We are rapidly approaching the one-month mark of the fall season, and trends are slowly establishing themselves as habits and teams are making their mark or beginning to see the glimmer of hope fade like a distant sunset.
It also gives me time to pause for a Friday (imagine that? An off Friday!) and to reflect on what we have seen around the North:
Soccer (OR .. "Yes, this is my beat this year, so football takes a back seat on this blog")
We came in expecting the St. Michael's girls to be a contender in Class A-AAA. While they are still a contender, they have not established themselves as the team to beat. Nope, that recognition belongs to Albuquerque Sandia Preparatory, which explains my appearance at a 10-0 rainy-day blowout at Santa Fe Prep Thursday.
I wanted to see the Lady Sun Devils ... Wait, make that, I needed to see them. You hear from other coaches about the talent and skill Sandia Prep possesses, but it doesn't hit you upon first glance. The Lady Sun Devils look like a good solid club in warm-ups, but it gives you very little indication of what happens when the entire soccer field opens up and they get to spread out over it. Sandia Prep is the best team in the class, and it's easy to see how it beat La Cueva, Rio Grande and Mayfield this season. Those three schools are AAAAA quality and Sandia Prep meets that standard.
The Lady Sun Devils aren't indestructible and they have been known to fall short when it matters - that is why they have three straight red runner-up trophies in as many years. Their problem might be that they are too good and they lack challenges to keep them focused and ready into November. It could very well strike them again when they have to play three straight days of quality soccer.
On the boys side, I didn't see Capital High being as good as it has been, but ... the Jaguars are. But in the competitive world of Class AAAA soccer, it's hard to tell where they stand. Los Alamos plays a traditionally tough schedule, but it finished seventh at the Albuquerque Academy Invite and then got 1-0'ed by the Chargers on Tuesday. That puts the Hilltoppers at 5-4 this season, compared to Capital's 7-1. Now, let's use a very simple math property here (because we know people use this ALL the time).
It's the logical property of equality: If A=B, and B=C, then A=C.
So ...
Capital lost to Piedra Vista 2-1 two weeks ago.
Los Alamos beat the Panthers 4-3 on Aug. 29.
So are we to presume that Los Alamos is one goal better than Capital at this point? The answer to that question will be answered Oct. 6 at Los Alamos, then re-examined on Oct. 24 at Capital.
Still, what can't be ignored is that Capital is on the cusp - at least this season - of being a AAAA contender. A win over Los Alamos bolsters that argument, but no one will know until the state tournament commences.
Until then, Capital will be the team that a city roots for as the David among soccer's Goliaths.
Football
Well, St. Michael's is the team to beat, and not just in District 2AAA. Forgive my differences with the coaches poll release on Wednesday, but St. Michael's is the second-best team in the state (Sorry, Raton). The Horsemen have a defense reminiscent of the championship 2007 team, and as we have seen over the years, it gets better as the seasons progresses. What needs to be watched carefully is the progression of junior quarterback Michael Wiegel. He is a good leader and a great competitor that the offense can rally around. But ... What St. Michael's needs is for Wiegel to air out the passing game and keep defenses honest. By being able to use the receiving talents of Giovanni Coppola, Justin Smith and Brian Baca, it makes the running threat of Russell Disch and George Dominguez that much tougher.
Of course, you have injuries that play a factor every year, and the rest of the season will be a test of the Horsemen luck and conditioning to see how they fare. But I will say it here first. The Horsemen will play for the Class AAA state title this season.
And if the opponent is Lovington, the city of Santa Fe will host another championship game.
The other story of the season belongs in Española, where the McCurdy Bobcats have scored 173 points, which has led to a 3-0 start. Tonight, they will get their biggest test of the season when they play the Foxes of Fort Sumner. In the last three meetings, Fort Sumner has dominated to the tune of 164-0 - including a 55-0 and 60-0 pasting last year. If the Bobcats make this matchup close, then McCurdy is that much closer to placing itself among the top two or three in the 10-team Class A.
Volleyball
Class AAA looks like a District 2AAA party: Las Vegas Robertson, Pojoaque Valley, St. Michael's, and Santa Fe Indian School dominate the top half of the coaches poll, and this will make the district race that much more interesting. Having said that, Pojoaque has dominated the district regular season - the Elkettes have been undefeated in league play for the past three seasons. If they pull off that feat this year, it truly should be a special acheivement. Don't count on it, not with Robertson adding Jazmine Harge, daughter of New Mexico Highlands head men's basketball coach Joe Harge. Robertson has size and and skill, and that is why the Lady Cardinals have been ranked No. 1 for most of the season.
Then there is St. Michael's, with Aimee Geyer up front, and SFIS and LeKeshia Padilla. It might an 8-2 or 7-3 record to gain the top seed in the district. Oh, and that would likely sew up the top seed for the state tournament.
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Capital boy's soccer has made HUGE strides in the past four seasons or so. It's great to see. The boys are learning to play as a team, and fans are starting to pay attention, something that was always lacking in the past. Capital has often had individual players who clearly had good individual ball-handling skills, but coach Doyle and coach DeLeon (his predecessor) really helped these guys turn the corner by starting to think about soccer as a TEAM sport. Go Capital - win state!
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