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High School Results from Q2 Qualifier

Schools begin raising the heat

High school champions

Top Scorers and Goalies

A Champion - Prescott

Championship A game:
Prescott 5,  Horizon 3

Top Scorer - Joey Jimenez, Prescott
9 Goals, 4 Assists, 13 Total points

Top Goalie - Alec Hinrichs, Horizon
60 Shots, 54 Saves, .9000 Save Average

 

B Champion - Lake Havasu

Championship B game:
Lake Havasu 4,  Yuma Catholic 1

Top Scorer - Grant Greeley, Lake Havasu
5 Goals, 5 Assists, 10 Total points

Top Goalie - Alex Deckey, Yuma Catholic
72 Shots, 62 Saves, .8611 Save Average

Prescott's dominator
Joey Jimenez returns

Last season it all went according to script.  The fluid drives to the net, the effortless passes that ended up on a teammate's blade just before going into the net. Joey Jimenez was such a huge part of Prescott's successful state title win last season that many wondered if much of it was due to the incredible scoring and defensive talent that he was fortunate to be surrounded with.  After his performance at the Q2 Yuma qualifier, it is obvious that Joey is the real deal. What makes his numbers  from the qualifier even more outstanding is the fact that Prescott lost their all-state goalie Connor McShane, and all-state forward, Jake Lund as well as their very talented defenseman, Michael Tibbetts to graduation. Joey's leadership was critical to Prescott's championship win over Horizon.  His 2 goals in the second period broke the 3-3 tie and basically put the title game in the deep freeze.  Lucky for Joey is that the new and returning Prescott Players will continue to perform for their school and support their proud tradition.

Yuma a big test

Schools raise the bar

Three high schools joined the fray from the original 4 from Q1 Rollerplex.  Returning '09 state champion Prescott, Yuma Catholic Shamrocks and Gila Ridge Hawks Blue showcased their school teams for the 2010 campaign at Yuma.  Gila Ridge Hawks Black would not be upstaged and broke out in their new 'tuxedo' jerseys just in time for their first game.  The drama simmered even before the division took the floor.  An 'A' and 'B' division was played out and the schools responded.

 

Prescott dusts off the scoring machine

With 3 extremely solid and talented returning players from last year's state champion, Prescott high school, there were some very big questions about just how they would stand up to the other schools, being that Prescott lost more than half their squad to graduation.  Yes, they had the state's top varsity scorer in Joey Jimenez coming back, and yes, they had the Rubber magazine player of the year, Levi Wallace, returning  and had an outstanding young talent in Chris May returning, but in the high school division, even having just 3 experienced players is getting thin, with the level of play continuing to elevate.  But, just as last year, Prescott high school didn't just get the job done at Q2, they hammered the opposition.  Prescott filled the positions lost with surprising effectiveness.  Add in the fact that premier state goalie, Eric Brown, is between the pipes and Prescott high school rolled through Yuma and to an 'A' championship over the Horizon Huskies 5-3.

 

High school 'A' division

With the way that Horizon and Prescott began the qualifier, it seemed likely that they were destined to meet in the final.  Horizon struggled a bit offensively, with their top scorer, Brian McAuliffe not able to attend.  It was the vital leadership of their captain, team leader and team leading scorer, Kevin Smith who pulled Horizon onto higher ground and into the final.  If Horizon's offense sputtered, it was their superb defense that tugged them into the championship final as their goalie, Alec Hinrichs, was absolutely outstanding with a .900 save average for the tournament. 

Prescott still has a very potent offense and quite a decent defense for all the players that they lost in '09.  New players Cooper King (2 goals, 2 assists) and Jamey Moore (2 goals, 1 assist) made very valuable contributions to Prescott's success.  The three amigos for Prescott, Levi Wallace, Joey Jimenez and Chris May combined for 33 points which more than eased any fears that Prescott has even lost a stride from last season.  But there is still a lot of season to yet play out. Until the last seconds tick off at the state championships, no school has a lock on the season's outcome.

 

High school 'B' division

Havasu got off to a shaky start after having to face the likes of Prescott high school in their first game, losing 3-9.  But Havasu regrouped, wiped off the loss and began their reassent into the competition.  After taking care of Gila Ridge Hawks Black 6-3, they were rewarded with a 'B' championship game with the Yuma Catholic Shamrocks. Havasu has tremendous experience, as their 3 amigos, Grant Greeley (5 goals, 5 assists), Jordan Ehgoetz (5 goals, 2 assists) and Garrett Luzzi (1 goal, 3 assists) were winning state titles many seasons ago in the club division.  It most certainly showed with their 4-1 victory over Yuma Catholic in the 'B' final.

'B' division runner-up, Yuma Catholic Shamrocks, had some mighty big shoes to fill with the loss of their iconic goalie, David Johnson and their unanimous all-state warrior, Kyle Letendre, to graduation.  While Yuma Catholic did struggle to find its identity early in the tournament, they did find a leader in returning player Robert Norton (4 goals) as they edged out Gila Ridge Hawks Blue 4-3 for a trip to the 'B' championship game with Havasu.  A bright spot for Yuma Catholic was the outstanding performance of their young goalie, freshman Alex Deckey.  Alex had more saves (62) and the second highest save average (.8611) in the entire high school division.