The Winslow Bulldogs won two games and lost three in the Pepsi Invitational Tournament played in Flagstaff over the weekend. This tournament has proven before to be a good preparation for regular season play as the competition against larger schools is helpful. Two of Winslow’s losses were to a tough Copper Canyon Aztec team and the third to Catalina Foothills. The Bulldogs defeated Mohave and Hopi. The Bulldogs ended the tournament with a 7-4 record for the young season.
Copper Canyon 61,
Winslow 52
The Bulldogs lost their opening game to the Copper Canyon Aztecs 61-53 on Thursday.
The Aztecs opened with a 21-13 lead after the first quarter of play and were up a whopping 35-16 at the half. Winslow had a good third quarter and cut the margin to 54-38 going into the final period. The Bulldogs continued to cut into the lead, but were too far down to make up the difference.
Ray von Johnson led Copper Canyon with 22 points and tied Tyler Williams of Winslow for game high honors. Kailin Robinson with 14 points, Rasheed Beyah with 12 points and Jaye Marshall with 10 were also in double figures for the Aztecs. Brennan James was also in double digits for the Bulldogs with 11 points.
Winslow 13 3 22 15 53
Copper Can 21 14 19 7 61
Winslow: Michael Goldtooth 2, Tyler Williams 22, Brennan James 11, Josh Denny 8, Lucas Shirley 2, Tremayne Nez 4, Donovan Warren 2 and Vittorio Sells 2.
Copper Canyon: Kailin Robinson 4, Jaye Marshall 10, Jim Stuart 9, Ray von Johnson 22, Andrew Bailey 2, Rasheed Bayhah 12 and Nathan Von Loon 2.
Winslow 48, Mohave 34
On Friday the Bulldogs defeated the Mohave Thunderbirds 48-34. Mohave led 9-7 after the first period, but Winslow was up 20-17 at the half and 36-29 after three quarters. Williams led the Winslow attack with 14 points. Tremayne Nez was also in double figures for the Bulldogs with 10 points and Josh Denny scored nine for Winslow. S. Dubois led Mohave with nine points.
Catalina Foothills 60,
Winslow 39
Next, the Bulldogs fell to the Catalina Foothills Falcons, 60-39. Catalina Foothills led 16-6 after the first quarter and 31-18 at the half. The Bulldogs cut the margin to 39-31 in the third quarter, but saw the Falcons pull away in the final period. Jolly Oballay led all scorers with 21 points for Catalina Foothills. Ryan McHenry was also in double figures for the Falcons with 10 points. Williams led the Bulldogs with 12 points. Michael Goldtooth scored eight points for Winslow.
Copper Canyon 55,
Winslow 39
A second game with the Copper Canyon Aztecs ended Winslow’s busy Friday activity with another loss, this one by a 55-39 margin. The first half was extremely close as the Aztecs led 11-8 after the first quarter and 23-22 at the intermission. The margin of victory came in the third quarter as the Aztecs built a 45-34 advantage and pulled away in the closing period. Von Johnson led all scorers with 20 points for Copper Canyon. Marshall scored 14 points for the Aztecs. Williams led Winslow with 16 points. Goldtooth and Nez each tallied nine for the Bulldogs.
Winslow 48, Hopi 39
The lone contest for the Bulldogs on Saturday resulted in a 48-39 victory over the Hopi Bruins. Winslow started strong and led 16-7 after the first quarter. Hopi cut the margin to 29-23 in the second period, but the Bulldogs led 39-30 after three quarters of play. Lucas Shirley led all scorers with 11 points for the Bulldogs. Tremaine Begay led Hopi with 10 points. Brandon Barton had nine points for the Bruins. Williams scored nine points for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs are slated to play the Blue Ridge Yellowjackets on Tuesday, Dec. 13, in Lakeside and the Williams Vikings on Friday, Dec. 16, in Williams. They will be at Page on Tuesday, Dec. 20, to meet the Sand Devils in their last action before Christmas.
