The Pojoaque Elkettes’ unbeaten streak appeared imperiled Feb. 5 in the opening minutes of their District 2AAA game against St. Michaels in Santa Fe.
Pojoaque missed its first three shots and committed several turnovers, while the Lady Horsemen drained a pair of three-pointers to take an early 8-2 lead.
That’s when Pojoaque post Jackie Bartleson took over. The 6-foot-2-ich Bartleson poured in eight straight points from the paint to give the Elkettes a 10-8 lead. Bartleson wasn’t done yet. She drained a three-pointer from the corner to give the Elkettes a 19-10 lead in the second quarter during a run in which the Elkettes outscored the Horsemen 23-2. Bartleson scored 16 of her 23 points in the first half, and the Elkettes led 30-16 at halftime on their way to a 52-37 victory.
“I think our team as a whole is learning to use her strengths,” Pojoaque coach Lanse Carter said.
The Elkettes extended their lead to 18 points in the third quarter before having a hiccup, missing the front end of two one-and-one opportunities and allowing St. Michaels to finish the third quarter with a 7-0 run. Pojoaque quickly re-established its dominance in the fourth quarter.
Pojoaque improved to 21-0 and extended its winning streak to 25 games dating to the 2008 Class AAA state tournament. The Elkettes are 5-0 in District 2AAA. St. Michaels, which the Elkettes defeated 46-39 in last year’s Class AAA state championship game, slipped to 15-6 overall and 3-2 in district.
Janelle Roybal complimented Bartleson, by scoring 14 points. Roybal, a senior forward, scored six points at the start of the fourth quarter to snuff out a small St. Michaels rally after the Horsemen had cut the lead to 39-28 at the end of the third quarter.
“You can’t stop just one of us,” Roybal said. “Someone else is going to pick it up.”
Carter confirmed that depth is one of Pojoaque’s strengths.
“We have a lot of weapons.” he said.
Season statistics bear out Carter’s claim. Bartleson, Roybal, Marissa Romero and Dionna Montoya all have had games in which they have scored in double figures. Point guard Ellen Cruz is capable of double-digit scoring to compliment her primary role as Pojoaque’s playmaker. Nicole Gonzales, who sat out the St. Michaels game with strep throat, is also capable of scoring in double figures for the Elkettes.
Pojoaque’s next big game on their schedule is against West Las Vegas Friday in Las Vegas. The Lady Dons lost to Pojoaque 53-50 Jan. 28 in Pojoaque.
Looking statewide, Lovington (16-6) and Portales (11-9) are lurking as contenders for the state title. All of those teams’ loses have come to larger Class AAAA and AAAAA schools.
Pojoaque’s gaudy 21-0 record has earned it the top spot in the Class AAA statewide coaches poll. Lovington is ranked fourth and Portales fifth.