by 
Ray High Bearcats
Ray girls’ basketball stars Shelby Yocum and Savannah Rodriguez each eclipsed 1,000 points scored earlier this season.
Rodriguez, a senior captain, reached the mark just before the holiday break in December and enters this weekend’s state tournament with 1,138 career points.
Yocum, a sophomore captain, projects to reach 2,000 points scored before her Lady Cats’ career is finished. She scored he 1,000th point in a 77 – 22 victory against Miami on Jan. 12.
Yocum, who participates in three sports, has averaged nearly 22 points per game during her two years at Ray and now has 1,173 points in less than two seasons.
“A big part of it was my teammates,” answered Yocum, when asked to what she attributes her success. “They helped me get the ball, including steals, that led to fastbreaks.”
Extra work during the offseason helped too.
“Going to camps and dedicating a lot of my time to improving and being the best player I can be,” she added.
Congratulations, ladies!
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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