Espinoza & Hill lift Volcano Vista past Centennial
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Albuquerque, NM — Two of the top five teams in the 5A Class faced off Thursday morning in the Joe Armijo Classic at Academy High School. The No. 2 ranked Volcano Vista Hawks defeated the No. 5 ranked Centennial Hawks…
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Continue ReadingAlbuquerque, NM — Two of the top five teams in the 5A Class faced off Thursday morning in the Joe Armijo Classic at Academy High School. The No. 2 ranked Volcano Vista Hawks defeated the No. 5 ranked Centennial Hawks 51-45. An intriguing matchup that could serve as a preview to a potential meeting in the State Tournament down the line.
Volcano Vista, the defending back-2-back State Champions, entered the week with two top ten ranked opponents on their schedule.
Before todays matchup with CHS, Coach Villarreal and the Volcano Vista Hawks had their 46 game winning streak snapped at the hands of No. 6 La Cueva on Tuesday night.
Fast forward two days later, The Hawks now 4-1, looked to rebound against Centennial High School 3-0.
Centennial, from Las Cruces, is Coached by Matt Abney who is in his first year with the program after a long stint with the Las Cruces Bulldawgs.
It was a fast paced game which featured aggressive defense and limited half court possessions. Both clubs got after it, forcing turnovers and arrant shots. At Halftime it was only a nine point game – VVHS led 34 to 25 – As the third quarter winded down, CHS made a run & tied the game 39-39.
HOWEVER, Centennial was held scoreless in the fourth quarter up until the 1:39 mark, thanks to a corner 3 which sparked a last second push.
Final: VVHS 51 – 45 CHS
Volcano Vista guard Mila Espinoza Mila Espinoza 5'4" | CG Volcano Vista | 2025 State NM was named the player of the game after scoring 19 points and asserting herself on both ends of the floor by diving for loose balls, creating extra possessions and creating scoring opportunities’ for her and teammates.
Taejhuan Hill Taejhuan Hill 5'11" | C Volcano Vista | 2024 State NM made her presence felt as she dominated the paint finishing with 16 points; Most coming via one dribble power ups.
As for Centennial, Joslyn Montez Joslyn Montez 5'5" | PG Centennial | 2023 State NM led them with 22 points thanks to several three-point makes from the corners and wings. Aspen Salazar Aspen Salazar 5'9" | SF Centennial | 2023 State NM , the teams leading scorer at 17 ppg had a quiet game but managed to still contribute winning plays which gave the Hawks a chance down the stretch.