Snowflake entered Friday’s game at Holbrook ranked seventh in the 3A rankings but playing in front of a fired-up crowd at Munoz Gym, the Lobos quickly found themselves trailing the Roadrunners 16-8 in the first. Holbrook netted three treys in the opening frame while the Lobos picked up four points from Steward West.
The second period saw Kobi Koerperich drain three of his five treys and Eric Baldonado hit four traditional field goals pushing the Birds to a 34-16 halftime edge.
Snowflake got two-point field goals from four different players in the period.
The Lobos played better in the third with Devin Willis netting seven points. Holbrook’s Baldonado hit four more two-point field goals and Holbrook extended their lead to 51-30.
In the fourth, Snowflake outscored Holbrook by six points with Noah Baum hitting a pair of treys and Willis added five more to his total but the damage had been done. Holbrook won the game on senior night with their two senior stars, Koerperich and Baldonado combining for 46 points.
Baldonado led the Birds with 25 points. Koerperich added 21; fellow senior Ethan Bahe, 9; Anthony Nelson, 8; and Damien Clark finished with 2. Holbrook made eight three-point field goals and went 11 for 16 at the line.
Snowflake was led by Willis with 14 points. Baum added 10, Patrik Henderson had 8; Stewart West, 7; Troy Brinkerhoff, 4; McKay Wood, 2; Michael Brimhall, 2; and Ricky Munger finished with two.
The Lobos made a pair of three-point field goals and hit 13 of 19 charity tosses. Snowflake moved to 11-5 in regular season games. They will most likely drop a little when the new rankings are released on Tuesday morning.
The Lobos picked up a win earlier in the week on Feb. 4, easily taking care of Payson 71-37 at home. Snowflake will wrap up the regular season this week. After facing Show Low at Blue Ridge High School on Tuesday, they will host Winslow on Friday night. Snowflake’s final two game results may determine if they get a first-round bye in the upcoming state tournament, which gets under way on Wednesday of next week for the 3A Boys.
With Holbrook’s win they improved to 12-5 on the season and will most likely move up one spot from their ninth place ranking prior to the game. After playing at 13th ranked Blue Ridge on Monday night, the Roadrunners will close out the regular season on Thursday when they face Show Low at Mogollon High School. The Roadrunners moved to 19-8 on the season.
