For two Española Valley girls basketball players, their season was in some ways a reconnection with old friends.
Cameron Conners and Jordan Torres, both juniors at Santa Fe Indian School, originally had their season canceled when Pueblo governors opted not to have any sports this year. Instead, they were allowed to play with their home school, which turned out to be Española Valley, even while still attending Santa Fe Indian.
“We’ve known all these girls since elementary school, and played with them during the summer,” said Torres. “Coming over here was a little different, only because we hadn’t played with them in high school, but it kind of felt like home in a way.”
Both had family members attend Santa Fe Indian School, and said they fell in love with the campus.
Growing up, they played with and against girls in Española through elementary school and during the summer. Torres said they both played on the same team as Joni Martinez, Analysa Pacheco and Rozlyn Baca, all juniors on the team now.
Not only were they given a chance to play, though, but both players proved themselves to be instrumental to the Sundevils’ success.
Conners and Torres were the first two players off the bench nearly every game, and would be on the court together for the majority of their minutes. Both have provided multiple double-digit scoring outputs during the season, an impressive feat on a team that often spreads the ball around as much as possible.
“Jordan comes in and starts making shots,” said Española coach Joe Estrada. “Cameron comes in and starts rebounding and scoring.”
Estrada said both of them are talented enough to start almost anywhere. They also had the experience of having been in a state championship game in 2019.
“They bring a lot of energy, a lot of basketball smarts,” he said.
Conners provided the frontcourt depth that the Sundevils would likely have badly lacked otherwise, spelling senior starter Kianna Duran, and brought an aggressive scoring mindset in the post.
Torres, a small but shifty and electric guard, could give the team scoring bursts with deadly outside shooting. Her quickness played perfectly into the Española defensive press where she’d disrupt passes at midcourt, exemplified by a six-steal performance in a midseason game against Los Alamos.
Estrada said their presence also elevated everyone else, who was now competing with them for playing time.
Conners said it was an adjustment to fit into a different and faster style and pace of play, though Estrada said that he thought their style was somewhat similar.
“It was fun and different,” she said. “They like to run the ball and everything. And it’s really fun to just play our game.”
Both players also had to adjust to a 4A competition from their 3A school after being two of the top contributors on a team that made the state tournament as the No. 6 seed.
“Just playing the bigger schools, there’s a lot of taller people,” said the five-foot-two Torres.
“If any big adjustments, they have been the leaders of their team,” Estrada said. “And now they’re, I won’t even call them role players, because they’re very important to us, too. But they’re coming off the bench and things like that.”
Off the court, too, both have had an easy time meshing with the team, even while they still attend different schools this year.
“They were really accepting,” Conners said.
Estrada said both of them were instrumental in preparing the team’s senior night at the last minute after it was announced that the Sundevils could not host fans at their last regular season game.
Torres and Conners said other athletes from Santa Fe Indian competed with Bernalillo High School, Pine Hill High School, and Capital High School who the Sundevils defeated early in the season.
But both of them have most enjoyed being able to connect with their new (and old) teammates.
“It’s really fun,” Torres said. “And it’s like home.”