Choctaw takes 8th straight regional title
By Ryan Horton
Choctaw Times
Lady Jackets make another dominant run to area
Choctaw’s Lady Yellowjackets cheer on teammates in a dominant regional win. (PHOTO BY KOLBY RUSH – @K1_Photography)
Choctaw High School’s Lady Yellowjackets secured their eighth straight regional title Saturday.
Choctaw hosted Southmoore and No. 14 Deer Creek to lopsided decisions this year.
Opening with Southmoore, the Lady Jackets threw up 70 points and allowed just 31 as they cruised to the regional final Saturday at CHS.
Deer Creek opened regional play with a 57-54 win over Westmoore to earn a shot at the longtime defending regional champions.
However, Choctaw didn’t hesitate to remind the visiting Antlers that the Lyle Boren Activity Center is their house.
Senior standouts Trinity Gooden and Daezi Miller made huge statements as they led CHS to victory.
Choctaw’s Daezi Miller keeps constant pressure on Deer Creek’s Angel Scott. (PHOTO BY RYAN HORTON)
Gooden handled the offense putting up 15 points on the night, while Miller was dedicated to defending Deer Creek’s top player.
The plan was well executed as Deer Creek’s top threat was nearly neutralized, and the Lady Jackets captured a big lead early.
Deer Creek’s Angel Scott scored 35 points to put away Westmoore in the first round. Choctaw held her to only 13.
Scott hit 9-of-10 second half free throws against Westmoore, and CHS only gave her four from the line.
At halftime of the regional final the Lady Jackets were leading Deer Creek, 30-15.
Deer Creek would try to close the gap in the second half, but the Lady Jackets weren’t giving up their lead. Choctaw outscored the opposition 22-20 in the second half and that was enough to capture the big win, 52-35.
Gooden led CHS with 15 points, Raven Jackson scored 11, Hannah Smith put up 10, Jazmine Adams had nine, Carley Gasaway put up four and Miller hit a 3-pointer.
Now Choctaw enters the area tournament Thursday facing Mustang on their homecourt at 6 p.m.
The winner advances to state, while the loser will face the winner of Edmond Santa Fe and Moore for a chance to make the final tournament.
“Getting the regional title is always important, because that gives you two chances at area to get into the state tournament. This was eight in a row so that’s a special day for us. This was kind of our senior night since we lost that due to weather this year. Trinity and Daezi did great, and that’s always good to see for your seniors. Daezi worked her butt off and really did her job to hold their best player to just 13 points. Trinity carried us offensively in the first half. I couldn’t be more proud of my seniors,” said head coach Ryan Maloney. “We’re not a team that gives up a lead very easily. This was a fun game where we got to play a good team, and we’ll get to play another one Thursday.”
Gooden was happy her final game on the CHS home court was a success, and she’s confident in her team’s chances at making a run for additional hardware.
“We played really good as a team. We knew we had to come in and get the win. We followed the game plan and now have a pretty good chance of getting into the state tournament,” said Gooden. “We have Mustang on Thursday, and that’s a really big game for us. We just have to take care of business.”
Choctaw’s Lady Yellowjackets celebrate claiming the school’s eighth straight regional championship. (PHOTO BY KOLBY RUSH – @K1_Photography)
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