Cactus Shadows get defensive
Falcons earn 5th straight final four trip
Marc Buckhout ~ Managing Editor ~ 02/24/2010

For a team going after its fifth straight final four appearance the No. 3 seeded Cactus Shadows Falcons weren’t feeling much in the way of respect heading into Friday’s 4A Div-I state quarterfinal matchup.
Sure, they were playing a Cienega team which came into the game with a 23-3 record on the season, one which included only one loss to a 4A Div-I team, but the squad from Cave Creek is anything but a nice second round draw as one misinformed publication labeled what the No. 6 Bobcats would face in attempting to advance to the final four.
Instead of being kind hosts the Desert Sky Region champions were anything but nice, showing why they’ve won 76 percent of their games (95-30) in four seasons under coach Ryan Pletnick.
“Our defense is our pride, it’s our brand,” the coach said. “I’m so proud of this group. These seniors are the first bunch that I’ve been with all the way through their careers and I know they felt some pressure to live up to what the teams before them have done.”
Scoring the final basket of the third quarter to take a 33-30 lead the Falcons ratcheted up their defensive intensity to start the final eight minutes of five seniors high school careers on their home court.
In doing so they would score the first 11 points of the quarter, shutting out the Bobcats for nearly 5 ½ minutes (5:25) of the fourth quarter in turning a nail bitter into a 57-44 victory.
“All five girls on the court, whoever they are, are on the same page on defense,” said senior guard Maria Carranza, a four-year varsity member. “We are always ready to help each other out.”
By the time Cienega guard Megan Placencia hit a three pointer at the 2:35 mark of the fourth quarter the Falcons had pulled away to a 44-33, on their way to yet another semifinal berth.
Pletnick said he was very comfortable with the game plan, which had his team switching defensively on almost all perimeter picks.
“They like their offense, but we really like our defense,” he said. “I really thought that if we could hold them to 12 points a quarter or less we’d give ourselves a real good chance to get a win. They weren’t used to being held under 50 and I think our intensity on defense got in their heads.”
That appeared the case early in the fourth quarter when senior point guard Molly Shoulders, who locked in a riveting battle with Cienega’s guard Alyssa Deal throughout the evening, got under the junior’s skin.
Following a foul by Shoulders, a frustrated Deal shoved Shoulders with two hands in the back, drawing a technical foul.
While Cienega lost its composure in crunch time the Falcons got big efforts from a pair of playoff savvy seniors.
Shoulders kept the team afloat offensively in the first half when the rest of her teammates were struggling scoring eight of the team’s 19 first half points by aggressively taking the ball to the basket.
“I think a case of nerves hit us in the first half,” she said. “We saw their record and read how they were supposed to beat us, but at halftime we knew we could play better in the second half.”
While Shoulders was outscored by Deal, 19 to 12 on the night, she was pleased with the outcome.
“She’s a heck of a player but I had to get her off her comfort zone,” Shoulders said. “She’s their rock. I tried to make things as hard as I could for her and she obviously got away from her game.”
While Shoulders was a pest defensively and held things together offensively in the first half, it was her backcourt mate, Carranza, who helped secure the win by scoring 11 of her team’s 24 fourth quarter points, helping to salt the game away by making 9 – of –10 free throws.
“It feels awesome,” Carranza said of winning her final home game of her career. “We kept our heads in it even when things weren’t going well.”
Helping out the veterans was junior Kelsey Easterbrook. While the guard was playing in only her second state playoff game she provided a spark for the Falcons, by scoring six points early in the fourth quarter when the Falcons were able to gain some separation from Cienega for the first time all night.
“I was just trying to help anyway I could,” she said. “We were focused on our defense because we knew they were a running team that liked to score a lot of points. If it’s there I’ll look for my offense and I was feeling pretty good tonight.”
With the win the Falcons advance to play at 2:30 p.m. Thursday at Jobing.com Arena. Their opponent will be No. 2 Apollo (23-4). The Hawks advanced to the semifinals with 70-42 win over No. 7 Sahuaro Friday. The 28-point victory comes on the heels of a 27-point demolition of No. 15 Sabino in the opening round.
Pletnick said he isn’t worried about whether his team will be deemed the under dog, or about the semifinal roadblock that has been the end of the road for the past four Cactus Shadows teams.
“It’s a different team, different year,” he said. “Obviously some people didn’t even pick us to get there so maybe we’ll just come out and play without any pressure. We’re not flashy offensively, but our defense is our identity. It will give us a chance to win.”
Shoulders said Friday’s win should give her team a boost of momentum while Carranza, who finished with a team-high 15 points, said she and her veteran teammates won’t be concerned about playing at Jobing.com Arena.
“Everybody is focused to win state this year,” Carranza said. “It’s an adjustment playing in a big arena, but it’s still basketball. We’re pretty good when it comes to that.”
The other semifinal will pit No. 1 Shadow Mountain against No. 4 Prescott. Thursday’s winners will play for the state championship at 2 p.m. Saturday at Jobing.com Arena.