Tucson Tanque Verde won an important sectional game over Miami Thursday night at home behind the play of junior guard Hailey Goley and sophomore forward Ava Rauschen. The duo scored 16 points each to pace the Hawks to a 52-29 win over the Vandals, improving their section record to 2-1.

With the top four teams in each section qualifying for the various sectional tournaments, each game from here on out takes on extra importance. Oro Valley Pusch Ridge, San Tan Valley Combs and San Carlos are the current leaders of Division III/Section VI with Tanque Verde coming in fourth.

Of course, positions will change almost daily so there can be no letdowns.

Miami, on the other hand, is struggling on the scoreboard and fell behind Tanque Verde 25-4 with 5:03 left in the second quarter and never recovered. Daisy Anaya scored 10 points and Shelby Bertoldo added nine for Miami but the team had difficulty matching up with Tanque Verde.

"This is the best year we have ever had," explained Goley. "We have communication. We are more of a team, a complete team."

The program has never won more than 11 games in a season and this year's squad just recorded it's tenth win with a over a dozen games remaining on their schedule.  That 11-win season came during Lauren Pernu's senior year (2012).

Now a junior guard at Walla Walla University, Pernu holds Tanque Verde's career scoring mark of 1,052 points. Goley is sitting at 566 points and has a shot to graduate as the Hawks best player if she continues on her current scoring average of just over 14 points a game but it's going to be close.

She definitely has a chance to pass former teammates Marisol Rivera (616) and Caitlin Wyss (864).

Miami has a much richer history than Tanque Verde and won a state championship in 1987 but the Vandals have not had a winning season in three years, when Anaya and Bertoldo were both freshmen.

The duo indicate a desire to get back to those winnings ways but they must compete early and will be tested again when they host San Carlos on Saturday.

Goley suffered a sprained ankle in the fourth quarter and is questionable for the scheduled game at Queen Creek American Leadership Academy on Friday night.