Postscript to Day 1

For those who might have been waiting for an update to Pojoaque-Socorro, I do apologize. But even the best of us finally hit a brick wall - even in our creativeness. So as I watch the work crews begin to clean up the mess that the thousands of fans left beginning well before 8 a.m. and continued to mount throughout the day, all I can say is that it's a pleasure to see Day One in the review-view mirror.
But before I shut the door on this day, a few thoughts:

1. The only team that can beat the Pojoaque Elkettes are ... the Pojoaque Elkettes. Not that other teams won't be able to keep the score close, but Pojoaque has an intangible that few other teams have. I saw it with Capital in 2004, Deming in 2005, St. Michael's in 2006 and Hobbs in 2008. There is simply a will that drives that team collectively to win. And the chemistry each displayed took them to another level that most good teams reach for a half, a game or even a week or two. yet they do it daily, weekly, monthly.
2. The AAA committee overestimated the strength in the other four districts. That's easy to say that now after seeing all five 2AAA teams make it to Albuquerque, and after three reached the semifinals. But I thought this after the seedings came out. In fact, I predicted all five would win. Sometimes, it's better to recognize dominance than to simply parcel out fairness for the sake of the rest of the class. If the bracket was played 10 times, I'd say 2AAA repeats its performance seven times.
3. It would be sad to see Mark Cassidy leave Mora, because he has built the program into one of the best in the state. He's hit some raw nerves with the community, but it's only because
of the usual petty jealousies that occur over playing time, starting spots or just personality conflicts. If not for him, Mora would be a second-class program hiding in the shadows of Peñasco, Pecos and McCurdy School. Hell, it would be a lot closer to Santa Fe Prep's status than it would be Pecos'.
4. Wednesday will provide some shockers. And here's what I see:
– Pojoaque will finally beat St. Michael's. Maybe it's the 12 hours holed up in The Pit, but at some point the breaks will finally go the Elks' way. And what better place in a new environment upon which the rivalry has not broken ground. Sorry, Horsemen fans.
– Oñate will advance past Highland. What?? Yes, I said it. Remember, this is Highland's first experience in The Pit. And that the first game in The Pit can be the hardest one because of the excitement and atmosphere that comes with it. It's sensory overload at its worst. And that just gives an underdog more of an advantage. It's why a school like Gallup two years ago could almost beat Hobbs when it was seeded No. 2. It's why Alamogordo and Valley managed to make spirited runs in 2006 and face each other in the least like semifinal matchup in seeding history (8-vs.-12). The teams that they beat to get there (No. 1 Mayfield for Valley, No. 4 Rio Rancho for Alamogordo) were making their first Pit encounter. Those factors just tell me that something like this will happen, and that matchup is ripe for the plucking.
– Española will end St. Pius X's reign. This was a hard one. It's hard to pick against the Sartans because of their knack for winning big games, but something tells me that the Sundevils, with their depth, just can't lose. At least not in this round. And maybe not even the semis. If they face Academy in the championship, it's a toss-up.
Hope to see some of you around The Pit tomorrow. And if you want to make fun of me for my pics, please do. Chances are I won't even realize it. The beginning of State Tournament Dementia (STD ... I know. It's contagious and can be spread in any form) has begun.
Cheers.

Class AAA quarterfinals: No. 12 SFIS vs. No. 4 St. Michael's

Halftime:
St. Michael's 25, SFIS 23.
The Braves held a 23-19 lead on Jenine Coriz's layup with 1:56 to go, but the Lady Horsemen went on a 6-0 run to retake the lead. St. Michael's 6-foot-3 post Sarah Hattis might be having a breakout game, as she scored nine first-half points. Both teams have slugged it out in the post. Mariah Elote had eight points, while April Johnston score 10, which included a pair of 3-pointers.
But she also picked up her third foul with :16.8 seconds left.

End of third
St. Michael's 32, SFIS 31.
The game has taken a much more defensive tone in the third, with SFIS outscoring the Lady Horsemen 8-7. Jenine Coriz exploded for six points and helped get St. Michael's guard Kayle Herrera three quick fouls ...

Start of fourth
St. Michael's 36, SFIS 31
The Lady Horsemen score on two quick baskets from Alexa Chavez and Mariah Gonzales. SFIS calls a timeout with 7:10 to go.
The Lady Braves finally get on the scoreboard after a 4:20 drought on April Johnston's two free throws, but then Tamara Quintana answered with a 3 and Coriz hit a spinning layup for 41-35. 5:23 to go.
A crazy sequence where both teams missed four straight transition baskets before Tiffany Sullivan hit an 11-footer for 41-37 at 4:09.
SFIS strikes back. A Miranda Medina putback is followed by a foul on Coriz, and she hits two for a 41-41 tie. 2:43 to go.
Jenna Osuna answers for St. Michael's. A 16-footer and two free throws makes it 45-41 with less than 2 minutes left.
Sullivan hits one of two free throws, but Kayla Herrera snakes the baseline for a floater and 47-42. SFIS misses and St. Michael's rebounds. Martin Romero calls timeout with 39.9 to go.
The Lady Braves are forced to chase and foul Tamara Quintana and Chavez with :25.7
to go. 47-42 still.
Chavez misses a free throw.
Sullivan gets fouled on a drive and hits two.
Jamie Velasquez misses a one and one and Coriz fires a last second 3 fro the tie that hits iron but nothing else.
St. Michael's 47, SFIS 44.

Class AAA quarterfinal: No. 2 Portales 52, No. 7 West Las Vegas 30

The Lady Rams will play Las Vegas Robertson in the AAA semifinals at 8 a.m. on Thursday in The Pit.
Wests Las Vegas finishes with a 21-11 record, and was the District 2AAA Tournament runner up.
The next games of signifcance will take place at 3 p.m.


In AAA:
No. 12 Santa Fe Indian School vs. No. 4 St. Michael's
In AA:
No. 8 Peñasco vs. No. 1 Texico.

Stay tuned for more information on both games.

Update: Class AAA State Tournament ...

It's the 5:38 mark, and the Portales Lady Rams have extended a 21-15 halftime lead to 26-15. West Las Vegas has looked lethargic, outside of a 3-minute stretch in the second quarter when it cut an 18-9 deficit to 18-14. Since then, Portales has gone on a 8-1 run.
Make it 9-1 as Portales hits a free throw for 27-15 advantage with 4:47 to go ...

End of third quarter.
West Las Vegas now trails 34-23. Miranda Martinez is carrying the Lady Dons on her 5-foot-5 frame right now. She scored seven points on the strength of two 3-pointers. But the rest of her teammates have been nonexistent. They've struggled against the Lady Rams' man-to-man defense and just look out of sync.


Timeout, West.
Still trailing 38-25. Portales turned the ball over three straight times, but the Lady Dons are ice cold. They are shooting at a 25-percent clip ...

It's pretty much over with now. The Lady Rams are up 44-27 with the help of free throws from Dallas Russell and Tara Johnson. The dream of an All-District 2AAA semifinals can be extinguished.
One note of importance: Wests Las Vegas loses one starter - Kristen Encinias - and just two seniors from the roster. Miranda Martinez will be a junior, and Linda Esquibel will be a senior. This is a team that, with another summer of work, should be the favorite in 2AAA and one of the favorites to take it all in AAA.
The score is now Portales 50, West Las Vegas 27 with less than 2 minutes to go. Encinias leaves the floor for the final time in tears, then slams her fists onto a chair in a sad ending to her prep career.
West Las Vegas will finish with a 21-11 record.

Upset No. 2 is in ... From Class AA girls ...

The fourth-seeded Mora Rangerettes were upset by No. 5 Lordsburg Lady Mavericks 70-66 in the opening AA quarterfinal in the Santa Ana Star Center. Lordsburg moves on to the AA semifinals, where it face the winner between No. 1 Texico and No. 8 Peñasco, which starts at 3 p.m.
Mora, the District 4AA champion, finishes its season at 22-7.

First upset of the day ...

And it is brought to you by the Las vegas Robertson Lady Cardinals. Robertson, the 11th seed in the Class AAA Girls State Basketball Tournament, beats No. 3 Lovington 65-55 in the opening game in The Pit.
The Lady Cardinals play the winner of No. 7 West Las Vegas and No. 2 Portales, the 11:30 a.m. game today.
Check in tomorrow for Pancho Morris' story on Robertson's upset.

Blogging in Albuquerque ...

If you care to know where I'll be for the next five days, I can pretty much tell you to look for me in two places.
The Pit in Albuquerque.
The Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho.
The most exciting part of the year is now upon us.
Starting tomorrow, the girls state tournament will begin in Albuquerque.
Of course, the New Mexican will be there to provide coverage from the opening tip (literally, the Las Vegas Robertson girls kick off the festivities at 8 a.m.) to the final buzzer (or almost, the AAAA finale ends at about 6 p.m.).
With that in mind, the New Mexican will unveil (or in the words of Henry Lopez, our Web Editor, "drop") it's state tournament page with as much information as we can put on it.
It will include message forums for fans to chat on, updates of games and stories that ran in the day's section.
You will need to register to participate in some of the functions, but is to better ensure a civilized - and fun - time for all involved.
Even me.
So enjoy.