On Sunday, Pima College basketball star Alyssa Perez signed a national letter of intent with Rocky Mountain College, where she’ll join two of her former Aztecs college teammates on the Battlin’ Bears’ roster.
Then it was back to work. Perez is finishing classes at Pima while working graveyard shifts as a stocker. She was forced to get a second job after her employer cut back hours because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I’m just trying to stay in shape, trying to stay healthy and keep my family healthy,” Perez said.
These are tough times, but Perez and members of the Aztecs program are well-prepared to handle it.
“We have this thing that we say: Being ‘Aztec tough,’” Perez said.
The phrase comes from Todd Holthaus, who last week was named National Junior College Athletic Association Region I West District Coach of the Year. Holthaus preaches toughness when facing adversity on or off the court. The strong survive — and thrive.
“Toughness will take you a long ways in life. That’s one thing I’ve truly taken away from him,” Perez said.
Pima’s postseason started with a history-making road win against Mesa Community College, a victory that gave the 25-7 Aztecs a spot in the NJCAA Division II National Tournament in Port Huron, Michigan.
Pima coach Todd Holthaus celebrates after his team won the regional title game over Mesa Community College, earning the Aztecs a spot in the NJCAA Division II National Tournament.
In a matter of days, the tournament was postponed from March 17 to April and then canceled.
“We put in a lot of work over the season. Part of me feels like we worked so hard for nothing, but in reality that’s not the case. We still have so much to be proud of,” said Perez, a Marana High School product. “It does (stink) and it’s still heartbreaking, even to this day — and it’s been weeks.”
Perez was named second-team All-ACCAC and first team All-Region I, Division II this season. She was also named MVP for the Region I, Division II title game against Mesa. The March 7 game marked the 11th meeting in 12 years between the two programs for the title, and in previous meetings the home team always emerged victorious.
Sophomore Hallie Lawson said the team went into the game wanting to make history and get the win for their coaches.
“It felt amazing,” Lawson said last month. “All of us weren’t worried about anything about ourselves. We wanted to do it as a team and it didn’t matter how many points we each scored, we just wanted to get the win.”
On Tuesday, Lawson was named first-team NJCAA Division II All-American. She is the 15th All-American in the program’s history. The Gilbert Campo Verde High School graduate had already been named ACCAC Division II Player of the Year, first team All-ACCAC and first team All-Region I, Division II. Lawson played in all 67 games of her Pima career, making 57 starts.
Pima has produced an All-American in 11 of Holthaus’ 13 seasons.
Pima College player Hallie Lawson marks a teammate while running through drills at practice, March 10, 2020, Tucson, Ariz.
“(Holthaus) not only impacted me, but all the other girls as well. He was always letting everyone know that this is their family,” Lawson said during a Friday interview. “For incoming freshmen, it’s always tough to come in and not know anyone. Coach Todd always does an amazing job of incorporating everyone very well.”
Lawson is still weighing her options for next season, and said that a few schools have reached out with offers.
For now, she’s finishing up classes, keeping in shape and working through the disappointment of not playing in the nationals.
“We were all super-excited to go back to back. We finally won at Mesa’s court — that’s never been done before,” Lawson said. “We could have won the whole entire national tournament with the team we had this year.”
Lawson will be working for her dad this summer to make some extra money before heading off to whatever school she picks. She’s running every day but says that workouts are different without strength and conditioning coach Carla Garrett pushing her to try harder.
“It’s sad that’s come to an end,” Lawson said.
Perez said that the season’s cancellation will “maybe hurt for life, knowing that we didn’t get the chance to play for a national title.”
“But we still have a lot to be proud of,” she said.
