All-Tribune First Team
Name School Pos. Yr. Comment
Chantel Osahor St. Mary’s F Sr. POY dominated in variety of ways; committed to Washington
Sydney Wiese Pinnacle G Sr. Heart of D1 runners-up averaged 18.5 points, 5.2 assists, 2.5 steals, shot 51%, 43% from 3
Casey Rarrick Saguaro G Jr. Averaged 18.4 points, 4.1 steals, 3.7 rebounds, 3.2 assists for D-II champs
Katie Werner Xavier F Sr. Yale-bound star averaged 24.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 steals, shot 52%
Courtney Ekmark St. Mary’s G Jr. UConn commit averaged 19.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 steals for D-I champions
Player of the Year: Chantel Osahor, St. Mary’s
Coach of the Year: Chris Young, Saguaro — The Sabercats entered the Division II state tournament as a No. 8 seed and dispatched Flowing Wells in the finals for the title.
All-Tribune Second Team
Name School Pos. Yr. Comment
Dominique Williams St. Mary’s G Sr. Spearheaded the Knights’ deadly full-court press; UCLA commit
Aliyah Dickson Hamilton F Sr. Averaged 13.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.4 steals, 3.1 assists for D1 semifinalists
Katherine Hamilton Dobson F Sr. San Diego commit averaged 12.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.8 steals
Julia Barcello Seton Catholic F Jr. Averaged 12.5 points, 11.5 rebounds to lead Sentinels to D2 semis
Kaylah Lupoe Mountain Pointe F Jr. Averaged 12.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.0 blocks, 2.0 steals, shot 50%
Honorable mention
Apache Junction: Lindsey Streibech, Jr., G; Arcadia: Andrea Goulette, So., G; Kylie Herd, Sr., F; Basha: Hayley Pryor, Jr., F; Campo Verde: Stephanie Orji, Sr., F; Cori Ramos, Sr., G; Chandler: Jazmyne Bartee, Sr., F; Jesse Ossian, Sr., G; Chaparral: Alex Gilligan, Sr. G; Corona del Sol: Lauren Lucky, Sr., F; Desert Mountain: Noell Kellers, So., G; Desert Vista: Kristine Anigwe, So., F; Emily Wolph, Jr., G; Dobson: Tori Lloyd, Jr., G; Miyah Leith, Jr., G; Gilbert Christian: Colleen Young, Jr., G; Hamilton: Ashlee Moore, Jr., G; Kyndall Adams, Sr., F; Highland: Olivia Lucero, Sr., G; Megan Brown Sr., F; Melinda Myers, Jr., F; Higley: Sydnie Martindale, So., F; Horizon: Andie Easley, So., G; Marcos de Niza: Sydnie Lengyel, Sr., F; Jorie Mayfield, Jr. G; McClintock: Marquel Angel, Sr., G; Mesa: Carley Turnbull, Fr., G; Mesquite: Cecily Wilson, Jr., G; Mountain Pointe: Caitlyn Hetrick; Sr., F; Mountain View: Armani Hawkins, So., G; Sabrina Haines, So., G; Poston Butte: Angela Andrews, Sr., F; Pinnacle: Britta Nordstrom, Sr., F; Kenna McDavis, Sr., F; Queen Creek: Makaily Worthington, Sr., F; Sarah Hefington, Sr., F; Red Mountain: Gabrielle Wallace, Jr., F; Saguaro: Naomi Reyes, Jr., F; Jelani Huma, So., G; Seton Catholic: Anne Marie Holter, Sr., G; St. Mary’s: Danielle Williams, Sr., G; Chloe Johnson, Sr., G; Tempe Prep: Marissa Rich, Sr., F; Camille Zimmerman, Jr., F; Valley Christian: Tana Kemmer, Sr., G; Abby Labahn, Sr., F; Westwood: Kianna Islas, Sr., F; Williams Field: Arianna Barnes, So., G.
Memorable moments from the 2012-13 season
St. Mary’s three-peats: It wasn’t as easy as a year ago, but the Knights used a big second half to cruise past Pinnacle for their third consecutive state title. It was arguably the greatest run by a group of girls in the state’s history, as the team’s five Division I-bound seniors won three championships and made the title game as freshmen. It will be a new look at St. Mary’s next season with Courtney Ekmark the only significant returner, but this group won’t soon be forgotten.
Saguaro turns it up: The Sabercats weren’t even the favorite to win their sectional, but an upset of Seton in the finals bumped them to a No. 8 seed and grabbed an important state tournament first-round bye. From there, Saguaro got even hotter, knocking off Washington, top-seeded Bradshaw Mountain and No. 5 Liberty to advance to the championship game. Casey Rarrick had 15 points in the finals as the Sabercats captured the first girls basketball title in school history with a 49-38 win over Flowing Wells. Rarrick, Naomi Reyes and Jelani Huma will all be back next year as Saguaro now has visions of a repeat.
Holter injury handicaps Seton Catholic: The Sentinels were rolling right along through the first half of the season, and a fourth consecutive championship seemed within reach. However, standout point guard Anne Marie Holter tore her anterior cruciate ligament on Jan. 29, which greatly hurt the team’s chances. Seton Catholic still finished the year 30-5 and won a pair of playoff games, but lost to Flowing Wells, 41-34, in the Division II semifinals.
Mesquite-Highland barnburners: The Hawks only lost three of 35 games this year and made it to the Division I semifinals, but had trouble shaking Mesquite in the postseason. The teams met early in the section tournament, and the Wildcats had a nine-point lead midway through the fourth quarter before Highland rallied for the 42-41 win. The squads met again in the second round of the state tournament, and Highland again escaped with a 31-30 victory.
Reach Kyle Odegard at (480) 898-6834 or kodegard@evtrib.com. Follow his blog at http://blogs.evtrib.com/varsityxtra, or find him on Twitter @Kyle_Odegard.
Prolific0ne posted at 7:54 pm on Fri, Mar 22, 2013.
How can a player who was only selected to the 2nd team in their section and a non-committed senior, be put on the All-AZ 2nd team over a player who was Section1st team, City player of the year and a D-1 commit?
allsports posted at 2:55 pm on Sun, Mar 24, 2013.
We have learned that the selection for these teams is "an imperfect process". The decision is often based more heavily on stats than actually watching the players in action. Stats are a piece of the puzzle, but in no way define a player's full court ability. The process is subjective and often leaves talented team players out of the mix.