Basketball Recap: Pine Hill Takes Loss Despite Strong Performances from Kirra Smith and Leilani Charley

Pine Hill lost against Newcomb back in December of 2022 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Saturday. The Pine Hill Warriors took a 44-35 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Newcomb Skyhawks.

Leilani Charley

Blocked Shots

01/18/25 vs Newcomb	4
01/17/25 @ Rehoboth Christian	4
01/14/25 @ Quemado	0
01/09/25 @ Ramah	2

Pine Hill's loss came despite strong showings from Leilani Charley and Kirra Smith. Charley posted seven points along with five boards and four blocks, while Smith dropped a double-double on 11 points and ten rebounds. With that strong performance, Charley is now averaging an impressive 2.1 blocks per game.

Newcomb's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Lethia Yazzie, who scored 13 points in addition to eight boards and six steals. Yazzie has been hot, having posted three or more steals the last eight times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Makya Nelson, who earned 13 points.

Pine Hill's defeat dropped their record down to 9-7. As for Newcomb, the win was the eighth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 12-3.

Pine Hill wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next contest, a 54-37 victory against Navajo Pine on the 21st. As for Newcomb, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 58-42 win against Wingate on the 21st.