Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
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The Tucumcari boys basketball team wasn’t going to let Dexter’s CJ Granados ruin its night again. Granados, a freshman strong forward, almost single-handedly in the final minute of play led his team to a 67-66 comeback win over the Rattlers on Feb. 2. On Friday at Rattler Gymnasium, Tucumcari coach Gary Hittson assigned junior forward Julian Griego to shadow Granados, who also drew a double-team defense near the paint. “We changed up our defense just because of No. 10,” Hittson said. “Julian...
The Logan girls basketball team vaulted into sole possession of first place in the district with a 52-46 comeback victory Saturday over visiting Fort Sumner, the previous frontrunner. The Lady Longhorns twice trailed the Vixens early in the fourth quarter, then put together an 11-3 scoring run to take a decisive 49-42 lead with less than two minutes left. Desta Rose, who led Logan with 23 points, and Hailee Robertson each made late free throws to preserve the victory. With its sixth straight win, Logan improved to 18-7 overall and 4-1 in...
The Fort Sumner boys basketball team captured a regular-season district title Saturday with a 79-76 comeback victory at Logan in a clash of two highly ranked squads. With the Foxes trailing 76-75 with less than a minute left, senior guard Joaquin Segura scored a driving bucket with 20 seconds left, then made two free throws with four seconds remaining. A final play set up by the Longhorns gave senior guard Brock Burns a good look at what would have been a game-tying 3-pointer just before the buzzer, but his shot bounced off the rim. Logan...
Amber Campbell, a former Tucumcari resident, was among eight people named Saturday to the Class of 2023 for the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame. Campbell, 42, who said she gained her love for sports as a child in Tucumcari, was a USA Olympian in 2008, 2012 and 2016 in the hammer throw. At Coastal Carolina University, she was a five-time NCAA All-American in the weight throw, hammer throw, shot put and discus. She won 11 national track titles and was a two-time Pan American Games medalist. At...
Three seniors on the Tucumcari girls basketball team played a sizable role in their team's dominating 64-29 district victory Friday over visiting New Mexico Military Institute. On Senior Night where those athletes in winter sports and their parents were honored before the game, those three Lady Rattlers upperclassmen - Kirksey Smith, Alexis Ramirez and Haisley Huffman - combined for 18 points during the win. That pleased Tucumcari coach Patrick Benavidez. "It's big for our team right now to get...
The Tucumcari boys basketball team turned up the intensity of their rebounding and defense late in the game, surging to a 64-53 district victory Friday over visiting New Mexico Military Institute. The Rattlers totaled just nine rebounds in the first half as the Colts staked a 33-32 halftime lead. THS had mounted a small rally in the third quarter for a slim 46-43 advantage, but coach Gary Hittson wanted more. "I told them, 'If we win this one, it's a three-way tie for second (in the district)....
Tucumcari High School’s only two entrants in the Region 2 girls wrestling championships at Cobre earned medals and qualified for the state tournament later this month. Sarah Vallejo, a senior in the 114-pound weight class, and MiKayla Klinger, a junior at 152 pounds, each finished fourth at the 33-team tournament that took place Friday and Saturday. The top eight finishers in each weight division advanced to the state tourney. “I was very pleased with both of those girls. They gave everything they had,” Tucumcari coach Tim Clark said, nothi...
The Logan boys basketball team failed to score for more than two minutes of overtime, which proved to be the difference in a 79-74 district loss Saturday at Melrose. The Longhorns also went scoreless for almost the final two minutes of regulation, including a last-second shot from point guard Brock Burns. “We had a shot to win it in regulation that just didn’t fall,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “In overtime, the game was back-and-forth until the last minute, when Melrose hit some big free throws down the stretch.” The Buffaloes went 8-fo...
Desta Rose and Hailee Robertson made three of four free throws late in the fourth quarter to give the Logan girls basketball team a key 59-56 district victory Saturday at Melrose. The victory moved Logan (17-7), ranked fifth in Class 1A by MaxPreps.com, into a first-place tie in the district standings with a 3-1 record. No. 2-ranked Fort Sumner (17-5) also is 3-1 in district play. The Vixens travel to Logan for a key district matchup on Saturday. Melrose, ranked third, fell to 18-4, 2-2. The Lady Longhorns have won two of three against the...
Three Tucumcari wrestlers were crowned as district champions as the Rattlers finished second at the District 6 boys dual meet Saturday at Ruidoso. Fernando Ureste (wrestling in the 133-pound weight class), Antonio Gonzales (172 pounds) and Benny Garcia (189 pounds) were Tucumcari's individual district champions. They won all five of their bouts by pin or forfeit. Tucumcari coach Tim Clark said the titles by Ureste and Gonzales weren't unexpected, but Garcia was a different matter. "Benny surpris...
LOGAN - Logan junior Diego Sanchez was sidelined with an injury in virtually all of his team's previous clash against Melrose at the EPAC tournament. His presence Thursday showed how much the Longhorns missed him. Sanchez scored 12 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter to lead the No. 2-ranked Longhorns to a 61-53 comeback victory over the top-ranked Buffaloes in a key district game that featured 13 lead changes and several ties. Mason Wallin scored 15 points for the Longhorns (19-2,...
LOGAN - Strong defense carried the Lady Longhorns past foul trouble and a shooting slump in the second quarter to a 45-35 district victory Thursday over arch-rival Melrose. Camryn Cantrell scored five of her 11 points in the fourth quarter to expand Logan's lead to double digits. Hailee Robertson and Lizzy Horner also scored 11 points to lead the Lady Longhorns' balanced attack. They avenged a 44-43 loss to the Lady Buffaloes on Jan. 13 in the EPAC tournament final. Logan, ranked sixth in Class...
The Tucumcari boys basketball team blew a six-point lead with less than a minute remaining during a 67-66 district-opening loss Friday at Dexter. Dexter freshman guard CJ Granados made a short jump shot with 1.3 seconds left to give the Demons (9-12) the comeback win. He scored five of his team’s seven points during the last-minute rally. The loss spoiled a 34-point performance by sophomore Luis Archuleta for the Rattlers (6-11). Daymion Urioste added 19 points for THS. The Rattlers committed four turnovers during the final minute. Ball securit...
Starting the game with a 21-0 lead, the Tucumcari girls basketball team breezed to a 50-20 victory at Dexter in both teams’ district opener Friday. The Lady Rattlers, using their sprawling full-court press to force a flurry of turnovers by the Lady Demons, led 21-5 after the first quarter and 41-7 at intermission. The scoring pace went down after that because of a running mercy clock during much of the second half. Caylee Benavidez led the Lady Rattlers with 20 points and six assists. July Lafferty added 17 points and six steals. Kyla Lopez h...
It's hard to win a basketball game if you can't make shots at point-blank range. The Tucumcari boys basketball team found that out during a 62-51 loss Thursday to Clayton during the Rattlers' annual Homecoming game. It was a rough week for the Rattlers, with them losing three games. Calling up his iPad used to compile statistics after the Clayton game, THS coach Gary Hittson showed on the screen a flurry of red X's near his team's basket. Those X's signified missed shots 5 feet or less from the...
The Tucumcari girls basketball team held Clayton scoreless the last five minutes during a 44-33 victory Thursday, denying the Yellowjackets' bid to be spoilers of the Lady Rattlers' Homecoming. The Lady Rattlers (14-3) trailed early in the fourth quarter but scored 12 unanswered points to secure the win over the Yellowjackets (11-6), ranked fourth in Class 2A by MaxPreps.com. Tucumcari was ranked sixth in Class 3A by MaxPreps going into the game. Kyla Lopez, who scored a game-high 15 points,...
The Logan boys basketball team opened its district schedule with a 76-52 loss Thursday to host Fort Sumner, the defending champion of Class 1A. The Foxes seized the initiative, taking a 25-12 lead after one quarter. The Longhorns trailed 41-27 at intermission and 53-37 after three periods. “Fort Sumner came out and played very well,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said. “We started slow and never recovered.” Mason Wallin led Logan withy 16 points, and Brock Burns added 15. The Foxes improved to 15-3 and were ranked fifth in Class 1A by MaxPrep...
Tucumcari standout wrestler Fernando Ureste notched six more victories during last weekend’s nine-team Cardinal Classic Duals at Robertson High School in Las Vegas. Ureste, a sophomore in the 133-pound weight class, emerged triumphant in dual-match bouts against athletes from Robertson, Raton, Bernalillo, Cleveland, Miyamura and the Cleveland junior varsity. Tucumcari’s Josh Pacheco won five bouts during the tournament in the 145-pound class, losing only to Cleveland’s James Luttrell. Antonio Gonzales also won five matches for THS in the 172-po...
A slow start ultimately doomed the Logan girls basketball team during a 46-38 loss at district foe Fort Sumner. The Vixens seized a 12-1 lead in the first quarter. “We couldn’t hit shots in the first quarter,” Logan coach Dustin Robertson said. “It put us in a hole we couldn’t get out of.” The Lady Longhorns recovered somewhat and trailed 15-11 by intermission. The Vixens took back some of the momentum in the third quarter, taking a 25-19 lead. Logan, with the help of a full-court press, twice rallied to within a three points with less than t...
The Logan boys basketball team steamrolled through the competition at the Reserve Tournament, including a 70-48 victory Saturday over Springer in the title game. Logan (16-1), ranked No. 1 in Class 1A by MaxPreps.com, defeated its foes by an average margin of 48 points during the tourney. Sophomore center Mason Wallin led the Longhorns with 22 points against the Red Devils, and sophomore power forward Hayden Bruhn added 16. Senior guard Brock Burns totaled 10 points. “We had a good tournament and were able to get everyone a good amount of e...
Tucumcari girls basketball coach Patrick Benavidez was reluctant to use the words "moral victory" when he prefers the real thing, but the term came up after the Lady Rattlers' 45-35 loss Friday to Robertson. That's because the Lady Rattlers had lost their last three matchups against perennially state-contending Cardinals by an average of more than 31 points. On Friday, it was a more even matchup on paper and with the result. Tucumcari (12-3) was ranked fifth in Class 3A by MaxPreps.com coming in...
The Tucumcari boys basketball team won the consolation championship at Mighty Lion Basketball Classic tournament in Santa Rosa with a 60-45 victory Saturday over Mora. The Rattlers (6-7) went 2-1 at the tourney, losing only to Class 2A power Rehoboth Christian in the opening round. Luis Archuleta earned all-tournament honors for the Rattlers after scoring a total of 86 points in the three games. Against the Rangers, Tucumcari took control in the second half, outscoring them 34-20. “Our defense was the key in that,” THS coach Gary Hittson sai...
One boy and one girl from Tucumcari High School’s wrestling teams each won a title Saturday during the Spencer Cole Invitational tournament in Las Vegas. Sophomore Fernando Ureste (20-2) notched five victories by pin at the six-team tourney, including against Nico Ulibarri of West Las Vegas in the final of the 133-pound class. “He’s like a magician,” Tucumcari coach Tim Clark said of Ureste. “He’s down, and the next thing you know, the other kid is on his back.” It was the third tournament crown that Ureste has won this season. In girls comp...
A slow start doomed the Logan girls basketball team against Fort Sumner during a 57-38 loss Saturday in the championship game of the Reserve Tournament. The Vixens made seven of their 11 3-point shots in the first half to surge to a 30-11 lead at halftime. Allyssa Casaus led the charge for Fort Sumner, scoring 17 of her game-high 21 points during the half. The Lady Longhorns, meanwhile, went seven minutes without a field goal. “We looked tired, sluggish and worn out,” Logan coach Dustin Robertson said. “The weekend and the long trip caugh...
Tucumcari’s girls basketball team surged to a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter and repelled host Estancia’s comeback bid during a 44-35 victory Saturday in the finals of the BVC Tournament. Kyla Lopez scored 19 points to lead the Lady Rattlers. She earned Most Valuable Player honors in the tournament. Fellow Tucumcari players Caylee Benavidez (11 points), July Lafferty (12 points, 14 rebounds) and Kirksey Smith also earned all-tournament honors. Tucumcari improved its record to 12-1 with its ninth win in a row. The Lady Rattlers did...
