Aztec makes statement with runner-up finish at Kristin Griego Softball Tournament

By Lee Begaye
Special to the Times

RIO RANCHO, N.M.

Aztec made a statement over the weekend at the 2026 Kristin Griego Softball Tournament, stringing together four wins against 5A competition before falling 4-2 to undefeated Alamogordo in Saturday afternoon’s championship game.

The Lady Tigers opened tournament play Thursday with a 7-5 win over Carlsbad, then powered through a demanding Friday slate with a 9-3 victory over La Cueva followed by an 8-7 win against Cibola to reach the semifinals. Aztec continued its run Saturday morning with a 14-4 win over district rival Kirtland Central, earning a spot in the title game against Alamogordo, which entered the matchup at 11-0.

Despite the loss, Aztec showed it could compete with one of the state’s top teams. Senior Kamora Henry led the effort in the circle, pitching all six innings. She allowed eight hits and four runs while striking out eight, throwing 104 pitches with 63 strikes. Henry also contributed at the plate with two hits, including a home run.

“Kamora is a fantastic pitcher,” Aztec head coach Joshua French said. “This is her fifth year on varsity. She knows what she’s doing. She’s great at hitting her spots, she’s a hard worker, she’s a great teammate. She keeps us in every game that we’re in.”

Aztec struck first in the championship game when Cheyenne Yellow launched a home run over right field to give the Lady Tigers a 1-0 lead. Alamogordo answered in the bottom of the third inning when senior Hailey Evans singled, allowing senior Amani Cosom to score and tie the game at 1-1.

Henry responded in the fourth inning with a home run over left field, putting Aztec back in front 2-1. The lead didn’t hold. In the bottom half of the fourth, freshman Raegan Rose drove a ball up the middle that took a high hop over the fence for a ground-rule double, allowing sophomore Jocelyn Pittman to score and giving Alamogordo a 3-2 lead.

Alamogordo added insurance in the fifth inning on a single by junior Daviana Gonzales that brought in Cosom and sealed the game in the sixth when sophomore Elis Roman doubled off the fence, scoring Gonzales for the final run.

Alamogordo pitcher sophomore Khloe Lunar delivered a dominant performance in the circle, going all seven innings while allowing three hits and two runs. She struck out 14 and threw 128 pitches, 77 for strikes.

French said the tournament run marked a significant step forward for the program.

“This is the best that we’ve done since I’ve been at Aztec in this tournament,” he said. “We played some good teams. Defensively, we played better than we’ve played this early in the year. When we hit the ball, when we’re aggressive, we’re a hard team to play against because we hit the ball hard and put pressure on teams.”

Facing one of the state’s top pitchers, French said his team didn’t back down.

“Their pitcher is phenomenal,” he said. “I was super proud of my girls because they weren’t scared at the plate. We hit two home runs off of her. We just gotta keep doing what we’re doing.”

With the performance, the Lady Tigers left Rio Rancho with confidence and momentum heading into district play. Aztec began District 1-4A play with a win over Bloomfield on Tuesday night and will travel to Miyamura to face the Lady Patriots on Friday evening at 6 p.m.

“There’s a lot of good teams in the state,” French said. “You gotta show up and play. If we put in the work from now and have a good district, it’s anybody’s state, so why not us?”

Get instant access to this story by purchasing one of our many e-edition subscriptions HERE at our Navajo Times Store.

---