Prior to the start of the girls basketball season, Sedona Red Rock High School coach Kirk Westervelt promised that his team would defend hard from baseline to baseline. In the team’s home opener against Trivium Prep on Monday, Dec. 9, SRRHS delivered just that.
The Sedona defense was on point all game, keeping the Crimson Knights to three points or fewer in three of the four quarters. That was more than enough for the Scorpions to come away with a blowout win, defeating Trivium 61-18.
“We communicated really well and were able to move quickly and moved together as a team — move together as one,” freshman Annabelle Cook said of her team’s defensive effort.
“We are just fundamentally tight right now,” sophomore Hannah Lanchbury added. “If we keep that up then we’re going to keep getting steals throughout the season and we’re not going to let it get passed half court.”
The strong SRRHS defense was of particular importance in the early minutes of the game. Despite the lopsided final score, the Scorpions struggled to generate consistent offense early, with only six points on the board more than halfway into the opening quarter. With the defense, though, Sedona never trailed.
Eventually things picked up on the offensive end, as well. The Scorpions got some separation late in the first quarter, opening up a 14-2 lead at the end of it. They were even more dominant in the second, outscoring the Crimson Knights 21-3 to take a commanding 35-5 lead at halftime.
“In the first quarter we played slow. We didn’t play how we normally do — with energy,” freshman Helen Westervelt said. “But we picked up pace towards the end when we started to know where the ball was at.”
Westervelt led the Scorpions with 16 points on the night. Cook had 12, as did Lanchbury coming off of the bench. Nine of Lanchbury’s points came in the second quarter.
Even during their struggles in the opening minutes, the Scorpions had plenty of chances to put the ball in the hoop. After the first few minutes though, the majority of those chances were cashed in on — something the coach attributed to his team’s patience.
“We stayed with the process and kept running the plays,” coach Westervelt said. “I know that we missed probably six two-footers in the first three minutes. But that’s nerves. They’re playing at home in front of their classmates. But they kept running the plays. When the first option wasn’t there, they went to the second or third option.”
The win evened the Scorpions record at 1-1 on the young season.
Fans will have plenty of chances to see the SRRHS girls in action over the next few days. The Scorpions will host the Sedona Invitational Basketball Tournament on Friday, Dec. 13 and Saturday, Dec. 14.
Sedona will play three games on Friday, opening with Window Rock — the No. 2 ranked team in 3A — at 10:30 a.m. The Scorpions will then take on Kingman at 3 p.m. and Cicero Prep at 6 p.m. The results of those games will determine Saturday’s times and opponents. Following the tournament, Sedona will not be at home again until after Christmas when they host Camp Verde on Friday, Jan. 10 at 5:30 p.m.
“We’d love to get more people out if we can, more of the community,” coach Westervelt said. “We’re the only game in town and we’re cheap.”
