Mesa Vista Wins Rumble in the Jungle
Yet again, both Dulce and Mesa Vista headed to a tournament facing strong teams from bigger schools, and together took down the bigger schools to set up a 2A slugfest in the final, where the Lady Trojans came out on top 52-40.
The Dulce Hawks (7-6) won their first round game 36-27 over ATC (3-6). But they came back strong for a 41-40 nailbiting win over Aztec (5-3). The Hawks trailed 19-6 after one quarter, and were down by six entering the fourth quarter. But a big final eight minutes gave Dulce a close win and a spot in the championship.
Mesa Vista (7-2) started the season 1-2, but now rides a six-game win streak.
Tana Lopez scored her 1000th career point in the championship win, one of 47 she scored in three games throughout the weekend. Just a junior, Lopez ranks second in New Mexico as of Tuesday with 21.9 points per game.
The Lady Trojans started the weekend with a 69-31 win over Wingate (1-7), led by 17 points from Shanae Silva and 51 recorded steals as a team.
In the semifinal against Grants (2-10), Mesa Vista led by seven at halftime and pulled away late to win 55-41. Silva scored 23 points, and Lopez had 10 rebounds and five steals.
Mesa Vista took an early lead over Dulce in the championship, and pulled away with a big third quarter, and won by 12 despite shooting just 4-for-20 on 3-pointers.
Bella Boies added nine assists to her state-leading total. Lopez led the team with 19 points, and Kaelynn Trujillo had 12 rebounds.
Both teams head to the Northern Rio Grande Tournament this weekend, and have a chance to face off again in the final.
Sundevils Fall on Losing Streak
Española Valley boys basketball (2-10) enters the new year on a down note, having lost eight games in a row. Most recently, they lost their three games at the Jalene Berger Allstate Holiday Hoops Tournament in Rio Rancho.
Española lost 79-60 to Hope Christian (4-4), who finished second in the tournament, after falling down 25-13 in the first quarter. In their consolation game, against a strong Highland team (8-2), Española battled to the end after falling behind early, but a late run came up short in a 68-63 loss. For the seventh-place game, the Sundevils gave Sandia Prep (1-7) its first win of the year, falling to their fellow Sundevils 58-55.
Española Valley will look to break their streak at the St. Michael’s tournament this weekend, starting with a game against Bosque (6-3).