Jasmine Valdez is the only player on Pojoaque’s roster that has ever been to the state tournament.
“The best memory that I’ve ever had was running down that pit and hearing everybody cheer us on,” said Valdez, who was in eighth grade at the time four years ago.
Now, the rest of the team will be joining her. Pojoaque (15-12, 6-2) defeated Los Alamos (15-12, 6-2) 47-44 in the District 2-4A girls tiebreaker game on Monday in Española to claim the regular-season title and an automatic berth at state. And Valdez hit the go-ahead shot in the final minute.
“It feels like, just amazing,” said Pojoaque Coach Cindy Roybal. “I’m so happy for the girls, because this had never happened to them before.”
Pojoaque dedicated the win to coach Cindy Roybal’s brother, Ron, who died last week.
“We were like two peas in a pod,” Roybal said. “I think that my brother helped us win.”
While Carlos Medina Gymnasium was less crowded than it normally would be (plenty of seats were available in the lower ball) as the game went on, the Pojoaque section especially got louder and louder. The emotions grew, and the players were in tears after the game.
“The energy of the crowd, our teammates on the bench, just brought up our spirits on the court,” said senior center Marisela Bowie.
Two days earlier, Los Alamos won in Pojoaque 50-41 to force the tiebreaker game, with the Hilltoppers making 19 of their 25 free throws.
Valdez led the Elkettes on Monday with 15 points, and Marisela Bowie scored 10 of her 12 in the second half.
Early on, the Elkettes were slow on offense, and their shots were not falling. Los Alamos went up 7-1, and led 12-5 after the first quarter.
But Pojoaque started to find their selfless offense with aggressiveness in the post, and they threw great passes the whole game. They finished the half on a 9-4 run and were down by four.
In the third quarter, Pojoaque went down big. Los Alamos scored the half’s first nine points and led by 13.
At that point, Valdez decided it was her turn to take over the game. She scored with a foul, hit Pojoaque’s lone 3-pointer of the game, then scored in transition for an 8-0 run by herself. Suddenly, Pojoaque had all the momentum. Even Roybal was using her arms to fire up the crowd.
“My mind was blank,” Valdez said. “All I was thinking about was driving to the basket, scoring points for my team. I was so hyped, so I wanted to lift my teammates up.”
Pojoaque went up late in the third quarter, though Los Alamos took back the lead with a buzzer-beater.
But in the fourth, Allison Paytiamo hit an ‘and-one’ to take momentum right back. The Elkettes were getting many of their points on second or third efforts, and Los Alamos had no response in the post.
With a two-point lead with four minutes left, Pojoaque entered into a slowed-down offense to try to run down the clock. That almost backfired, as Los Alamos took back the lead with one minute left.
Pojoaque missed twice and gave up the ball with under 40 seconds left. But Lauren Salazar tipped an inbound pass to Monique Arrieta, who found Valdez in transition for the go-ahead layup.
Then Arrieta made another steal, and hit both her free throws to go up by three points with 16 seconds left.
Disaster very nearly struck for Pojoaque. Los Alamos star GG Romero slipped open in transition for a 3-pointer.
Somehow, her shot missed. Perhaps Pojoaque really is the team of destiny.
When the Elkettes were 5-9 to start the season, the state tournament seemed very far off. A year ago, they were fourth in the district and finished 9-18. Now, the whole team has turned around.
Pojoaque will host the district tournament final on Friday.
“We’re not done yet,” Bowie said.
District 2-4A Boys: Taos 65, Española 44
Three days earlier, the Sundevils (12-15, 6-2) beat the Tigers (14-13, 6-2) by 21 points at home.
But on Monday, the script was completely flipped, as the Sundevils lost by 21. They lost the fourth quarter 23-6.
The first half was a tough-as-nails battle, as neither team ever led by more than four points. Taos started the third quarter strong, and at one point were up by 12. But the Sundevils were able to battle back, and were down just four points entering the final quarter.
But Española gave up 12 straight points to open the fourth quarter, and were never able to recover.
Española may still need a strong showing through the district tournament in order to ensure a spot at state. They will host the district semifinal game on Thursday.
District 5-2A Boys: Mesa Vista 61, Escalante 44
The Trojans (21-5, 9-1) were firing on all cylinders the whole game as they took down Escalante (18-8, 9-1), avenging an earlier defeat to claim the regular-season district title.
“Escalante’s a really good team,” Mesa Vista Coach Thomas Vigil said. “Their kids play incredibly hard. We played well. We did all the small things.”
Jordan Gallegos led the Trojans with 21 points, and Marcos Martinez added 13.
“He’s one of the best players in 2A,” Vigil said of Gallegos. “His impact on the offensive side and the defensive side of the ball is incredible. Those kinds of players don’t come around often.”
Mesa Vista dominated from the get-go, scoring the game’s first six points. By the end of the first quarter, they led 14-6, and were up 11 at halftime. That lead continued to grow to 18 early in the third quarter, and they were in cruise control.
“I think the score’s a little misleading,” Vigil said. “There were some moments in the second half that, had the momentum swung, it could have been a two-possession game. It was an absolute war, don’t let the score fool anybody.”
Mesa Vista will host the district tournament championship game on Saturday. They could rematch with Escalante, but don’t be surprised if someone else pulls an upset.
District 1-2A Girls: Laguna-Acoma 55, Dulce 51
Laguna-Acoma (17-8, 5-1) has been a thorn in the side of Dulce (16-10, 5-1) in recent years. Monday’s was their ninth loss to Laguna-Acoma in the last three years, as they fell for the second-straight year in a district tiebreak game.
“Any native team you come against, the game is played differently,” said Dulce coach Alyssa Veneno. “The pace, the intensity.”
Free throws had been an issue for Dulce, Veneno said. They shot them well in this game, until the final stretch when they missed key layups and free throws.
Veneno said that she wants her team to not try to run with teams that are faster. But in the second quarter especially, they started playing “helter skelter.” And foul trouble early in the game limited them.
Laguna-Acoma led by six at halftime, then took a bigger lead in the third quarter up to 10 points. Dulce came back and took a lead, but gave it up late in the fourth quarter.