Minutes after MiLinda Arguellez notched the 1,000th point of her career tonight, she went from laughs and tears and celebratory hugs with her teammates to going into coach-mode shouting in the faces of the Lady Caballeros trying to rally them against Rincon.
In each occasion, her teammates and coaches — and her family and friends — were captivated by her.
And she is only a junior.
Imagine the fire in her eyes, not to mention the milestones ahead, when she is a senior.
.@FWCabsSports junior guard MiLinda Arguellez comments about achieving her 1,000th career point tonight with another varsity season ahead of her. Rarely watched a more tenacious player. Non-stop motor. pic.twitter.com/BTppzjmoIk
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) January 10, 2020
Asked where she gets her intensity from, Arguellez smiled and said, “Just from the crowd, my team. I love my team. so I want to be there for them.”
Unfortunately for Flowing Wells (10-6), Arguellez was on the bench late in the fourth quarter after fouling out. Rincon/University (10-6) pulled out the 45-42 win at Laby Cab Gym.
Arguellez needed 11 points to reach 1,000 coming into the game. She reached that mark with 8.7 seconds left in the first quarter on a free throw. She appeared to be ready for her second free throw attempt when it hit her that she reached the milestone.
Play was stopped. She fell to the ground and was dragged to the bench by her teammates in a unique way to celebrate the achievement. She embraced coach Michael Perkins, who has been her head coach throughout her three-year varsity career.
“We planned that,” Arguellez said with a laugh about her getting dragged to the bench. “I felt really emotional because my coach, I’ve been with him for three years … he’s been working with me all three years.”
"Why aren't you watching the Arizona game?" I've watched hundreds since grade school 45 years ago. Covered the title in 1997. Rarely had chance to watch a high school player and her family celebrate a momentous achievement. Can't beat it, really. pic.twitter.com/FIEYcThHBT
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) January 10, 2020
Arguellez finished with 14 of her 16 points in the first half. The Laby Cabs were held to 16 points in the second half with her in foul trouble.
Sonia Almana scored 10 of her 12 points in the second half to lead the Rangers. Loraya Rocha added eight points and Madeline Greene, daughter of former Arizona standout Kim Conway, also had eight points and often brought the ball up the court despite being a 6-foot forward.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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