PHOENIX — Capping an incredible season after what coach Mike Brogan called an “underachieving” team in the last few years, Snowflake girls basketball is back on top for the first time in nearly three decades.

With only one player in double-digit scoring, the Lobos (30-5, 8-2 3A East) used a 19-4 first quarter run to propel them to a 3A state championship, beating Cinderella-hopeful Payson 48-37 in the finale Saturday.

The Longhorns knocked off No. 1-seeded Chinle in the Final Four on Friday night, 53-51, but were unable to recreate the magic one more time.

“It means everything. You can see the emotion; this has been a long journey. We’ve underachieved the last couple of years,” Brogan said about his club’s first title since 1997, adding that the team takes a trip to Colorado every summer and it is there they set out to achieve greatness.

“We have individual talks with all of the girls. We set this as a goal at that time. They put a lot of work in. I was trying to see how many hours we’ve put in, and it’s well in the hundreds that we put in from that time to achieve this goal,” Brogan said.

In the first quarter, Snowflake shot 41.7% from the field but were 8 of 11 from the free-throw line and outrebounded the rival Longhorns 16-3, setting the stage for a 3A state championship game in which the Lobos never trailed.

Payson (27-7, 10-0 3A Metro) committed 24 turnovers and surrendered 23 points off those mistakes. The Lobos outrebounded them 39-29 and recorded 16 steals compared to the Longhorns’ three.

Brogan said he wasn’t surprised that Payson upset No. 1-seeded Chinle the night before, having seen them lose to Page 48-45 in the Open Copper Division in mid-February. Page, also a 3A club, is set to play Phoenix Country Day for the Copper title later Saturday night.

“We got here, we wanted to play Chinle because that’s the one team on our schedule that has beaten us, and we were looking to even the slate with. But Payson, we’ve seen them play. … They’ve gotten better and better and better,” Brogan said.

Grace DeSchaaf recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds for Payson, which had won seven of eight coming into Saturday’s affair and scored only 37 points despite averaging 53 per game on the season.

Kenadi Stuart, who scored 12 points, had five steals and grabbed four rebounds, said her teammates have worked “for years” to win this championship.

“We knew this would be our team to be able to do it. I’m glad we were able to executive and get this championship that we’ve worked hard for,” the senior said.

After defeating Payson 48-37 to win the title, Snowflake poses for a photo with the 3A championship banner on Saturday, March 1, 2025, in Phoenix. (Brian M. Bergner Jr./AzPreps365)

Ryah Denhalter, who scored nine points on 4 of 10 shooting from the field and grabbed seven rebounds, mirrored her teammate’s sentiments.

“It took a lot of hard work. We’ve been putting a lot of hard work in practice. We were all so ready for this. The time and energy we put in, it helped us win,” Denhalter said, adding she can’t wait to see the banner raised back home.

“It’s going to feel amazing to see that. We’ve all worked so hard. We’re all so ready to see that,” Denhalter said. “Coming in, we were like, ‘We haven’t won in forever. Let’s make history.’ And that’s what we did."

Brian M. Bergner Jr. has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports for more than 20 years. Follow him on X at @AzPreps365Brian or on Facebook at @Five2MediaWorks. Have a story idea? Email Brian at bbergner@azpreps365.com.