The Page Sand Devils have, well, turned the page.

“This is the start of a new era for Page High School,” said senior Alyssa Harris about her program.

The new era has a familiar theme: state champ. That’s the title it earned right after defeating North Region rival Window Rock 35-29 in Saturday’s 3A championship at Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

The Sand Devils have appeared in 12 finals in the last 19 years, winning six times. Page coach Celeste Claw helped the school acquire one of those crowns as a player and took over her alma mater three seasons ago.

On Saturday, she became a state championship coach for the first time.

“It feels 10 times better as a coach,” Claw said as she waited her turn to cut down the nets. “It’s like you are seeing yourself when you won the championship, and you see the passion and heart out of all the girls right now experiencing it. You can’t imagine how we feel right now. We just feel so excited.”

During the game, Claw and her players experienced the intensity of one of the state’s best high school sports atmospheres.

For starters, this was the fourth time that Window Rock and Page saw each other this season. They did so in front of the teams’ 4,400-plus raucous fans.

“Oh my gosh,” Claw said. “I love the 3A North. I love the rivalry. (In the semifinals), playing Chinle for the fourth time and then Window Rock for the fourth time, it’s wild. May the best team win.”

With Window Rock and Page knowing each other like a book, the first half turned into a defensive battle that ended in a 12-12 tie.

But one of the key moments in the game came at the start of the third quarter, when Page went on a 7-0 run and never trailed after that.

During that mini-run, a player who stepped up in the semis, Leikara Yazzie, did so again with two baskets in the paint in the final. Also, during that critical, nearly seven and a half minute stretch, Harris had a steal and Sofia Cambridge had three points and a block.

“Definitely our defense,” answered Harris about the biggest reason why her team won its final encounter against its North rival. “We’ve never played defense like that against them. That was our best defense that I have seen my team play, and I’m proud of them for it.”

Harris’ board work (game-high 10 rebounds) also was key.

“Really?” said Harris about her rebound total as tears from her faced rolled down to the court. “Last time they outboarded us, and this time I was like, ‘I’m not going to give them a second chance opportunity, and I’m going to get this rebound.’”

But Window Rock kept clawing back every time it trailed in the second half.

With 41.1 remaining in the third, four free three throws by Jada Brown left her team trailing 21-20. But Page closed the third with a Cambridge basket, and Tayla Franklin eventually iced the game with a fourth quarter three with under a minute remaining to hand her team a 34-27 lead.

Like Claw, this was the first time that coach Gabrielle Whitney guided Window Rock to a title game.

Whitney, a former state champ as a player at Ganado, led her team to a 27-5 campaign and first state title appearance in 13 years. Jayme Tso (3 for 4 from beyond the arc) tried her best to help Window Rock stay in the game.

But Page (23-5) took care of business down the stretch to earn a season split with its rival. More importantly, it went home with the program’s eighth gold ball, tying Window Rock for the third most basketball titles won in the state.

“I’m stoked obviously,” Claw said. “Just by seeing these girls so happy and the excitement overall, honestly I’m at a loss for words.”

Page's Celeste Claw cut down the nets for the first time as head coach. (Jose Garcia photo)