Under the Radar: Arizona 6A Southwest Region

With the 2021-2022 high school basketball season starting up this week, let’s take a little bit of time to look back on the last season and some of the elite players that may have fallen a little Under the Radar in the state of Arizona Class AAAAAA Southwest region. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="214599" first="Halle" last="Bryan"] - Senior - Shadow Ridge High School </strong> Captain for the Shadow Ridge Lady Stallions, [player_tooltip player_id="214599" first="Halle" last="Bryan"] will be returning to the court for the last time to start off her senior season. The shooting guard averaged 8.2 points per game and 5.4 rebounds per game throughout the 2020-2021 school year. Even though the team as a whole went 6-13 for the season, Bryan stood out above the rest in a few different games. Halle had an outstanding game against Maricopa where she scored 17 points and brought down 10 defensive boards. This was her only double-double for the year but I am looking forward to seeing more of where that came from. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="65617" first="Olivia" last="Arvallo"] - Junior - 5’6" - Valley Vista High School </strong> Arvallo is a five-foot-six combo guard that plays for the Valley Vista Lady Monsoon. She will be starting off her junior year during the 2021-2022 basketball season after coming off of an extremely successful 17-1 overall record last year and becoming the Arizona 6A State Champions. Throughout her sophomore season, Olivia played in all 18 games and averaged 5.8 points, 2.2 assists, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.7 steals all PER GAME! In two games this season #0 finished with double-digit points and a high-scoring game of 18 points against Chandler late in the year. In the championship game against Hamilton, Arvallo had 8 points, one defensive rebound, 2 assists, one steal, and one block. The Lady Monsoon will be the team to beat again this year. <strong>Julianna Jordan - Senior - 5’11" - Shadow Ridge High School </strong> The five-foot-eleven power forward, Julianna Jordan, for the Shadow Ridge Lady Stallions will be returning for the last time to begin her senior year. Last season Jordan averaged 5.1 points per game and 4.2 rebounds per game to help her team throughout the tough season. Although it may have not gone fully according to plan, Julianna used her length and size to literally "stand above the rest". In a big win early last season against North Canyon, she finished the game with 10 points, 8 offensive rebounds, and 1 defensive, along with one steal. Jordan is a well-rounded, solid player that can get the job done on both ends of the floor. <strong>Sofia Nieto - Junior - 5’8" - Sunnyslope High School </strong> Nieto will be starting her first season as an upperclassman this year for the Sunnyslope Lady Vikings after a tough go in the Southwest region during 2020-2021. She averaged 5.9 points per game and 1.7 rebounds per game to help lead her team to a handful of big wins. Sofia scored 83 points last season and more than half of those points came from behind the arc. #22 knocked down 21 three-pointers over the course of the year for 34%. After having two solid years playing at this elite level, there is no doubt in my mind that the junior combo guard will have a stellar season. <strong>Ellie Frye - Junior - 5’10" - Sunnyslope High School </strong> Captain, Ellie Frye is another upcoming junior for the Sunnyslope Lady Vikings that made a name for herself as an underclassman in the Class AAAAAA Southwest region. Last season, Frye averaged 4.8 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game. She also was able to average at least one assist per game, as well. The five-foot-ten wing plays hard on both ends of the court and will help give her team the energy that they may need in the middle of a game. In a tough loss last February against Shadow Ridge, Ellie scored 17 points, secured 8 defensive rebounds, 2 assists, and one steal throughout the matchup. A solid player with a good basketball IQ.