Stick to the game plan. Play your game.

They are clichés, but to Joseph City they mean much more.

Last year, the Wildcats didn’t stick to the plan, and it cost them for the second year in a row in their conference championship contests. On Friday, against a much improved Fort Thomas squad, Joseph City followed the plan to a T even when it was tested.

The reward was a 64-55 1A championship victory at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

“We finally got it,” Joseph City coach Dan Bushman said. “I think we were capable those other two years. We finally clicked and came together.

“It’s great to be here now. It’s what we’ve been talking about since about this date a year ago.”

With the experience and drive they returned, the top-seeded Wildcats (31-5) were determined to retrieve their first gold ball since 2001.

Four-year starter April Neill and three-year starter Gabrielle Jesmer along with six other players who have dressed for the program the last three-years finally can say they are champions.

The Wildcats are a united bunch. Helping the cause are two sets of sisters on the team.

The twin towers, Amber and Audrey Niell, and their older sister, April, scored 51 of their team’s 64 points. The Jesmers, Gabrielle, McKenzie and Samantha, also are valuable components.

“It’s amazing,” said April about winning the championship with her siblings. “It’s a memory we will never forget.”

Amber (24 points, 9 boards) and Audrey (20 points) led the way offensively for Joseph City, which was up by as many as 19 and outscored Fort Thomas 34-12 in the paint.

Joseph City’s defense, with eight steals (19 total) in the first quarter, also set the tone early. Adaia Lorenzo (five threes, 17 points) and Kaylee Benally tried their best to keep Fort Thomas (30-7) in the game.

Fort Thomas

But, in the end, the Wildcats followed the game plan just like Bushman kept preaching throughout the year.

Joseph City assistant Aaron Niell, a former Grand Canyon University basketball player, hugged his daugthers, April, Amber and Audrey, after they won the 1A title Friday. "We did it," Aaron said as he embraced his daughters. "We did it."