools, as teams like Snowflake and Winslow will be in the same division.
Winter sports in Winslow means Lady Bulldog basketball. Once again Winslow will be considered to be post-season favorite despite having somewhat of a younger team. The boys’ team will be looking to return to the state playoffs after making it into the second round last season. The Bulldogs also have a strong wrestling team, which will compete in Division IV along with Snowflake and Joseph City.
The majority of the wrestling teams get their seasons underway in the first week of December.
Basketball teams will open the season either the week of Thanksgiving or the first of December.
Holbrook and Snowflake will meet in a pre-season scrimmage on Thursday, Nov. 19, at Muñoz Gym.
The Roadrunners then open the season the following Monday with a road trip to Alchesay.
Snowflake officially begins the season on Tuesday, Dec. 1, with a trip to Payson for both the boys and the girls.
The Winslow boys will play at Flagstaff on Dec. 1, while the girls will travel to Safford that day.
Both Joseph City basketball teams will be in Williams on Tuesday, Nov. 24, for the opening of their seasons.
