2A girls

Leading Edge Academy 67, Thatcher 45

Leading Edge Academy, the No. 2 seed, is 2-for-2 in state championship appearances as a fulltime Arizona Interscholastic Association member school.

But will the championship result be different this time around? LEA lost the 2017 title tilt 70-39 to Valley.

“I feel like we are going to be ready this time,” LEA coach Erik Gray said. “Last year, it was more of a deer in the headlights thing. We didn’t get off to a good start. I feel like we’ve been preparing for the past 12 months to get back here. We’ve got six seniors that have had to let what happened last year set in for 12 months, and they are ready to go and finish what we started last year.”

Sedona Red Rock 50, Chandler Prep 39

Sedona Red Rock was within days of cancelling its program this season. 

Now, after recruiting some on campus players, the team is one win away from winning the program’s first championship. This is the third consecutive season that the team reached the Final 4.

But it almost didn’t happen this year after the program dropped its junior varsity program. Sedona Red Rock never trailed in Friday’s game against Chandler Prep.

2A boys

Alchesay 67, Paradise Honors 61

Alchesay will get another shot at winning the program’s second title in the school’s 52-year history.

Last year, the team lost to Gilbert Christian. This time, in Saturday’s final at Prescott Valley Events Center, Alchesay will battle the winner of the Rancho Prep-Pima matchup.  

On Friday, Paradise Honors, making the program’s first playoff appearance, was up by six in the first quarter but Harley Upton then started to take over. The Alchesay senior forward scored 16 points in the first half to help his team take a 34-30 lead into halftime.

Alchesay (34-1) was up by as much as 11 points in the fourth quarter.

Alchesay’s lone titlist, the 1993 title team, is celebrating its 25th anniversary, and the Arizona Interscholastic Association will honor that team at halftime of the 2A title game Saturday.

Rancho Solano Prep 59, Pima 47

Too tall. Too athletic. Too many shooters.

Alchesay will have its hands full with Rancho Solano Prep in the 2A final. Pima and its low post enforcer, Dawson Pruszynski, put up a good fight, but, with three college bound players on the roster, Rancho Solano is just too deep also.

Rancho Solano High School has never won a team state championship in any sport. It’ll get it first true shot Saturday.

1A

Girls

St. Michael 56, Ray 49

St. Michael is championship-game bound for the second consecutive season.

Ray and St. Michael took turns leading throughout the game but St. Michael kept its poise for the most part down the stretch. St. Michael defeated Rock Point 57-35 in last year’s championship game.

During halftime of Saturday’s 1A final between St. Michael and Baboquivari winner, the 1993 St. Michael state championship will be honored.

Baboquivari 51, Rock Point 36

Coach Joseph Anthony Mease had a plan to do great things at Baboquivari.

So far, his players and himself are following it to a tee. Mease, a former truant officer who was urged by his son to take over Baboquivari, immediately turned the program into a winner beginning th 2014-15 season.

He had to wait a couple of years for postseason success, though. Two years ago, Baboquivari lost to Rock Pointe by 34 points in the playoffs.

On Friday, the outcome was in Mease’s team favor. This is the first year that Baboquivari reached a state semifinal.

The program will get its first taste of a championship atmosphere Saturday against St. Michael.

“We have a purpose,” Mease said.

Mease will join the azpreps365 morning show on Saturday on 1580 The Fanatic at 8:30 a.m. to talk about how he turned around a downtrodden program and his journey in becoming a coach.

Boys

1A

Fort Thomas 62, Red Mesa 41

Red Mesa came back the first time after being on the wrong end of a 14-2, but the second 14-2 run by Fort Thomas did Red Mesa in. 

Tied at 23-23 in the third quarter, Fort Thomas (23-8) started to finally pull away form Red Mesa late in the game. Fort Thomas’ first run came in the first quarter, capped by a long three by sophomore guard Brad Johnson just as the buzzer sounded.

Malachi Rogers followed suit with a trey as the third quarter was ending to help Fort Thomas take control.

The Gregory School 81, NFL Yet 66

The Gregory School finally pulled the NFL Yet thorn out.

NFY Yet defeated TGS in last year’s 1A final and also in a game in December. The next step is to bring its third championship trophy to its school.

“I told the boys before the game there’s only one reason I wanted to win this game and that’s so we can be together one more day,” first-year coach Craig Everson said. “This is such a special group. The senior leadership. Guys who are all in for basketball. They are great teammates and good students.

“It’s the most talented, unselfish team I’ve ever had.”