Top five standouts from first half of South-Central League

The South-Central League currently has five teams ranked inside the latest CHSAA RPI rankings top 48, meaning the S-CL could be in position to have a big presence in the postseason field. And with each team halfway or one game over halfway, we take a look at which five players have stood out the most this league season so far. League standings: 1, Pueblo West 5-0; 2, Pueblo South, 4-2; 3, Pueblo East, 3-2; 4, Pueblo Central, 3-3; 5, Pueblo County, 2-4; 6, Pueblo Centennial, 0-6. <strong>5. <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/erin-mauro/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/erin-mauro/">Erin Mauro</a></a>, senior, Pueblo County</strong> On a team with players learning new positions and many shooters, Mauro has been the calming catalyst for the RPI No. 28-ranked Hornets. Mauro is the team's leading scorer with 10.6 points per game, and also leads in rebounds and assists with 6.9 and 3, which are ranked second and first overall in the S-CL. Defense is where Pueblo County hangs its hat though, and Mauro helps spark that with her intensity on the court and willingness to go after whoever is in front of her. <strong>4. <span style="color: #3366ff"><span style="color: #00ccff">Harlie Medrano</span>,</span> sophomore, Pueblo East</strong> [caption id="attachment_138726" align="alignright" width="300"] Pueblo East High School's Harlie Medrano drives to the bucket Jan. 21 against Pueblo Central.[/caption] The Eagles started out hot winning their first three S-CL matchups, but have dropped their last two against Pueblo South and Pueblo Central. When Pueblo East was winning, Medrano was scoring for the Eagles as she has proven to be a reliable shooter from anywhere on the court. Pueblo East works the sophomore along the elbow and in the paint most of the time, which is where she can use her height to her advantage and crash the boards. Look for East to get back to more of that with Medrano in the second half. [caption id="attachment_143201" align="alignleft" width="300"] Pueblo South's <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jada-dupree/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jada-dupree/">Jada Dupree</a></a>, right, drives to the basket against Pueblo Central.[/caption] <strong>3. <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jada-dupree/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jada-dupree/">Jada Dupree</a></a>, senior, Pueblo South</strong> Primarily, the Colts have gone as Dupree has gone in the S-CL slate so far. Dupree has been able to find success in the Colts' four league wins, but has been shutdown in their two losses to Pueblo West and Pueblo County. Dupree often uses her speed and defense and turn it into offense, or help out by knocking down a big 3-pointer. <strong>2. <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jocelyn-marquez/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jocelyn-marquez/">Jocelyn Marquez</a></a>, senior, Pueblo Central</strong> After the Wildcats fell to 1-3 in the S-CL, Marquez has stepped her game up even more by scoring 20 against Pueblo East and 16 against Pueblo County, both wins to get Pueblo Central up to 3-3 and in fourth place. Marquez has done it by knocking down the big 3-pointers she was missing early on in league and by getting her teammates more involved down low in Alicia Lest and Abby Gridley. [caption id="attachment_138727" align="alignright" width="300"] Pueblo Central High School's <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jocelyn-marquez/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/jocelyn-marquez/">Jocelyn Marquez</a></a> runs the floor during a fastbreak Jan. 21 against Pueblo East.[/caption] With a rematch coming against Pueblo South and the chance to make a significant move in the standings, watch out for more clutch scoring from Marquez. <strong>1. <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/hannah-simental/"><a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/player/hannah-simental/">Hannah Simental</a></a>, senior, Pueblo West</strong> No real surprise with No.1 in Simental as she has scored in the double digits in every league game, including 19 against rival Pueblo South. Simental also averages around three steals and three assists a game to help the Cyclones, who are still currently ranked No. 2 in Class 4A by the CHSAAnow.com coaches/media poll. The UNC-commit will need to keep playing at an elite level with the second round of league games coming up as each team will be gunning for the 5-0 Cyclones.