Small-School Athletes Commit for College
Two Rio Arriba athletes made their college commitments this past week, capping four years of hard work and preparing to take on the next level.
Cipriana Garcia, a longtime star guard for the Escalante girls basketball team, will play collegiate basketball for Lamar College in southeastern Colorado.
Garcia was the 2021-22 District 5-2A player of the year, and was a first-team all-state selection that year and an honorable mention for 2022-23. Twice, she led the Lady Lobos to a state runner-up finish.
Also committing to college was Allison Cantrell, a McCurdy track star, who will run Division II for New Mexico Highlands. The Highlands track team announced her commitment in a social media post on April 5.
Cantrell was part of a 4×800 meter relay team that placed fifth in the state last year.
Questa Hosts Wildcat Invitational
Questa hosted many teams from around northern New Mexico at the Wildcat Invitational track meet on April 6, and Rio Arriba teams found plenty of success.
McCurdy’s Casey Nevarez won first place in the 100 meters with a time of 11.9 seconds.
Escalante was led by Nathaniel Martinez, who won first place in the 110-meter hurdles at 15.92 and at 45.02 in the 300-meter hurdles.
Martinez placed second in the 100 meters at 11.96, and third in the long jump at a state-qualifying 19 feet, 2.5 inches.
Escalante’s Luka Torrez placed third in the 400 meters. Leroy Salazar placed second in the discus and third in the shot put.
McCurdy’s Adrian Trujillo was second in the 800-meter run
Mesa Vista was led by Ezequiel Nevarez, who was second at the meet in 3,200 meters and third in 1,600. And their 4×100 meter, 4×200 and sprint medley relay teams won first place.
Peñasco’s Elias Archibeque won the 200 meters at 25.2 seconds, and Escalante’s Jayden Salazar was second in that event. Jude Martinez won the 3,200 meters for the Panthers.
On the girls side, McCurdy’s Marisol Serna led the Bobcats with a win in the 3200 meters, followed by Mesa Vista’s Estrella Alire. The Bobcats also won the sprint medley relay.
McCurdy’s Allison Cantrell took second place in the 200 meters with a 31.07. Aubrey Cordova was third in the 400 meters.
Escalante’s Felice Baca was third in the 200 meters. Hannah Lopez was second in the 400 meters and the 110-meter hurdles. Ashley Gilmore was third in the 300-meter hurdles, and the Lobos were second in the 4×100 meter relay.
Baseball swept, softball splits at Taos
The Española Valley baseball and softball teams both struggled against Taos in district doubleheaders on the road on April 8.
The baseball team (3-12, 0-5 in district) lost to the Tigers (6-9, 2-3) 7-2 in the first game and 16-6 in the second.
The softball team (5-11, 1-4) fared better, drawing a split with the Tigers (2-11, 1-4), losing the first game 15-4 but coming back for a 13-7 win. Ashley Osegueda went 5-for-5 with two doubles in the later game, and Aliah Villalobos had a strong pitching performance.