The Lady Roadrunners picked up two big wins at the close of the week. Hosting rival Winslow on Thursday night in front of a packed house Holbrook started well and continued that effort through four periods in a 64-31 win over the Bulldogs. A 21 point first period performance set the tone for the game. Eight different Lady Roadrunners scored in the opening frame with three-point shots coming from Elena Smith and Tyanna Johnson. Dakota Dick netted seven in the second period helping Holbrook open up a 36-17 half-time margin. Holbrook’s lead grew in the third, and in the fourth they limited Winslow to just three points in the win. “The team played well. I think we caught Winslow on an off night and expect our next meeting to be much tougher. Rayanna has stepped into the starting role and has played well in the past few games. Dakota came off the bench in this game and really stepped her game up as well. Tyanna and Matehya both continue to contribute and Madison is just a beast on the floor regardless if she is scoring or not. This was a nice East Region win, which gives us a leg up for the region crown but there are still several games to be played including a trip to Winslow,” said Holbrook Coach Greg Perkins. Rayanna Wauneka paced Holbrook in scoring with 15 points. Johnson added 10; Dick, 9; Tyler Pacheco, 8; Smith, 6; Matehya Aberle, 6; Madison Chappell, 4; Tristen Ambrose, 2; Twyla Clark, 2; and Shilaine Gorman finished with 2 points in her first action of the season. Holbrook made 10 of 17 free throws and connected on six three-point shots. Winslow was led by Justin Butterfield with seven points. The Dawgs made seven of 12 charity tosses and did not connect from behind the arc. Holbrook headed to Valley Christian on Saturday morning as the third ranked team in 3A, but by the end of a solid performance the Lady Roadrunners came home ranked No. 2 after their 62-51 win over the Trojans. Holbrook’s win was their first ever over Valley Christian and also marked the first time in five years the Valley Christian has lost a home game. Both teams struggled somewhat in the first eight minutes, which ended with Holbrook on top 12-9. In the second, the Birds got things going. Johnson drained two long treys and Chappell got some key inside buckets. In the second, Holbrook opened up a double digit lead thanks to a defensive effort which limited the Trojans to just six points in the quarter. The third quarter was the deciding factor. Holbrook netted 23 points thanks to back-to-back treys from Smith and another six points from Pacheco. Aberle also played well in the period contributing seven key points during a big Holbrook run. Valley Christian, behind their outstanding point guard made a bit of a run midway through the fourth cutting a 22 point Holbrook lead to eight before the Birds eventually finished the game off. “The girls played well again for the most part. Our bench outscored theirs 18-0 which was key. We knew going in we had a deeper bench and they really stepped up. We also knew we would have to make shots from outside to break down their zone and we finished with 10 three pointers,” stated Coach Perkins. Seven different players scored between four and 12 points led by Smith and Wauneka with 12 each. Johnson and Aberle both had 9. Pacheco and Chappell each finished with 8. Chappell also controlled the boards finishing with 15 rebounds. Clark added 4 in the win. Valley Christians’ outstanding point guard Anna Smith was amazing. She beat double teams throughout the game to finish with a game high 28 points. “She is something else. We were fortunate to keep the rest of their team in check with our defense,” praised Perkins. With the two wins Holbrook improved their overall season record to 18-3, and they are now 10-1 in power point games leaving them No. 2 in the standings behind top ranked Ganado and just ahead of No. 3 Page. Valley Christian dropped from second to fourth in the rankings after the loss. After playing at Payson on Tuesday, the Lady Roadrunners will match up with third ranked Page at Munoz Gym on Saturday. Game times will be earlier than usual with the first games beginning at noon at both the high school and the junior high. The varsity girls are slated to begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday, with the varsity boys game to follow.