Former Pojoaque girls basketball coach and current athletic director Matt Martinez remembers kneeling on the floor of the Pit after the Elkettes defeated the Kirtland Central 67-65 March 7, 1998, to win the Class AAA state title.
“It seemed like a monkey had really been lifted from our shoulders,” Martinez said. “I remember kissing the floor — it was the greatest feeling.”
It was the third consecutive year the Elkettes had played in the state title game. Pojoaque had lost to Kirtland Central 61-55 in the 1996 championship game and fell 53-47 to Moriarty in the 1997 championship.
“In a year, we went from the worst feeling to the best feeling,” Martinez said.
In addition to finally winning the state championship, the Elkettes finished the season 28-0 to record the only undefeated season in school history.
This season the Elkettes have an opportunity to repeat history. Pojoaque is 23-0 overall and 5-0 in districts.
When Pojoaque won the 1998 state title, the road to the Class AAA state championship was much tougher. In addition to Kirtland and Moriarty, teams like Los Alamos, Shiprock, Silver and Artesia were Class AAA members. All of these teams are now members of Class AAAA. The New Mexico Activities Association grouped the state’s high schools into five classes instead of four beginning with the 2000-01 season.
Nevertheless, the Elkettes’ current team could go one better than the 1998 version by winning back-to-back state titles.
Last season, the Elkettes won the Class AAA title by defeating St. Michaels 46-39 in the championship game. That team finished the year 26-5 and lost just one starting player to graduation.
The possibility of the second undefeated season and the third Class AAA state championship in Pojoaque’s history is more than just a dream, it’s beginning to look like a distinct reality.
Martinez said that what he tells his coaches — Lanse Carter, who now coaches the Pojoaque girls team, and Joey Trujillo, who is also dealing with the pressure of being a defending state champion since the Elks also won the boys Class AAA state championship last season — is that winning a state championship changes everything.
“It changes your program, your kids, how you live the rest of your life,” Martinez said. “I tell them to remain humble and use it to make everybody else better.”
Carter had trouble believing what was happening when the Elkettes won the state championship last season.
“It was surreal,” he said. “It didn’t all seem real at the time.”
Carter said watching film and absorbing why Pojoaque won the championship game has helped him to understand it.
The Elkettes have been handling the pressure of being the defending state champions and their current unbeaten streak by coming together and play well in every game. Martinez has provided insight on how to handle the pressure.
“He’s been tons of help giving me insight on how to manage the program and keep working to succeed and get better,” Carter said.
Carter feels that his team is handling the pressure well.
“I think we’re enjoying it,” he said.