The Dulce Lady Hawks entered the District 2AA tournament as the fourth and last seed, but they didn’t play like one.
The Hawks defeated Escalante in the opening round 60-53 Feb. 22 to advance to the semifinals Feb. 24 where they upset Coronado 50-49 to advance to the championship game against Navajo Prep, the defending Class AA state champion. In the final, Dulce lost 60-48 to the Lady Eagles, but still advanced to the Class AA state tournament by finishing as the district runnerup.
“It’s always fun when you’re still getting to lace up your sneakers for one more week,” Dulce coach Roland Bradford said. “A lot of that credit should go to the girls. They had to make a choice and have the desire to want to change.”
The Hawks lost the championship game but not before battling Navajo Prep through three quarters. After trailing 13-5 at the end of the first quarter, the Hawks took a 22-21 lead at halftime. Prep came back to lead 41-40 at the end of the third quarter and pulled away in the fourth quarter.
“It was 45-42, and the wheels came off,” Bradford said. “We hit a spot where we broke down a little, and Navajo Prep just keep pounding at you.”
The Hawks didn’t start the tournament like they were going to surprise anyone. Dulce fell behind 19-2 to Escalante in the first quarter. The Hawoks managed to shave that deficit to 34-22 at halftime.
“We went to a full court man-to-man press in the second half, and the girls played it tenaciously,” Bradford said.
Dulce defended so well, the Lady Lobos did not score in the third quarter as the Hawks grabbed a 40-34 lead. They held off the Lobos in the fourth quarter for a seven-point victory. Senior Carmen Gomez led Dulce with 18 points
Coronado had defeated the Hawks twice during the District 2AA season. The Leopards were leading 49-47 when senior Carmen Gomez sank a three-pointer with 16 seconds left to play that eventualy gave Dulce the win. Danette DeDios led the Hawks with 19 points.
The Hawks will face Peñasco in the opening round of state. The Hawks faced the Lady Panthers three times during the season and lost three times. The most recent loss was a 78-61 defeat Jan. 25 in Peñasco.
“We going to have to be really, really ready to play,” Bradford said. “This time of the year, everybody’s good.”