Thoreau girls hold off West Las Vegas

By Santiago Ramos Jr.
Special to the Times

THOREAU 

Talented senior guard/forward Leah Delgarito scored the go-ahead layup with 40 seconds left.

Sophomore guard Krischelle Largo then sank a pair of clutch free throws with 30 seconds as the No. 8 seed Thoreau Hawks held off No. 9 West Las Vegas 43-41 Friday night during the Sweet 16 opening round of the Class 3A girls state basketball championships.

Delgarito, a four-year varsity starter, put Thoreau (19-10) in front 40-39 with a clutch shot.

Largo’s two free throws made the score 42-39 and the Lady Dons (13-15) missed the game-tying trey from senior forward Jacelyn Morgan and another missed basket from freshman guard LillyAnna Martinez.

Delgarito, who finished with a game-high 22 points, was fouled with 23 seconds left on the clock. Delgarito made 1-of-2 free throws to give the Hawks a little breathing room at 43-39.

West Las Vegas came down and made it a two-point game after Morgan scored with 16 seconds remaining.

The Lady Hawks promptly turned the ball over to the Lady Dons which had one final possession but committed a huge turnover on a bad pass that sealed the opening round win for the hometown team.

Thoreau head coach Rebecca Rachel Becenti, who will be guiding the Lady Hawks to their sixth straight state trip in six years, praised her team for not giving up.

“We had some mental errors,” Becenti said. “We just had a hard time getting started but they pulled through. We had to make some changes, last-minute changeups but it worked out to our benefit. They never gave up. The girls never gave up. They stayed in it even though they might have a little off night. They never gave up.”

Becenti added that she relished playing a team from the North.

“This game was fun,” she said. “We don’t get to see West Las Vegas in a regular season so this was a fun game to have. Our crowd came through. We had a pretty nice turnout.”

Thoreau has a state quarterfinal matchup against No. 1 Las Vegas Robertson, the defending 3A state champs.

Robertson crushed No. 16 seed Hot Springs 58-22 in its first round matchup. Game time is Tuesday at the Rio Rancho Events Center at 1:15 p.m.

The evenly matched first round battle featured a total eight ties.

Thoreau broke a 16-all tie in the second quarter on an impressive 7-0 run to close out the first half. A free throw by sophomore point guard Mychalyn King gave the Lady Hawks their biggest lead of the night at eight points, 24-16.

But the Lady Dons with Morgan, who led the team with 16 points, burying a 3 and Martinez, who finished with 12 points, adding a basket along with two free throws that proved to be huge in the final outcome. The game was tied three more times in the fourth quarter with the final time at 35-all after Delgarito nailed a fadeaway jumper while adding a free throw with 2:20 left in the game.

Both teams struggled from the field with Thoreau shooting 36 percent, 15 of 42 while West Las Vegas finished with a poor 31 percent, 14 of 45.

The Lady Hawks turned the ball over 25 times compared to 18 for the visiting Lady Dons but were helped by holding an advantage on the boards – 33 rebounded to 24. Both teams also struggled at the free-throw line – canning an identical 9-of-18.

The Lady Hawks suffered a key injury when senior center/forward Maria Calladitto went down with 3:50 left in the third quarter with a reoccurring knee injury.

“She has a previous injury on that knee, so she reinjured it,” Becenti said. “She was in a lot of pain. We’re hoping that she is OK.”

Becenti said that Tuesday’s state rematch with defending state champ Robertson will be challenging.

“Last year we traveled out there to Robertson,” she said. “It was tough playing at their home court. This time it will be a neutral court (Rio Rancho Events Center). They’re a tough team but we have a few days to prepare.

“They beat us by 20 (points) plus,” she added. “They were beating a lot of teams by 20 or more points last year. We’ll get a good game plan going. Last year was the first time (under Becenti) that we got out of the first round.”

Other girls state scores

In Class 5A, No. 2 Farmington downed No. 15 West Mesa 54-35. The Lady Scorpions will play No. 7 Las Cruces, 51-33 winners over No. 10 Clovis 51-33, Tuesday in the state quarterfinals at the Pit at 8:15 p.m.

In Class 4A, top seed Kirtland Central routed No. 16 seed Deming 64-22. The Lady Broncos will face district foe and No. 8 seed Bloomfield which got by No. 9 Highland 47-44, Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Pit.

No. 2 seed Gallup took care of No. 15 Albuquerque Academy 60-34. The Lady Bengals will play No. 10 Valencia, 37-31 winners over No. 7 Silver, Tuesday at 3 p.m. at the Pit.

In Class 3A, No. 2 Navajo Prep dumped No. 15 Dexter 56-20. The Lady Eagles will take on No. 7 St. Michael’s, which held off No. 10 Zuni 43-41.

No. 3 Santa Fe Indian downed No. 14 Ruidoso 52-34. The Lady Braves will go up against No. 6 Sandia Prep, 40-31 winners over No. 11 Crownpoint.

No. 4 Tohatchi whipped No. 13 Socorro 85-29. The Lady Cougars will take on No. 5 Tucumcari, 68-41 winners over No. 12 Cuba.

In Class 2A, No. 3 Laguna Acoma held off No. 14 Menaul 50-42. The Lady Hawks will take on No.6 Dulce, 55-51 winners over No. 12 Penasco, Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Rio Rancho Events Center.

In Class 1A, No. 4 To’hajiilee rolled over No. 13 Jemez Valley 78-34. To’hajiilee will play No. 12 Dora, 46-40 upset winners over No. 5 Alamo Navajo, Tuesday at 3 p.m. at Bernalillo High School.

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