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1. Bisbee takes back The Pick, makes state for the first time in 43 years.
For the first time in 10 years the Bisbee High Pumas won ‘The Pick,’ the trophy from the nation’s second-oldest rivalry, beating Douglas, a school with almost triple Bisbee’s enrollment, 20-19.
Days of celebration and assemblies followed as the Pumas proudly displayed the trophy.
 The Bisbee Pumas celebrate with The Pick after defeating Douglas 20-19 at Warren Ballpark on Aug. 26. (Mark Levy-Herald/Review) |
But that was just the start of a roller coaster season for the Pumas. After winning their first five, the Pumas suffered inexplicable losses to San Manuel and Benson, only to rediscover their Pick form, upset Willcox on the road to set up a winner-take-all battle in the regular season finale at Tombstone.
Over the last six years, Tombstone had its way with its Highway 80 rival, but on that night, Bisbee completely turned the tables on the Yellowjackets en route to a 56-12 win and their first trip to the state tournament in 43 years.
But the Pumas weren’t done, tackling Arizona Lutheran Academy at home 33-15 advancing to the state quarterfinals where they were knocked off by Winkleman.
2. Buena softball, ranked No. 1 most of the season, reaches state semis
Drawing upwards of 300 fans to their state tournament games, the Buena softball team was the toast of the town in the spring of 2006.
Ranked No. 1 in the state for nearly the entire season, the Lady Colts made the home run, traditionally a rarity in bunt-n-slap softball, a regular thing and a spectacle. The Colts set team records in home runs with 39, and in 9 other categories.
The Lady Colts cruised to the state semifinals and had two opportunities to beat Mesa Red Mountain and advance to the championship game of the state’s largest class.
But a senior-laden Red Mountain team, which was one of only three teams to beat Buena in the regular season, managed to upset Buena twice and advance to the state title game against Horizon.
The Buena girls return more than half of their offensive production and return their two-headed pitching monster of Jordan Trujillo and Meghann McIntosh and figure to again be the favorite to win state.
3. Buena basketball hosts first state game in two decades.
After winning their first 5A Southern Region championship, the Buena boys basketball team hosted their first state tournament game in two decades.
With star shooting guard Shannon Doctor playing with his right hand in a soft cast after missing the previous three weeks with a broken hand, the Colts relied on their defense to get past ninth-seeded Mesa Dobson.
Mesa held the lead for most of a hard-fought close game. Midway through the third quarter, Buena’s top scoring threat in the wake of Doctor’s injury, Roger Sharp was hit with his second technical and disqualified.
Buena fought to get back into the game, but ultimately, without Sharp, they lacked the scoring punch to get over the top and saw their season end with a 26-5 record.
4. Buena football has its first winning season in nine years
Going into the season, Buena had its sights set on making it to the state playoffs for the first time since 1993. That goal was not met, but the Colts did record their first winning season in 10 years, wrapping up a 6-4 campaign with a 49-22 win over Tucson High in the regular season finale.
The Colts finished just a few power points out of the 16th and final state tournament slot. Ultimately the game that made the difference was the Colts’ first region game at Marana Mountain View. With his team leading 17-13, Buena quarterback Devin Veal scrambled 30 yards and was hit late out of bounds. Veal’s response caused him to be ejected and much like the Buena basketball team in its state game, the Colts, without Veal lacked the offensive firepower to close the deal and the Lions came back to win 20-17.
5. Bisbee Kings return to Warren Ballpark
When the Bisbee Copper Kings and the Arizona-Mexico Baseball League folded after three weeks in the summer of 2003, it left a lot of sore feelings in and around Bisbee.
Bob Lipp, founder of the Arizona-Mexico League never lost sight of putting a team in Bisbee and in June of 2006, the Bisbee Kings of the Border Baseball Series took the field.
Neither the crowds, nor the level of play were at the level they were in 2003, but the completed season seemed to heal to the old wounds and gave new life to the future of baseball in Bisbee.
6. SV Open washed out on the final day
Perhaps the best professional field in the 21-year history of the Sierra Vista Open was primed for a fine finish as Chris Sessler and Todd Demsey, playing in the final group were jostling for the lead heading to the back nine of the third and final round.
After a two-hour rain delay, the players went back onto the course and got in one more hole when lightning was spotted striking far off in the distance. The horn sounded and it was determined that there would not be enough light to tolerate another weather delay. So, under sunny skies, the tournament was called due to weather and the final scores rolled back to the end of Saturday’s second round. Demsey, though he trailed Sessler by a stroke at the time of the final horn, was declared the champion as the 36-hole leader.
7. La Vuelta de Bisbee rides again
Felicia Gomez, an exercise science and nutrition professor at Fresno State, made up a 56-second deficit to leader and former Olympic time trial champion, Mari Holden to win the 28th La Vuelta de Bisbee in April.
On the men’s side, Phil Zajicek of Tucson, racing without a team, held off former champion Drew Miller of Flagstaff by 38 seconds.
8. Youth football boom hits Sierra Vista
The Buena High freshman football team had 75 players out for practice in the preseason.
Expect those numbers to be dwarfed in the coming years as a boom in the local branch of American Youth Football will pump plenty more into high school programs.
At the league’s opening ceremonies at Bujalski Field on Fort Huachuca, 459 players were on hand.
The alternative to Pop Warner football got its big lift in 2005 when Sierra Vista and Apache Middle Schools dropped tackle football.
9. CISM back at Fort Huachuca with international volleyball
After much preliminary consternation between represented nations over how the tournament should be run, the CISM international military volleyball championships at Barnes Field House on Fort Huachuca went off without a hitch.
The tournament included a major upset in the men’s division as Qatar knocked off heavily favored China, opening the door for Korea to win gold in the men’s division with a five-set win over Germany.
On the women’s side, China won the gold and the United States won the silver.
10. Cochise basketball loses heartbreaker in Region I championship
The best regular season in the Cochise College men’s basketball season came to a crushing end for the Apaches, as they let a double-digit lead in regulation get away and lost to the Arizona Western College Matadors in overtime of the NJCAA Region I championship game.
It was a crushing defeat for the Apaches and especially for their four starting sophomores who all went on to play at Division I schools.
The Apaches posted a 27-3 record and climbed to as high as No. 3 in the national rankings.
