NM State Championship 2010 magazine

8/14/2019 NM State Championship 2010 magazine

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BasketballState Tournament 2010State Tournament 2010

THETHEVALLEYVALLEYWAITSWAITS

THE SANTA FE NEW MEX ICANT H E S A N T A F E N E W M E X I C A NMARCH 9, 2010M A R C H 9 , 2 0 1 0

Sundevils legion of faithfulSundevils legion of faithfulfans hopes that this could befans hopes that this could bethe year Espaola wins itsthe year Espaola wins itsfirst state basketball titlefirst state basketball title


2/24

2 - State Basketball Tournament, March 9, 2010

New Mexico Highlands University has the lowest tuitionin the Western United States.

(Tat means you dont have to go in debt to land that dream job.)

Tis is a dollar.

Wed like to see you keep more of them.

www.nmhu.edu


3/24

March 9, 2010, State Basketball Tournament -

Good Grades=Great Rewards

Get Straight As Get all As and Bs Get all Bs

Win 2 FREEMovie

Tickets

Do well in school and we will treat

YOU to the Best Movies in Town!

Win 1 FREEMovie

Ticket

Win a FREEMedium

Popcorn

Espaola

Cover

DITORIAL

Managing editor: Rob Dean

ports writers: James Barron, Pancho

Morris, Geoff Grammer, James Staley,

lenn Rosales, Kenn Rodriguez and

ete Herrera

esign and editing: Brian Barker,

on Lechel

over design: Brian Barker

over photo: Clyde Mueller

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ane Phillips, Luis Snchez Saturno

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BasketballState Tournament 2010

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Cover illustration ofEspaola Valley seniorguard Rodney Coles

12

COVER STORY A legion of fans hopes that Espaola Valley

brings home the blue trophy, which would be a first for theprogram, to cap a remarkable season for the Sundevils.

FEATURES

Class AAAA boys 4Class AAAA girls 6Class AAA boys 8Class AAA girls 10

Class AA boys 18Class AA girls 20

BRAckETS

Class AAAA boys 5Class AAAA girls 7

Class AAA boys 9Class AAA girls 11Class AA boys 18Class AA girls 20

10CLASS AAAGIRLSAfter aswoon, Pojoaque Valley againgets locked in to Big Picture.

Espanola

Pojoaque Elketts Dionna Montoya,#22, runs down court during the thirdquarter of their game against the

Los Alamos Hilltoppers on Saturday,


4/24


CLASS AAAA BOYS

By James Barron The New Mexican

Reece Goodman remembers the2007-08 Capital High boys basketballseason fondly.

That was probably my favoriteteam, Goodman says. (Senior post)Dylan Chavez and all them. We hadsuch a good team

Thats when Goodman, theJaguars senior wing, remembers.Capital, a third seed in the 2008Class AAAA State Boys BasketballTournament, made its customarytrip to The Pit in Albuquerque withan eye on a semifinal matchup withNo. 2 Espaola Valley. Only, it nevermaterialized as the No. 6 Bulldogs ofArtesia pulled off a 73-70 overtimeupset to end that notion.

We shouldnt have lost thatgame, Goodman says. That hurt.

Two Marchs later, Goodmansmoment of redemption is upon himas he leads No. 12 Capital (14-12)into an unlikely AAAA quarterfinalmatchup with No. 4 AlbuquerqueVolcano Vista (16-12) Wednesday at11:30 a.m. back in The Pit. In fact, the

last four weeks have been all aboutredemption for Goodman and the

Jaguars.

When Capital trudged onto theteam bus on a cold Feb. 6 night afteran 84-55 loss to Espaola Valley, the

Jaguars were in free-fall. They hadjust lost for the eighth time in theirprevious 10 games, and the last twowere by a combined total of 141-91.Goodman sat in the visitor stands atEspaola while serving a one-gamesuspension after an ejection fromCapitals 57-36 blowout at the hands

of Albuquerque St. Pius X a weekbefore.

He saw his team gamely battleback from a 29-8 second-quarter def-icit to get to within 46-36 in the third

before the Sundevils crushed anyhopes of an upset with a 24-6 run.The Jaguars resembled little of theprogram that once played in threeAAAA championship games in fouryears and winning one in 2004

Capital hopes late resurgence continues in The Pit

After I got suspended, everyone

seemed to play better, and everyone

was playing more together.

REECE GOODMAN, CAPITAL SENIOR

New Mexican file


5/24

March 9, 2010, State Basketball Tournament - 5

Good luck to all teams!from the Santa Fe Public Schools Board of Education,

Administration, Faculty, Staff and Students!

BOYS

CLASS AAAA

SATURDAY,4:30 P.M.,THE PIT

1 ROSWELL 70

16 CHAPARRAL37

8 KIRTLAND CEN. 38

9 ABQ.ST. PIUS X 65

5 SANTA TERESA41

12 CAPITAL 52

4 VOLCANO VISTA 44

13 ARTESIA 22

WED., 3 P.M., THE PIT

1 ROSWELL

9 ABQ.ST. PIUS X

WED., 11:30 A.M., THE PIT

12 CAPITAL

4 VOLCANO VISTA

THUR.,3 P.M., THE PIT

CHAMPION

3 ABQ. ACADEMY 82

14 BELEN49

6 LOS ALAMOS 89

11 PIEDRA VISTA 56

7 SHIPROCK 56

10 GRANTS65

15 VALENCIA52

2 ESPAOLA VALLEY66

WED., 8 A.M., THE PIT

3 ABQ. ACADEMY

6 LOS ALAMOS

WED., 6:30P.M., THE PIT

10 GRANTS

2 ESPAOLA VALLEY

THUR.,6:30 P.M., THE PIT

and had advanced to Albuquerque sixtraight years before 2009.

On the bus, I kinda took it personal,Capital head coach Mark Senteney says of

uestions about the programs apparentollapse. Maybe, it was a blessing in dis-uise that it was pointed out. We broughtupon the kids to take a challenge, not

nly just for them, but for the program.

Forty-eight hours later, the resurgenceegan.

Capitals 56-52 win over Los Alamos oneb. 8 not only stopped the bleeding, butturned the season around. Goodman

eturned to drop 28 points on the Hilltop-ers, but he saw something against Espa-ola that opened his eyes.

After I got suspended, everyone

seemed to play better, and everyone wasplaying more together, Goodman says.Part of that was on me, I was shooting alot. They probably started shooting the

ball more, and when they kept up withSpaa, I was like, Oh, maybe if I share theball a little more, we can win.

Its not like Goodman stopped scor-ing. He went through a stretch where hescored at least 20 points in four of the lastfive regular-season games as Capital went4-1 in that stretch and 6-2 since the loss tothe Sunevils.

But the Jags have won when he wasntscoring, like in Saturdays 52-41 win overNo. 5 Santa Teresa in the AAAA firstround. Goodman had only 13 points, butIsaiah Bustamante scored 16 and fresh-

man Mikey Lopez added 10.

Its a vastly different attitude in thelocker room, as the arguments that mighthave splintered the team in the past are

not derailing the morale that has beenbuilt.

I didnt think we could do it, not withthe way we were arguing and all that,

junior Jonathon Rodriguez says. But any-thing is possible when you work as a teamand go out and play some defense.

And Goodman might find some fondmemories to take away from the 2009-2010 season.

Contact JamesBarron at 986-3045or [email protected] at thereadbarron.com.


6/24


CLASS AAAA GIRLS

By Glen Rosales For The New Mexican

After four meetings during the regularseason and the District 2AAAA Tourna-ment, it would be easy to think that the LosAlamos and Espaola Valley girls basketballteams have seen enough of each other.

Instead, they have one more game and itsthe most important one of all as they willface each other at 1:15 p.m. today in The Pitin a quarterfinal of the Class AAAA StateBasketball Tournament.

I dont care if they won three as long as

we win this one, said Lady Hilltoppers headcoach Tarah Logan. Our two teams knoweach other very well.

That will certainly reduce the preparationtime each of the coaches has to put in forthe contest.

We dont have to scout them, and wedont have to watch much film, said LadySundevils head coach Ron Drake. You canthrow all the other games out.

Neither coach really has any tricks left to

surprise the opponent.At this point, its not the coaching tha

going to decide things, Logan said. Itsup to the players to execute. At this pointhey need to execute our offense and oudefense.

The No. 4-seeded Lady Sundevils (25won the last two games against No. 5 LoAlamos (20-10), and did so rather handiwith double-digit victories that first secthe top seed for the district tournamentthen clinched the district championship

Fifthmeeting of Los Alamos, Espaola Valley, with semis on lin

New Mexican file


7/24

March 9, 2010, State Basketball Tournament -

Shoot, Score . . . WIN!!

From the Pueblo of Pojoaque, Cities of Gold Casino, Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino and all our affiliated businesses.

Good Luck Pojoaque Elk & Elkettes, and all northern New Mexico boys and girlsbasketball State Tournament contenders! You make your community proud!

GIRLS

CLASS AAAA

Friday,8 p.M.,THE piT

1 KirTLaNd CEN. 68

16 saNTa TErEsa 29

8 dEL NOrTE 49

9 arTEsia 36

5 LOs aLaMOs 63

12 abq. sT. pius x 56

4 EspaOLa vaLLEy55

13 siLvEr 36

TOday, 8:15p.M., THE piT

1 KirTLaNd CEN.

8 dEL NOrTE

TOday, 1:15p.M., THE piT

5 LOs aLaMOs

4 EspaOLa vaLLEy

THur.,1:15 p.M., THE piT

CHAMPION

3 rOswELL 63

14 abq. aCadEMy28

6 vOLCaNO visTa 59

11 CapiTaL 39

piEdra visTa 36

10 dEMiNG 21

15 TaOs30

2 sHiprOCK47

TOday, 9:45 a.M., THE piT

3 rOswELL

6 vOLCaNO visTa

TOday, 4:45 p.M., THE piT

piEdra visTa

2 sHiprOCK

THur.,9:45 a.M., THE piT

But playing in The Pit, a venue neitheream has reached during postseason playn some time, just may favor the Lady Hill-oppers.

I actually played there when I was aenior, and Im an outside shooter, Loganaid. I noticed the depth perception is off.

Were a bigger team, and we tend to poundinside a little bit more. Espaola tends to

hoot it more from the outside.

Dealing with the atmosphere of The Pit,owever, may favor the Lady Sundevils, whoracticed there in the summer during New

Mexico team camp, and also played in themassive Dean Dome in North Carolina.

We told them its just a gym, Drake said.Its just like our gym. The baskets are theame height. The free-throw line is not any

farther away. Im hoping their experience inThe Pit and at the Dean Dome means theywont be intimidated by its size.

Whoever wins the game almost certainly

will have the difficult task of taking ontop-seeded Kirtland Central (23-2), whichappears poised to continue its dominanceof the class. The Broncos have been to thechampionship game nine of the past 11 years,winning five, although none since 2005.

And Kirtlands old nemesis at Shiprock(21-7) is ready to make one final attemptto knock off the Broncos before droppingdown a class.

When there were just four classes, thetwo schools won 16 out of 17 champion-ships from 1980-96 in Class AAA and facedeach other in the finale eight times in nine

seasons.

Theyre number one and they beatShiprock three times, and Shiprock is num-

ber two, Drake said. I think Kirtland Cen-

tral is the team to beat, but at state, anythingcan happen.

Chieftains head coach Brady Rivers saidhis squad has a ways to go before that par-ticular rivalry is re-established.

Kirtland still has our number, he said.A lot has been made about it by the peopleup there, and the media talks it up. But I toldthe girls we havent done our part to live upto the rivalry.

Players to watch: Taylor Ealey, LosAlamos (18.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg); Nisa Duran,Espaola Valley (18.4 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.9 apg);Shawtai Aguirre, Silver (18.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg).


8/24


CLASS AAA BOYS

By Geoff Grammer The New Mexican

Google Maps will tell you the distancebetween Francis L. Abeyta Memorial Gym-nasium and The Pit, the site of SaturdaysClass AAA state boys basketball champion-ship game, is 62.6 miles.

But its hardly hyperbole to suggest theroad toward a state title for the Santa FeIndian School Braves is much longer.

Its a journey this senior-dominated,band-of-brothers team has embraced.

Were there for each other no matterwhat, said senior post Jody Atencio. Thatshow its been all year. Were close like fam-ily.

The Braves bond, not uncommon on itssurface when compared to most champion-

ship-contending teams, runs much deeperthan meets the eye.

Its a bond that has overcome historicalcultural divides and community barriers.

With players from Dulce, Thoreau, PineHill and Santa Fe, and others from Acoma,San Juan, San Felipe and Santo Domingopueblos, the team has obligations that runfar deeper than high school basketball, andcultural histories that dont always lendthemselves to working with one another.

We understand and appreciate the pridethat these guys have in their own commu-nities and their own tribes, said 12th-year

head coach Ernie Rodriguez.

The thing thatIve appreciated about these guys is theyhavent drawn lines between one another.They havent put up walls.

But they have torn some down.Despite losing in the District 2AAA

championship game to St. Michaels, thBraves went 10-0 in the districts regulaseason to break the stranglehold the Homen had on the district since the Braves

joined Class AAA in 2005.

Now, SFIS (21-7), the No. 3 seed whos83 points in a Saturday win over No. 14Thoreau were the most scored in the Aopening round, plays No. 11 Las Vegas Rertson on Wednesday in the quarterfinathe Santa Ana Star Casino in Rio Ranch

Its been a magical season already

of the best for the Braves since a 1989 CAA state title but one that has had evreason to falter.

Aside from two senior starters comin

Braves hope long, eventful journey culminates with title

Were there for each other no

matter what. Thats how its been

all year. Were close like family.

JODY ATENCIO, SFIS SENIOR


9/24


Good LuckElks and Elkettes!We Support You All theWay!

The Sernas at theJACONAandPOJOAQUE Hot Water All Year Round!

BOYS

CLASS AAA

Saturday,

12:30 p.M.,

tHE pIt

1 HOpE CHrIStIaN81

16 ruIdOSO 33

8 BLOOMFIELd 68

9 SOCOrrO 66

5 St. MICHaELS46

12 pOrtaLES43

4 LOVINGtON57

13 NEWCOMB 34

WEd., 1:15 p.M., SaNtaaNaStar CENtEr,rIO raNCHO

1 HOpE CHrIStIaN

8 BLOOMFIELd

WEd., 4:45p.M.,SaNta aNaStar CENtEr,rIO raNCHO

5 St. MICHaELS

4 LOVINGtON

FrIday, 1:15p.M.,tHEpIt

CHAMPION

3 SFIS83

14 tHOrEau 52

6 tOHatCHI79

11 rOBErtSON81

7 pOJOaQuE53

10WINGatE 50

15NMMI 37

2 SaNdIaprEp70

WEd., 8:15p.M.,SaNta aNaStar CENtEr,rIO raNCHO

3 SFIS

11 rOBErtSON

WEd., 9:45 a.M.,SaNta aNaStar CENtEr, rIO raNCHO

7 pOJOaQuE

2 SaNdIa prEp

FrIday, 9:45a.M., tHEpIt

ack from major offseason knee surgeries Atencio plays with two screws in his

nee while guard Stevan Rodriguez hasour there have been the usual in-season

bstacles.SFIS went 28 days between games fromDec. 15 and Jan. 12 while the school closedor winter break and the teams players,lmost all of whom live in campus dorms,

went back to their homes sprinkled acrosshe state. There were just three full-squadractices in nearly a month.

Then, after a 3-0 start in district play, theeam didnt field a full roster the rest of theegular season.

Among the issues: Forward Jamaal Ander-on missed two weeks with a sprainednkle, forward Darren Pedro missed two

weeks to return home to mourn a familydeath, and guard Trevor Merhege missed aweek to be a part of a traditional religiousceremony back home.

Its been kind of a shuffle, Ernie Rodri-guez said. But for 12 years, thats been theone constant.

While some have suggested SFIS has anadvantage with most or all players living oncampus, the dynamics beyond sports theprogram faces year-round are unlike thosefaced by just about any other team in thestate.

Its a balancing act that has only made theteam grow closer.

Many of them have gone through differ-ent things injuries, family issues or com-mitments back home during the season,

Rodriguez said. Theyve always had eachother to help get them through. I know itsounds clich, but I really believe theyre

brothers.

And its that family bond, not any on-court accomplishments, that most pleasesErnie Rodriguez, the son of a coach whoalso coaches his son, Stevan.

We try to reinforce in them to have theirroots deep, Ernie Rodriguez said. Enjoythe journey with one another, but we dontput all our eggs in one basket. We dont haveto win that one game for success. I really

believe its a lot bigger than that.

Contact GeoffGrammer at 986-3060 [email protected] grammerschoolblog.com.


10/24


CLASS AAA GIRLS

By James Staley For The New Mexican

JACONA Standing outside the

Pojoaque Valley High Schools girls basket-

ball locker room you hear it, slightly con-

densed.

Single voice: One. Two. Three.

Elkettes in unison: Big Pic!

When Pojoaque Valley head coach Lanse

Carter talks about his team, whether in pres-

ent or past tense, the term pours out almost

enough that you could confuse it for an

um,or some other verbal crutch. Big Picture.

Thats the main message, said Elkettessenior Dionna Montoya. Its the Big Pic-ture.

You all say that a lot around here, huh?

She smiles.

Yeah.

Now that the two-time defending champi-ons are back at The Pit, the Big Picture isntsome abstract Elkettes phrase, symbolizing

some distant future event. Its here. Its well, specifically, this morning at 11:3when the No. 3 seed Elkettes face No. 6 ington in a quarterfinal of the Class AAGirls State Basketball Tournament.

Pojoaque Valley (19-10) certainly appmore ready after a convincing first-rounwin over listless Ruidoso on Friday nighUp to that point the Elkettes had lost thin a row, failing to win the regular seasotournament titles in District 2AAA.

After late swoon, Elkettes again locked in to Big Picture

Thats our goal, thats been

our goal the whole year. Of coursewe wanted to play for the district

championship, but our goal for the

entire year is the Big Picture at state.

DIONNA MONTOYA, POJOAQUE SENIOR

New Mexican file


11/24


7 West Gutierez Street in Pojoaque Next to the Sports Bar 505.455.2855

GOELKS&ELKETTES!

GIRLS

CLASS AAA

FRIday,

6 p.M.,

THE pIT

1 pORTaLES 43

16 ROBERTSON 25

8 SOCORRO 38

9 ST. MICHaELS 58

5 THOREaU 58

12HOT SpRINgS 47

4 W. LaS VEgaS 60

13 HaTCHVaLLEy 30

TOday, 8 a.M., THEpIT

1 pORTaLES

9 ST. MICHaELS

TOday, 3 p.M.,THEpIT

5 THOREaU

4 W. LaS VEgaS

THURS., 8 a.M., THE pIT

CHAMPION

3 pOJOaQUE52

14 RUIdOSO 37

6 LOVINgTON 79

11 WINgaTE 31

7 HOpE CHRISTIaN 60

10MIyaMURa 56 (OT)

15 NEWCOMB 43

2 SFIS 64

TOday, 11:30a.M., THEpIT

3 pOJOaQUE

6 LOVINgTON

TOday, 6:30p.M.,THEpIT

7 HOpE CHRISTIaN

2 SFIS

THURS., 11:30a.M., THE pIT

Perhaps most distressing to the Elkettesnd their fans was the teams light-switchlay. Sometimes they are on (nearly thentire game vs. Ruidoso) and sometimeshey are off. The most stark example of this

might have come against West Las Vegas inhe district tournament semifinals at home.

The Lady Dons knocked out the Elketteswith 18 unanswered points in the fourth

uarter.We learned from those, Carter said. I

hink those losses were good as teachingor us before we did hit the Big Picture,ecause district makes you better. Hope-

ully our experience helps.So what did Pojoaque Valley learn?

They had more than a week between therst round of state and the final district

ournament game to convert those lessons

into action.I think we really worked hard in practice

and our mentality was focused, said Mon-toya of that week away from game action.Were really focusing on that Big Picture.

Thats our goal, thats been our goal thewhole year. Of course we wanted to play forthe district championship, but our goal forthe entire year is the Big Picture at state.

Added Elkettes junior Elizabeth Gomez:Were playing better as a team, and look-ing for our shots and working our offense alittle more.

Montoya had noticed that the Elketteswere playing rushed during that late-Feb-ruary swoon. More patience should allowthem to be more efficient on offense, whichmeans better shot selection and fewerturnovers critical ingredients to another

championship run.I think if we play good and we play as

a team and we play smart, we can do it,Montoya said.

Some of these Elkettes have done it,

from this very position. The 2008 postsea-son was very similar for Pojoaque Valley.Carters bunch was flicked from the districttournament early, but had a good enoughrsum to secure a No. 3 seed, then rattledoff four wins for a championship.

This years group is 5-5 against the teamsremaining in the bracket.

Said Gomez: Weve been in this predica-ment before.

The Elkettes have a Big Picture of afreshly minted championship team bannerhanging in Ben Lujn Gymnasium to showfor it.


12/24


13/24


asketball team is still chasing the first statetle in the schools 65-year history.

Could this finally be the season that fatemiles kindly on the Sundevils?

The numbers provide plenty of octane forptimism.

The Sundevils are 26-2 heading intoWednesdays quarterfinal round of the stateournament. They won the District 2AAAA

tle for the fourth year in a row, and went0-1 against Class AAAAA opponents duringhe regular season, including road wins overraditional southern powerhouses Hobbsnd Clovis. The only losses were to Hope

Christian, the No. 1 seed and defending statehampion in Class AAA and La Cueva, the

No. 5 seed in AAAAA and defending cham-ion in that class.

But the Sundevils and their fans haveeen down this road before, and to say

March and The Pit have been less than kindo them is an understatement.

The Pit of heartbreakEspaola Valleys record over the last four

easons is an imposing 96-15. The school hasad only one losing season since head coach

Richard Martinez took over the program.Three of the losses have come in the stateournament, none more brutal than the lastwo.

The Sundevils of 2008 lost 55-54 in over-me to Albuquerque Academy in the semi-nal round. With thousands of red-and-old-clad fans packing The Pit, Espaolaallied from an 18-point halftime deficit andad a chance to win it in regulation. They

ad a four-point lead with 30 seconds left,ut lost it as the Chargers hit several crucialree throws down the stretch.

Redemption in regulation was still therewhen the Sundevils had three point-blank

p-in attempts in the final seconds. All theyeeded was one to go down. The ball and

ate had other ideas.We lost that (four-point) lead. We fouled,

nd they hit the shots, says Martinez of theoss to Academy. We have nobody to blameut ourselves. We put ourselves in that posi-on.

The madness only got worse in last yearsournament. Seeded No. 1 in the tourna-

ment for the second straight year, Espaolaefeated St. Pius in the opening round, then

waged a basket-for-basket battle with under-og Artesia in the semifinals.

The Sundevils finally got some separationbehind guard Matt Britos sparkling shoot-ing and took an eight-point lead late in thefourth quarter. Martinez decided to spreadthe floor, something he has done frequentlyin his coaching career. Martinez figuredArtesia would have to foul and put the Sun-devils at the free-throw line.

What seemed destined to be Espaolas

first trip ever to a championship gameunraveled in a hurry.

The Sundevils committed several turn-overs and the Bulldogs capitalized on themistakes to tie the game and force overtime.

Not one, not two, but three overtimes.

The Sundevils took the last shot at theend of the first and second overtimes, butfailed to connect. Artesia won it 58-56 atthe buzzer of the third overtime when starsenior Derek Montoya hit a baseline jumper.

In 2007, the Sundevils lost 60-48 in thequarterfinal round to St. Pius, a team theyhad beaten during the regular season.

The tears have dried. The scars from thenear misses the past two years remain.

The pain just lingers so much longer uphere, says Espaola Valley athletic directorTheresa Flores, whose son, James, played onlast years team. We had a heck of a timegetting him to move on. Id go as far as tosay he went through depression with it.

Flores says the fans expectations andthirst for a basketball championship placesenormous pressure on the players.

We as a community sometimes forgetthat were dealing with 16-, 17- and 18-year-olds and theyre carrying the community on

their backs, Flores said.

The expectations

are so high that when they dont realizetheir dream of winning a state champion-ship, its devastating.

But if pain is part of the package, so toois the enormous, enduring popularity ofthe players that have fed the beast throughthe years. Rest assured that if this yearsSundevils win the state championship, theirlegacy will be part of the Valleys culture for

generations to come.

Seeds of hoops mania

Richard Guillen spent 28 years in lawenforcement, more than 19 of them as thepolice chief in Espaola. But its what Guil-len did on the basketball court nearly a cen-tury ago that people still talk about.

Guillen went on to the College of Santa Feafter graduating from Espaola High Schoolin 1965. He returned to his roots in Alcaldeand has lived in the Valley ever since. Herarely misses a Sundevils game and lastmonth was in the stands when Espaola

Valley played in Bernalillo. Sitting next toGuillen was an old-timer Guillen had nevermet.

He turns to me and says, Richard, doyou remember the old days, when youplayed? says Guillen.

Especially during basketball season andmore so when the team is winning like theyare now, I cant go anywhere without beingrecognized for my accomplishments on andoff the court.

Guillen was a four-year starter at Espa-ola High, the original name of the highschool that opened in 1945. The school

became Espaola Valley when Espaola

ichard Martinez directs his team during

game against Hope Christian. The

chool has had only one losing season

ince Martinez took over the program.

ane Phillips/The New Mexican


14/24


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High and rival Santa Cruz High merged inhe early 70s. Athletic teams at Espaola

High were nicknamed the Hornets, but afterhe merger, Espaola Valley adopted theundevils moniker.

Espaola Highs first trip to the stateournament was in 1950, when the tourna-

ment had a 20-team field and there was noeparation by classes. The star of that team

was Zebedon Goofy Lujan. The Hornetsost in the first round to Farmington, thenattled their way back to the consolationhampionship game, where they lost tot. Michaels.

The Hornets made back-to-back tripso the tournament in 1957 and 1958 behind

All-State player Alex Serna. They lost in therst round both years, to Silver High in

57 and to St. Michaels the following year.The seeds of the mania that exists today

n the Valley were planted in the mid 60s.Many around Espaola still consider theHornets of the 1963-64 and 1964-65 seasons

he best in school history.Players like Guillen, Rudy Trujillo, RayDupree, Danny Maestas, Eloy Vigil, Archie

alazar, Jerry Villareal, David Law, DouglasVelarde and Modesto Vigil, led the Hornetso back-to-back state tournaments. Then,s in recent years, Espaola couldnt getver the semifinal-round hump. They lost

o Roswell High both years. The shiningmoment was a 102-92 win over Hobbs in the965 third-place game. In doing so the Hor-ets became the first team to score more

han 100 points in a state tournament game.Vigil, who at 6-foot and 145 pounds played

enter, also was a multiyear starter for theHornets and a big part of their success. Heoined the Navy soon after high school andad assignments from Hawaii to Japan. Heow lives in Denver, but his ties to the Val-

ey remain.I tell my wife all the time, Vigil says,

they can take me out of New Mexico, buthey cant take New Mexico out of me.

Over the last three decades, there haveeen numerous good players and enoughpportunities for a championship season.

The 1991 Sundevils, led by guard TonyJuice Gallegos, also made it to the semi-nals of the state tournament. They beat

ldorado in the quarterfinals of ClassAAAAA, but lost to eventual state cham-

ion Alamogordo.Nine years ago, guard Jolen Montoya and

orward Lando Alire led Espaola into theClass AAAA regionals the playoff formathat was in place for a couple of years. Mon-oya averaged 25 points a game that seasonnd Alire another 20, but the Sundevils losto Albuquerque Academy and never made ito The Pit.

The Piza pipeline

Any discussion of Espaola Valleysbasketball history has to include one Ber-nardino Piza Salazar.

An imposing figure of a man, Salazarspent more than 40 years teaching math andsocial studies and coaching basketball inNorthern New Mexico. It was in Alcalde, a

rural farming community six miles north ofEspaola, that Salazar became the elemen-tary schools version of Ralph Tasker and ahousehold name in that part of the state.

Year after year, Pizas teams at AlcaldeElementary were nearly unbeatable. Theschool fielded teams from the fourththrough eighth grade all coached bySalazar.

I dont ever recall losing a game, saysGuillen of his time playing under Salazar.

He never called plays, it was all helter-skelter basketball, says Guillen. But thediscipline, the fundamentals and condition-

ing made it work. Wed make passes, dribbleand shoot over and over and over. The con-ditioning came outside because we didnthave a gym. It didnt matter if it was rainingor snowing, Piza ran the heck out us.

Piza also ran a pipeline of talent intoEspaola High School. His was the feederprogram that for decades produced mostof the Hornets top players. Guillen and hisolder brother Tony, Dupree, Trujillo, Vil-lareal and Archie Salazar all played for Piza

in Alcalde. So too did Pizas son, Henry, whoaveraged 23 points a game his senior year atEspaola High in 1975.

Apparently, Piza also knew a thing or two

about good genealogy, because many of hisplayers were related. A newspaper article inthe mid 60s noted that basketball at Espa-ola High was mostly a family affair. JerryVillareal was Archie Salazars uncle. DannyMaestas and Rudy Trujillo were cousins to

both Villareal and the Guillens. Maestas wasa second cousin to Trujillo.

The Alcalde connection is still there.Seniors Luis Alvarado and Aaron Aragon,the grandson of Tony Guillen, both livethere.

Piza died of cancer in 1974, but the Salazarfamily remains very much connected to

Espaola Valley basketball. Theresa Flores,his daughter, formerly coached the girls bas-ketball team and is in her second tenure asathletic director. Henry is the public addressannouncer at Sundevils home games. Andthen theres Pizas widow, Rebecca.

The priorities in her life include a rideto the Sundevils games home or away and a seat with a good view of the court.

I can do everything except drive, saysMrs. Salazar. I tried to learn once and they

Basketball is to Northern New Mexico

what football is to Clovis and Artesia.

Jane Phillips/The New Mexican


16/24


(police) stopped me because I was goingtoo slow. I never tried again after that.

A month away from her 92nd birthday,few things slow her down. A bout withpneumonia forced her to miss a couple ofgames this season and last year at CapitalHigh, she missed a step on the bleachersand took a tumble. The damage? I broke anail, she says.

Changing perceptions

Richard Martinez was born the year Guil-len, Dupree and Co. stirred emotions in theValley to a fever pitch. Both were prolificlong-range scorers in an era long before the3-point shot came into existence.

Martinez obviously is well-versed on that1964 team.

I hear thats the best team ever to comeout of Espaola, he said.

If the brutal losses of the past two yearshave worn on Martinez, it doesnt show.The 46-year-old with shoulder-lengthhair and a hearty laugh took considerableheat from the fans after last years loss, butstands by his decision to slow down thetempo and spread the floor against Artesia.He says, given the same opportunity, helldo it again.

For 20 years, Ive held onto the ball, hesaid. We take care of the ball (against Arte-sia), we get to the line and we win the game.I wont change my tactics. Rest assured, if Ihave a lead and I have the ball, youre goingto have to take it from me. If you spreadthe court, you create great alleyways to the

basket.

Martinez says it wasnt an all-out stall.We just didnt attack the basket well. Did

I hold the ball? Yes. Was I looking for a goodshot? Yes. Did I get it? No. Ill do what I haveto do to win.

Basketball is to Northern New Mexicowhat football is to Clovis and Artesia. Goals,some store bought, some improvised, dotthe landscape from Abiqui to Alcalde,Peasco to Pojoaque.

With so much passion for the game,its ironic that Espaola has gone 65 yearswithout winning it all. Plenty of its Norteoneighbors have done it. Pojoaque, Peasco,

Mesa Vista and Escalante all own one ormore blue (championship) trophies.

You start to wonder why, says HenrySalazar. What did we do so bad that ithasnt happened to us.

Some, like Martinez, view basketball anda championship as a potential panacea forsome of the problems in the Valley drugs,teen pregnancy and violence. They believea state basketball championship could dowonders to change perceptions.

If any community in the state needs astate championship, a way out, its EspaolaValley, says the coach. There are a lot ofgood things happening in our community.Maybe it didnt start with basketball, but itstarted with one spec of belief. For us to putclosure to everything, we need to get intothe state tournament and be successful.

People have a huge misconception aboutthe Valley. The people are great, the athletesand students are great. Its a special place.

Its a great community, and people dontknow it. Its like a secret place where peopleare afraid to go into it, and when they do,they never want to leave, says Martinez.

A special place indeed. Nestled betweenthe Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the eastand the Valle Grande range on the west,the Espaola Valley has pristine views, andmuch history. It was here that Don Juan deOate established the first Spanish settle-ment near the banks of the Rio Grande.

It also has youth willing to get up lonbefore the sun rises for 6:30 a.m. basketpractices.

Confident Sundevils

This years players say they feel no upressure in their pursuit of a historic ruthrough the state tournament.

Its not too much pressure, just the ramount, says Alvarado, the teams leadscorer.

Senior center Gabriel Rodriguez is a spirited, live-for-the-moment teenager. wears his long blondish hair in a ponytaand has a work-in-progress beard and gtee going. He spent considerable time othe bench last year because he kept failto show up for practices.

I like to live careless I guess, says Rguez with a grin, but then admits he shetears after last years loss.

Turning serious, he realizes the signicance of what could happen this week i

The Pit.Not just for me, but for the whole Va

ley, he says. Weve come really close tpast few years, and no one has been abl

bring one home for us.

Martinez says his team is confident. Hhas learned from the losses, he says, and

believes hes a better coach. These Sundils, says their coach, have more depth anmore scoring punch.

At times, Martinez sounds like hesreached a crossroads in Espaola. He sahe wants to stay, but isnt sure what willhappen if the Sundevils come up short

championship again.It would be very hard for me to trad

this coaching position for any other plahe said. This is a good fit for me. But stimes, its strike three and youre out.

Martinez, though, has faith the Sundewill eventually hang a championship bainside Edward Medina Gymnasium.

So how will the Sundevils and their fcelebrate that moment. After all the hoohas died down and the cheers have ceaMaybe theyll take a cue from Red Sox who hung pennants, T-shirts and othermemorabilia on the headstones of those

who did not live to see that October nigin 2004.

The best bet though is that theyll leaby heart the lyrics to the Queen song, Are The Champions.

Pete Herrera is a formerAssociatedPressportswriterwhocovered high school spinNewMexico for 39years. HegrewupEspaolaValley andgraduated fromEspolaHigh School in 1963.

Natalie Guillen/The New Mexican

Weve come really close

the past few years, and

no one has been able to

bring one home for us.

GABRIELRODRIGUEZ,

SENIORCENTER


17/24


www.stmichaelssf.org (505) 983-7353

Enter to Learn. Leave to Serve.

GO HORSEMEN &

LADY HORSEMEN!

Elks and Elkettes!


18/24


CLASS AA BOYS

By KennRodriguez For The New Mexican

ALBUQUERQUE Looking at the seed-ings for the 2010 Class AA Boys State Bas-ketball Tournament, one might assume thatthe selection committee has decided thatteams from El Norte just arent that strongthis year.

But for Mesa Vista coach Tomas Vigil,whose Trojans earned a six seed, thats notnecessarily the case.

I dont know if North is down so muchas the South is up, he said Sunday just afterthe Class AA and A seedings were released.Mesilla Valley has a heck of team, they beat

some AAAAA schools. Bosque School andTularosa are impressive. I think the south is

just really competitive this year.Las Cruces-based Mesilla Valley Chris-

tian School (27-1) was awarded the top seedSunday while Hagerman took the two seed.Tularosa (21-6), which won on the roadat Texico in Saturdays Round of 16, wasseeded third while Albuquerques BosqueSchool (24-4) was seeded fourth, surprising

both Vigil and Coronado coach Ezau Rios,whose fifth-seeded Trojans take on the Bob-cats on Wednesday at 8 a.m.

Thats where I expected us to be, a four

or a five, but I didnt expect Bosque to dropto a four seed. I felt they had a really strong

season and played consistent through wholeyear. They didnt have any bad losses.

Rios Leopards (23-4) drew the fifthseed and play Bosque on Wednesday at 8a.m., while Mora (14-13) earned the eightseed, drawing the top-seeded Son Blazerson Wednesday at 3 p.m. Mesa Vista (16-13)plays Tularosa at 11:30 a.m.

In the fourth game of the quarterfinals,seven-seed Navajo Pine (17-9), which is inNavajo, N.M., on the state line just north ofGallup, plays Hagerman (24-4) at 6:30 p.m.All four games are at the Santa Ana StarCenter in Rio Rancho.

Escalante coach Milnor Manzanares,whose Lobos lost to Mesa Vista on Saturdayin the round of 16 and whose team facedeight of Class AAs state tournament teams,said he felt the three teams from El Nortehad a good chance based on their up-tempooffenses and pressure-defense mentalities.

I think they can make an impact, hesaid. Mesa Vista and Coronado have asgood a chance as anyone to advance to thenext round. I dont think anyone should dis-count the northern teams.

Mesa Vistas Vigil said his teams bestchance to advance is continuing to stayunpredictable.

Thats whats been successful for us

down the stretch, he said.

Teams playing us have had to be prepared becausewere going to throw different things antry a bunch of things and see what work

best. Thats one thing that carried us in second part of the season on offense andefense.

Coronados Rios said Wednesdays gais the seventh matchup with Bosque Scin the last three years, which could worhis teams advantage despite the Bobcatheight advantage.

We all know each other by our firstnames, so we definitely know what to

expect, he said.

Its just a matter of whexecutes better. Were complete opposiTheyre big and methodical, and we wato make things as fast as possible. For u

be successful the rest of the way, we havdictate tempo.

Now that the matchups are set, only othing is certain, said Manzanares notis certain.

Ive been there many times, he saidWhen you get down to the final eightteams in tournament, anything can hapIve had teams that won some games thshouldnt have.

Whoevers on their A-game that daya good shot, he concluded.

North schools face stiff challenge from tough South schools

BOYS CLASS AASATURDAY,

8:30 A.M.,

THE PIT

WED., 3 P.M., SANTA ANASTAR

1 MESILLA VALLEY

8 MORA

WED., 8 A.M., SANTA ANASTAR

4 BOSQUESCHOOL

5 CORONADO

WED., 11:30A.M., SANTAANASTAR

3 TULAROSA

6MESA VISTA

WED., 6:30P.M.,SANTAANASTAR

7 NAVAJOPINE

2 HAGERMAN

FRIDAY, 8 A.M., THE PIT

FRIDAY, 11:30A.M., THEPIT

CHAMPION


19/24


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NM Schools that are

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20/24


CLASS AA GIRLS

By PanchoMorris The New Mexican

Keith Durham brought his Bible to ThePit.

It served as his solace to his solitary con-finement.

One of the toughest things Ive ever hadto go through, Durham says.

Friday.

March 14.

2008.

4 p.m.

Championship game.

Class AA Girls State Basketball Tourna-ment.

The Lady Wolverines of Texico HighSchool.

The Fighting Eagles of Navajo Prep.

No. 2 vs. No. 1.

Durham celebrated one championship,guiding the Lady Wolverines to the 2007title in his second year as head coach.

He missed the repeat.

In a semifinal against Mora on Thursday,Durham collected two technical fouls. Thefirst earned him a seat on the bench for therest of the 55-23 victory. The second earnedhim an ejection and a one-game suspensionthe next time the Lady Wolverines took the

court.It hit me when I stepped out of the

spectator area, Durham says, recalling thememory as if it were yesterday. Im notgonna get to coach tomorrow.

The New Mexico Activities Associationmet amongst themselves. Then, they metwith Durham and R.L. Richards, TexicoSuperintendent.

They confirmed I wasnt going to coach,Durham says.

Durham found an unoccupied officeupstairs in The Pit.

It was old.It was vacant.Just me and my bible, Durham says.And, a cell phone.Ring!Richards called at the end of the first

quarter.Ring!Halftime.Ring!One quarter to go.Ring!This time it wasnt Richards. It was Clay

Stout, who assisted Durham before takingover at Portales High School.

You won.Durham wanted to burst through the

door and down the ramp. He couldnt. He

had to leave the floor 30 minutes before tip-off. He had to wait until the referees left the

floor after the final buzzer.The Lady Wolverines waited to celebThey rushed their coach after shaking hwith the Fighting Warriors in the aftermof the 55-45 triumph.

I felt sorry for Navajo Prep. The girljust finished shaking hands with them awe were at their end of the bench, Dursays. We kind of invaded their space a

bit.

Ryan Autrey, Durhams assistant, woncoaching debut.

The Clovis assistant had to coach hifirst game against Hobbs, Durham saysMine had to do it in the state championgame. He had a little pressure.

Just a little.

Durham resigned his coaching dutiesthe end of the season to become principand athletic director. He hung the whistaround his neck after a one-year absenc

I didnt know much about the desk, I knew a little bit about the bench, Durwho remains principal and athletic diresays.

Durhams mentors are a Whos Who of coaching dignitaries in New Mexico Earl Diddle, Wayne Moore, Brenda Gomand Miles Watters.

Theres some Clay Stout in me, too,Durham says. I dont think I do one thi

This time, Texico coach wont miss a minute of tourney run

GIRLSCLASS AA

FRIDAY,

4 P.M.,

THE PIT

TODAY, 6:30P.M., SANTAANASTAR

1 TEXICO

8 PECOS

TODAY, 8 A.M., SANTAANA STAR

4 PEASCO

5 HAGERMAN

TODAY, 11:30A.M., SANTAANASTAR

3 NAVAJO PINE

6 NAVAJO PREP

TODAY, 3 P.M., SANTA ANASTAR

7 ESTANCIA

2 SANTA ROSA

THURSDAY, 11:30A.M.,

SANTA ANASTARCENTER,RIO RANCHO

THURSDAY, 8 A.M.,

SANTA ANASTARCENTER,RIO RANCHO

CHAMPION


21/24


hat I invented. Everything I do, Ive stolen.Dibble tops the list.I wouldnt be where Im at if it wasnt for

im, Durham says of the former EasternNew Mexico University head coach who is

ow at Howard County Junior College, theurrent home of one Jackie Bartleson.

What he believes in on both ends of theoor is how basketball should be played.

It works.The Lady Wolverines are 23-5 and the

op seeds heading into their Tuesday nightuarterfinal against Pecos. They take a 16-ame win streak into Santa Ana Star Center,

ncluding a victory over Portales, the topeed in Class AAA.

Katlin Luscombe and Victoria Richards,eniors and All-State, are seeking their thirdtate championship in basketball and eighthverall. Each own four straight volleyballtles and last year both contributed to atate championship in track and field.Its very difficult, Durham says between

ong pauses to regain his composure thatidnt work. They were my first pups.

Theyre gonna be hard to replace, I promiseou.

Shannon Van Matre, a senior, is anothertarter. Twins Jaylyn Cooper and Jordyn

Cooper comprise the first five. The secondfive push the starters daily. The first playeroff the bench is Shaylee Anderson.

Its nice that my first sub is a 6-foot-1freshman that can play, Durham says. Youwould think she would be awkward. Shes

not. This is as big as Ive ever been, includ-ing when I was at Fort Lewis College.

Yet, there is room for growth.

No doubt we can still get better, Dur-ham says. Rebounding, defense, executionof our offense. Were playing pretty goodright now, but I think we can get better.

Forget scouting reports. Yes, its true theCooper twins, sophomores, lead the teamin scoring. But can you really forget the 5-9

bookends Luscombe and Richards? Whatabout Anderson, who has her share ofteam-high scoring honors? Or another set oftwins, Erin and Fallon Scanlan?

When somebody scouts us, theyll havea hard time saying you have to stop this oneor that one, Durham says. To stop Texico,you have to stop us all.

No brag, just fact.

The Lady Wolverines have not dropped agame to an AA opponent this season.

Im certainly proud of this bunch, Dur-ham says.

Friday.

March 12.

2010.

4 p.m.

Championship game.Class AA Girls State Basketball Tourna-

ment.

If the Lady Wolverines get there, Durhamwill be there.

He swears.

On his Bible.

Nodoubtwe can still

get better. Rebounding,

defense, execution of

our offense. Were

playing pretty good

right now, but I think

we can get better.

KEITH DURHAM, TEXICOCOACH


22/24


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24 - State Basketball Tournament March 9 2010

NM State Championship 2010 magazine

Documents

Transcript of NM State Championship 2010 magazine