Mesquite at Seton: A Wild Finish
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Thursday January 11th I attended the 4A matchup of #3 Mesquite Wildcats at #1 Seton Catholic Sentinels. It was a wild finish to say the least. Seton led almost from start to finish until Kahlia Gonzales Kahlia Gonzales 5'5" |…
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Continue ReadingThursday January 11th I attended the 4A matchup of #3 Mesquite Wildcats at #1 Seton Catholic Sentinels.
It was a wild finish to say the least. Seton led almost from start to finish until Kahlia Gonzales Kahlia Gonzales 5'5" | PG Mesquite | 2025 State AZ hit a 3 under a minute to give them their 1st lead at 32-31.
Sophie Morales Sophie Morales 5'4" | PG Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ hit a floater to give Seton a 33-32 lead with 27 seconds to play and Navae Guidry Navae Guidry 5'11" | SF Mesquite | 2025 State AZ converted two FT’s to give the Wildcats a 34-33 lead. Seton ended up winning 35-34 at the buzzer by Mia DiPuccio Mia DiPuccio 6'0" | PF Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ in dramatic fashion.
The officiating the entire night was not the greatest. Many questionable calls and the last play was in question as the clock operator delayed starting the clock all together.
Regardless of the outcome, it was a great game from start to finish for two teams who can easily win it all in 4A or be one of the final-8 teams in the OPEN.
Before the Varsity game I took in the JV game led by mostly freshmen.
Here were some of the JV standouts
Tracey Ineza Tracey Ineza 5'7" | PF Seton Catholic | 2027 State AZ Seton Catholic
A good sized freshman forward plays physically and can rebound and score. She will rip thru and will score effectively around the rim. The lefty forward rebounds well in her area with high effort.
Skylie Gonzales Skylie Gonzales 5'4" | PG Mesquite | 2027 State AZ Mesquite
A point guard with a tight handle who can score. She has quick hands and is a good passer. Shes uses her open court speed and quick burst to get downhill to the rim and the youngest Gonzales daughter has skill.
Mary Allen PG 5’3 Jr Mesquite
A scoring PG is undersized but fast in the open court. She scores layups with her left or right hand. She rebounds well despite her size and is quick on the ball defensively. She uses her right hand often but has a fast burst into the lane with a polished runner.
Naliyah Guidry Naliyah Guidry 5'5" | PG Mesquite | 2027 State AZ Mesquite
A defensive point guard is a great passer and ball handler. She can be a future ball hawk on defense with good lateral quickness. She really sees the court well and throws girls open to score. She can blow by to the basket or shoot it from the perimeter.
Isabella Solis Isabella Solis 5'3" | PG Mesquite | 2027 State AZ Mesquite
A quick point guard is a catch shooter. She is a good passer up the court and has quick feet to stay with her opponents. She made multiple catch threes with a fast release.
Jensen Cowart Jensen Cowart 5'10" | PF Mesquite | 2027 State AZ Mesquite
The freshman forward dominated this game from start to finish with about 30 points. She moves well from end to end and is deceptively quick. She scores it multiple ways with contested shots with either hand, cuts to the rim, drop steps and outraced her opponents many times. She is super aggressive on defense with her strength and is great in the passing lanes.
Lizzie Norton Lizzie Norton 5'8" | SF Mesquite | 2027 State AZ Mesquite
A face-up wing handles it, makes good decisions with the ball and rebounds. She can step out and shoot the three, crab dribble to the rim and stop and pop from mid-range. She is very fluid to move in space on defense and will even block a shot or two.
Here were some of the Varsity standouts
Mia DiPuccio Mia DiPuccio 6'0" | PF Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ Seton Catholic
A physical power forward uses her size and strength to her advantage. She scores it by facing up to the three and working inside. She is efficient inside sealing her defender, using drop steps, has the mid-range J and will crab dribble to score. On top of that, she hit the shot at the buzzer to win the game.
Sophie Morales Sophie Morales 5'4" | PG Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ Seton Catholic
A throw back pure point guard makes pocket passes look normal and made a couple ropes up the court. She is also a good post entry passer to her bigs. She plays at a different pace than most and understands how to change speeds. She will score on blow-by layups with her right hand and made a huge floater under a minute. She is tough to rebound despite size and is very disruptive on defense.
Caitlyn Benally Caitlyn Benally 6'0" | PF Seton Catholic | 2024 State AZ Seton Catholic
The lone senior starter for the Sentinels is a strong post player. Shes knows how to seal her opponents and go to work or get fouled. She is hard to handle in the paint one on one with reverse layup and tough contested shots. She also made a few beautiful passes up the court. She is a strong two-handed rebounder in her area with her broader shoulders.
Carmella Gallardo Carmella Gallardo 5'8" | SG Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ Seton Catholic
The clear sniper of the team is Carmella. She has a quick release on her catch and shoot triples with range. She will rebound inside and has quick hands to rip some pockets.
Raigan Gregston Raigan Gregston 6'1" | PF Seton Catholic | 2025 State AZ Seton Catholic
A taller forward makes her money on the defensive end. She moves her feet well for her size and position to defend guards and wings. She boxes out and rebounds with her great size and long arms plus will blocks shots. She moves the ball quickly and plays within herself. A perfect glue player for the Sentinels.
Navae Guidry Navae Guidry 5'11" | SF Mesquite | 2025 State AZ Mesquite
One of the mismatch players in all of 4A is a tough cover. She gets to her spots with her tighter handle for position and will score or cash in on her free throws. She utilizes multiple counter moves to score and absorbs the contact. She has an elite motor to rebound in and out of her area and holds her ground in the paint to defend taller players.
Kahlia Gonzales Kahlia Gonzales 5'5" | PG Mesquite | 2025 State AZ Mesquite
The pure point guard in the starting unit is Gonzales. She has a tight handle and can crossover to get the defense off of her. She can step back and shoot the three off the dribble. She will burst to get downhill to score and boxes out strongly to rebound. She made a clutch three under a minute to give them their first lead of the game. She is as steady as it gets.
Vanessa Rae Sepulveda Vanessa Rae Sepulveda 5'7" | SG Mesquite | 2024 State AZ Mesquite
The Wildcats lone senior starter is a natural scorer. Her handle allows her to gain separation from her defenders and will crossover into a pull-up or get to the free throw line. She is a very good passer to slip into the paint after she bursts into the lane, as not many defenders were able to stay in front of her.
Pippa Krieger Pippa Krieger 6'1" | PF Mesquite | 2025 State AZ Mesquite
A face-up power forward has a pretty touch from the perimeter. She is a plus rebounder for position and will block shots. She can rattle in threes off the catch with a quick release and plays a smart brand of ball.