Trojan star hits 1,000 career points
Mesa Vista senior Jordan Cervantes officially hit a milestone of 1,000 points in his basketball career in a Feb. 4 game against McCurdy, and he celebrated the achievement with teammates after a Feb. 16 game against Peñasco.
“It’s a huge milestone that I can’t believe,” Cervantes said. “Without my teammates and my coaches having enough trust in me, and putting work in with me, then I don’t think I’d be here doing this.”
Other local players including Derek Sanchez of Pojoaque Valley have also celebrated hitting 1,000 points this season. Unfortunately for Cervantes, it does not appear that he will catch the all-time program leader, Gary Gallegos (father of teammate Jordan Gallegos), who scored 2,229 points from 1993 to 1997, ranking 14th all time in New Mexico.
Baseball season starts in Rio Arriba
Pojoaque Valley started its baseball season at the Valencia Tournament in Los Lunas with a third-place finish against the eight-team field.
They won their first game of the season Feb. 23 10-1 over Kirtland Central, stretching the lead with an eight-run sixth inning.
Caleb Roybal registered two RBIs and a triple, while Angelo Romero was the top pitcher with 3.1 scoreless and hitless innings.
The Elks lost 16-0 in five innings to eventual tournament champion Grants, but came back for a 7-3 win over Capital, led by two hits and two RBIs by freshman Andres Trevizo, and six innings pitched by Mateo Soveranez.
Española Valley started its season Feb. 25 with a doubleheader sweep of Gallup, winning 12-2 in the first game and 15-3 in the second.
172 total points in a semifinal
Mesa Vista and McCurdy played one of the most exciting basketball games of the year in northern New Mexico in the district semifinal on Feb. 24, with the Trojans coming out ahead 90-82.
McCurdy scored 28 points in the first quarter to take an early lead, led by 15 points by Lucas Martinez, but Mesa Vista led 45-43 at halftime. The Trojans added to the lead in the third quarter, and were up 67-55, but McCurdy fought back with a big fourth quarter and made the game close late before losing.
Martinez was the game leader with 26 points total, and teammate Ryan Montoya had 21. For Mesa Vista, four players scored 15 or more points, led by Jordan Cervantes at 21 and Jordan Gallegos at 20.