3-6A District Preview: Battle for the Super South Begins
Overview
The action starts tonight! With realignment and reclassification, Class 6A has a new super-south district this season and it’s looking to be one competitive, chaotic mess. With Clovis moving over to District 2 and Alamogordo dropping down to 5A, Carlsbad and Hobbs joined Mayfield, Las Cruces, Onate, and Gadsden (Deming dropped down to 5A and Centennial moved up to 6A) to form this new 7-team district. The new district now requires 12 games to be played for each team which if you’re doing the math that is nearly half a season in itself. So there is no overstating how much weight district carries for these teams.
Six teams from this district are in the Top-10 this past week for Class 6A. Of those six, the top-3 teams combine for a 36-1 record. Only Hobbs enters the district season with 11 games played while everyone else heads in with 13 games played. The only two teams left undefeated in the state are in this district with Hobbs (11-0) and Carlsbad (13-0).
Carlsbad Cavegirls [Overall Record: 13-0 | Current Rank: #1]
Carlsbad may not score the most points, but they’re first in Class 6A defensively in points allowed at 30.9 per game. The Cavegirls stand undefeated heading into district play where they’ll likely face the toughest competition they’ve had all season. The only other 6A teams they’ve faced have been Cleveland, La Cueva, and Atrisco Heritage. They’ll be led by sophomore sensation Carsyn Boswell and the solid post work of Kim Best.
Hobbs Lady Eagles [Overall Record: 11-0 | Current Rank: #3]
The Lady Eagles have torched through their first 11 wins and are tied with Eldorado in points scored at 58.5 per game. Defensively, they’re 2nd in the class at 35.5 points allowed per game. Hobbs’ pace and depth have led to them defeating teams by an average margin of 23 points through their first 11 games that include a 30-point win against La Cueva and two solid wins against 5A’s #1 Roswell. They’ll be led by Amaya Lewis and see significant contributions from Amiah Smith, and Ayanna Smith.
Las Cruces Lady Bulldawgs [Overall Record: 12-1 | Current Rank: #2]
The Lady Bulldawgs head into the district season coming off a 6 game winning streak and tournament win at the LCPS Holiday Hoopla. Like Hobbs and Carlsbad, they’re a balanced team in getting contributions from nearly everyone on the roster. One of their primary go-to options, 5’8” junior Sarah Abney recently put up 28 points in the LCPS Holiday tournament, a career high for the 3-year varsity player. LC will also see contributions from junior Valeria Valtierra and maybe Janessa Johnson who suffered a knee injury at last week's tournament. Las Cruces sits tied with Centennial at 7th in scoring per game (51.0), but are 4th in points allowed per game (37.9).
Mayfield Lady Trojans [Overall Record: 9-4 | Current Rank: #6]
After starting off the season winning 6 straight, Mayfield has only won 3 of their last 7 games. Granted, they lost to the likes of Las Cruces, Roswell, Hope Christian, and Academy, but nearly all those games were winnable for the Lady Trojans. They did earn 2 good wins last week at the LCPS Holiday Hoopla against Rio Rancho and fellow district foe Centennial. Mayfield will look not only to University of Portland commit Jayce Gorzeman to lead the way, but help from sophomores Alize Ruiz and Alyssa Madrid. Mayfield is middle of the pack in scoring at 13th (47.4) but sit at 3rd behind Hobbs and Carlsbad in points allowed per game (35.5).
Centennial Lady Hawks [Overall Record: 8-5 | Current Rank: #10]
I was impressed with the Lady Hawks after seeing them play at the Mel Otero invite in mid-December. The duo of Brooklyn Calderazzo and Rylee Meloy definitely carry most of the offensive load for the Lady Hawks. Calderazzo might be one of the most lethal 3-point threats in the area, and Meloy does a superb job attacking the paint. Don’t sleep on Kaela Chavez too. The junior can put up points like she did against Rio Rancho and Roswell. Centennial has the pieces to play spoiler in this district. It’ll come down to their ability to defend the interior with Meloy as their main presence. Centennial sits at 8th in points allowed per game (40.7) and tied for 7th with Las Cruces in points scored per game, (51.0).
Onate Lady Knights [Overall Record: 6-7 | Current Rank: #16]
Onate gained transfer Jayden Perez from Las Cruces High in the off-season, and despite a slow start and 6th place finish in the LCPS Holiday Hoopla, they’ve won 4 of their last 7 games. It’s been tough to get solid 6A wins for the Lady Knights though with their lone win coming against Cleveland and dropping tough losses at Highland, La Cueva, Volcano Vista, Sandia, and Rio Rancho. Onate is third in Class 6A for points scored per game at 58.0 but 20th in points allowed, 51.92 per game. Onate has no problem scoring points, but will need to find a better defensive stand against their upcoming district foes. Senior guard Kayla Nicolas will provide plenty of tenacity and scoring as well for the Lady Knights.
Gadsden Lady Panthers [Overall Record: 4-9 | Current Rank: #20]
The Lady Panthers may not be the district favorite but they can still play the role as spoilers. They’ll need to find more offense as they’re 23rd in the class in points scored per game (26.5). So far though they’ve ranked 11th in points allowed per game in the class but 7 of their 13 games have been against teams below .500. Gadsden will look to senior Aylin Valdez and junior Flor Arlene Morales to guide them through the district season.
Predicted Finish
Your guess is as good as mine. Although I like the Cavegirls size in the frontcourt, I’m curious to see how the pace and speed of Hobbs will play into their matchup. Not only that but you have Mayfield, Las Cruces, and Centennial trying to make their mark and position themselves for March.
T-1. Hobbs 10-2
T-1. Carlsbad 10-2
3. Las Cruces 9-3
4. Mayfield 5-7
5. Centennial 5-7
6. Onate 4-8
7. Gadsden 0-12
*Yes, I'm cheating. I'm calling for a split between CBad and Hobbs with each losing one to Las Cruces. There's a playoff for first and I'm not going to guess who will win that just yet.*
Player Watch
- Carsyn Boswell
- Amaya Lewis
- Sarah Abney
- Jayce Gorzeman
- Brooklyn Calderazzo
- Jayden Perez
- Aylin Valdez
KEY DATES
Mayfield at Carlsbad - Tuesday, January 3rd
District champions last year collide in tonight's first district matchup.
Hobbs at Las Cruces - Tuesday, January 10th
Hobbs will make their first road trip in this anticipated Top-3 matchup.
Las Cruces at Carlsbad - Friday, January 13th
Las Cruces makes their 2nd district road trip to Cbad in another Top-3 matchup.
Onate at Las Cruces - Friday, January 20th
Onate's Jayden Perez will face her former team just days after they traveled to Hobbs.
Hobbs at Carlsbad - Tuesday, January 24th
A likely matchup to determine who will control first place through the rest of district.
Mayfield at Las Cruces - Tuesday January 24th
Two familiar district foes will face-off again after a nail-biter at the LCPS tournament.
