Window Rock, Page, Tuba City Girls Advance in Copper State Championship

Window Rock’s girls basketball program moved deeper into the AIA Copper State Championship with a 68-56 victory over No. 11 Joseph City in an opening-round game played at the Bee Hółdzil Fighting Scouts Events Center. The win, recorded in the first round on Tuesday, Feb. 10, sent the No. 6 Fighting Scouts into the quarterfinals and kept a key portion of Apache County’s high school basketball scene in postseason play.

The original game report highlighted freshman Tiana Edison’s drive past defenders as a momentum play for Window Rock. Season context from local coverage shows the Fighting Scouts average 50 points per game, with Edison leading the team at 14.8 points per game and senior Kourtney Bitselley at 11.7 points per game. The Window Rock victory appears on the WMICentral bracket as “No. 6 Window Rock 68, No. 11 Joseph City 56.”

Across the bracket, No. 8 Page beat No. 9 Mohave Accelerated 58-21, and No. 2 Tuba City edged No. 15 Round Valley 56-50. WMICentral’s first-round summary lists the other winners as No. 1 Snowflake (55-29 over Pusch Ridge), No. 5 San Carlos (51-42 over Yuma Catholic), No. 4 Valley Christian (81-47 over Fort Thomas), No. 3 Pima (58-43 over Alchesay) and No. 7 St. Johns (51-40 over Fountain Hills).

St. Johns’ win included a 12-point, eight-rebound effort from sophomore Alyvia Richardson and 10 points, eight rebounds and four assists from senior Evannah Richardson, a line captured in WMICentral’s game text: “Sophomore Alyvia Richardson scored 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds and senior added Evannah Richardson 10 points, eight rebounds and four assists as No. 7 St. Johns beat No. 10 Fountain Hills 51-40 in the first round of the AIA Girls Basketball Copper State Championship at St. Johns on Feb. 10.” WMICentral’s bracket lists team records of 28-4 for St. Johns and 25-3 for Tuba City, while Snowflake’s bracket entry shows 28-1.

Quarterfinal matchups were set for Thursday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m., with pairings on the bracket reading: No. 8 Page at No. 1 Snowflake; No. 5 San Carlos at No. 4 Valley Christian; No. 6 Window Rock at No. 3 Pima; and No. 7 St. Johns at No. 2 Tuba City. Semifinals were scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 21 at a site to be determined, and the championship final is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 28 at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum, with the final tip set for 6 p.m.

Local media and radio will continue to be part of the playoff mix. GilaValleyCentral framed the stakes succinctly: “Win and stay on the Copper Open path. Lose and head back to conference tournament play.” The outlet also advised fans to “Hear tonight’s game on KATO 1230AM in the Gila Valley,” underscoring how radio coverage and community attention follow these postseason runs.

For Apache County fans, Window Rock’s victory and the advances by Page and Tuba City keep familiar rivalries alive and maintain travel and broadcast interest through February. The Fighting Scouts’ mix of freshman scoring from Tiana Edison and veteran play from Kourtney Bitselley offers a clear storyline as the bracket tightens on the way to the Feb. 28 final at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.