Dulce had to fight through playing two games in one day, and waking up early for the trip down to Pojoaque.
“It was very tough,” Dulce coach Erik Petago said. “We had to wake up early, head down this way, and then try to get ready for two games against tough teams.
The Dulce Hawks (3-5) faced strong competition at the Ben Lujan Tournament in Pojoaque, going 1-2 on the weekend. They are hoping to improve after facing tough teams.
Freshman Felimino Vicenti became a breakout star in one game.
He joined the varsity team about a week before, after starting the year with junior varsity.
Facing Portales (7-0), the freshman came off the bench late in the second quarter, and caught fire. He hit back-to-back 3-pointers to end the half.
He further went off in the third quarter, ultimately draining five straight 3-pointers, finishing the game with 19 points. It stopped mattering how many defenders were in his face. And each shot sent the crowd into a frenzy. Even the Portales fans were immediately impressed.
That was his second varsity game. The first was earlier that day.
“I was feeling pretty confident with my shot,” Vicenti said. “Every time they would hand me the ball, I would keep shooting and shooting and shooting. The crowd was hyping me up. And it was hyping the crowd up.”
Vicenti seems to thrive under pressure, suddenly showing new skills.
“You just have to find him on offense, and he has confidence as a player overall,” Petago said. “Just trying to get through his freshman mistakes.”
Soon, just his presence pulled defenders in. He drew double teams. And that opened up space in the middle for other players to score.
Dulce started the weekend with a win over Monte Del Sol (1-6), winning 38-29.
Later that day, they faced Portales, a team from a much bigger school with bigger players. Despite Vicento’s contributions, they fell behind big early, going down 27-11 after the first quarter. Dulce struggled to contend with the Rams’ size in the post, and often had their shots blocked in the paint.
Ultimately, Dulce lost that game 84-44.
The next day, for their third game, Dulce faced Bernalillo (6-5) and lost 69-30. They were down 27-9 by the end of the first quarter. In that game, Maliek Green and Adolf Vigil led the team with nine points each.
James Johnson and Michael TeCube were named all-tournament for Dulce.
“I expect us just to be better all the way around,” Petago said. “Just take these games as a learning experience, and just try to get ready for districts.”
The Hawks lost on Monday 74-31 to Santa Fe Indian (6-2). Dulce is hoping for experience against big schools to help them improve in the long run.
“We can keep up with every single team that we play,” Vicenti said. “We’ve just got to practice hard, work hard, and work on everything.”
Dulce also travels to the Striking Eagle Native American Invitational tournament in Albuquerque. Their first opponent at that tournament will be Zuni (3-4) on Dec. 28. Playing in a native tournament adds a bit of extra meaning for the Hawks.
“You get bragging rights,” Petago said.