Powerlifters win home meet
Española Valley’s powerlifting team won a meet at home where they hosted Santa Fe and Oak Grove, and took first place for both boys and girls.
Leandro “Chungus” Salazar upped his own state record with a 370-pound bench press, the highest in the state by a wide margin.
(Updated standings were not available on the New Mexico Activities Association website, but the second-highest as of last week was 305 pounds).
Sundevil coach Rudy Martinez said that Salazar is humble, but was very proud of his accomplishment.
In total, Martinez said Española has 25-30 participants on the team, though not all compete. They also have four girls, including three freshmen on the team.
Martinez said a large team of volunteers helped with the event, which took place on the mezzanine level of the Española Valley gymnasium. Last year, meets were individual, and Española competed in their weight room. According to Martinez, 70-80 fans were at the high-energy event.
“It’s really a community sport,” Martinez said.
Lifters are competing against each other, but cheering for each other at the same time.
Jack Purdy, Ezekial Rosales-Cuevas, Isaiah Guinn, Salazar and Bryan Almedia all took first place in their weight classes, as did Michelle Herrera, Olivia Suazo and Melorie Martinez on the girls side.
Sundevils hope for another shot at Taos
Española Valley boys basketball (6-20, 4-4 in district) finished their regular season on a three-game losing streak, and lost their last game of the regular season 46-30 to Taos (16-10, 7-1).
A low-scoring first half ended with Taos in the lead 12-9, and Española trailed by three entering the fourth, but the Tigers won out with a 24-point fourth quarter.
Now, the Sundevils have one last chance to make the state tournament: an automatic berth by winning the district tournament. As the No. 2 seed, they host a game Thursday against Los Alamos or Pojoaque, and should they win will play Saturday at Taos for the title and a chance to extend their season.
District tournaments start first round
McCurdy’s (1-24) season came to an end on Monday with a 56-12 loss to Peñasco (15-11) in the first round of the District 5-2A tournament. The Panthers will play on Tuesday against Questa (11-15), who defeated Mora (6-20) 57-21 in their first-round game on Monday.
In girls 2-4A, Pojoaque (9-18) finished their season with a loss to Taos (8-18) 37-34, after the Elkettes won both regular-season matchups with the Lady Tigers. Taos had a 9-2 run in the fourth quarter to break a tie and ultimately secure the win.
For the boys 2-4A bracket, Los Alamos (11-16) cruised to a 70-36 win over Moriarty (8-10) in the first round, and will next face Pojoaque (16-10).