After their loss, the Española Lady Sundevils, especially the seniors, had mixed emotions.
“We’re happy that we made it to state, and were able to play our last game,” said senior Alyanna Medina. “It’s also sad, because it’s the end of the season. But for the most part, we’re happy.”
Española Valley (15-14), as the No. 15 seed, lost 59-29 in their first-round 4A state playoff game at St. Pius X (24-3) on Friday. The Sartans were the No. 2 seed in 4A, and played like it, with a stifling defense that kept Española away from the basket and forced turnovers that led to easy points.
“They came a long ways, and they made state,” said Española Coach Ray Romero. “We just wanted to tell them that the glass is half full.”
St. Pius had much more height than Española, and also had New Mexico Highlands commit Alyssa Maes leading the way.
“They’re not number two in the state for nothing, they haven’t won 18 in a row for nothing,” Romero said.
Medina, while battling a hip injury from the week before, scored 12 points to lead Española, hitting their lone 3-pointer and going perfect 5-for-5 on free throws.
Throughout the game, Española hit just six field goals.
Española quickly fell behind, and the first quarter turned into a disaster. The Sundevils did not score in the first eight minutes, and hardly had any shot attempts. They fell down 14-0.
“For a while, we were just passing, and we didn’t want to shoot,” Romero said. “And I said, we got to shoot. And once we started shooting, then good things happened.”
One second-quarter stretch, after they fell behind 20-2, was their lone sign of life in the game. Medina scored their first basket of the game, while drawing a foul, and opened the gates. They went into halftime down by 15 points and with a glimmer of hope.
“We just figured out that we needed to be more patient, and be smarter with our decisions,” Medina said.
But that quickly fell away in the second half. Española cut the lead to 14. Then St. Pius had a 24-1 run to end the quarter, outscoring the Sundevils 27-5 in the third, to take a 37-point lead and have a running clock for the fourth quarter.
“They were just a little bit more seasoned than we are,” Romero said. “They’ve been here in the state tournament, the last four years in a row, and they’ve been in the final four. So, they have a lot more experience than we do.”
Española kept fighting through the end. With St. Pius’ bench in the game, a basket by Alyssa Garcia ended the running clock in the final minutes.
In Romero’s first season, the Sundevils finished the year returning to state after a one-year absence after struggles on and off the court in the 2022-23 season.
Medina leads a five-member senior class that graduates after this year. But a strong group of juniors, with eight currently on the roster, will return and look to lead the team further in the future.
“We were a pretty strong team,” Medina said. “The younger ones are just going to have to grow stronger. I think they’re just going to grow stronger.”
4A Girls
No. 4 Gallup 69, No. 13 Pojoaque Valley 29
2A Girls
No. 1 Mesa Vista 48, No. 16 Capitan 32
No. 2 Tatum 64, No. 15 Escalante 27
No. 6 Peñasco 66, No. 11 Clayton 31
No. 7 Dulce 49, No. 10 Texico 45