2023 New Mexico 5A Girls All-Metro Teams

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Every year, the New Mexico High School Coaches Association within the Metro Area have organized a purpose of recognizing the best basketball players in the metro area. With the 2022-23 season just wrapping up last week, the 2023 Metro selection are officially out, now we'll look at the 5A Girls Class. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">1st Team All-Metro</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='370329' first='Bella' last='Hines']</strong> 'Eldorado" - She was selected as the 2022-23 New Mexico MaxPreps Player of the Year. The sophomore superstar led the state in scoring averaging 30.0 points per game which was inside the Top 25 in the nation. She was just shy of averaging a double-double of 8.8 rebounds per game and led Eldorado to the 5A Girls State Tournament. Was chosen as the 2022-23 5A Girls Metro Player of The Year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='357657' first='Taejhuan' last='Hill']</strong> "Volcano Vista" - The two-time State Champion led Volcano Vista to their fourth straight 5A State Championship Game while averaging about double-double per game averaging 16.4 points and 9.7 rebounds this past season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391103' first='Sydney' last='Benally']</strong> "Sandia" - An all-around two-way player that affected the game in many ways this year. Was the states second leading scorer averaging 25.0 points per game, a team high 7.7 rebounds per game and 3.5 steals per game and was chosen as the 2023 5A Girls Metro Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Led Sandia to the 5A Girls State Quarterfinals. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='353909' first='Leilani' last='Love']</strong> "Albuquerque" - Was selected as the 2022-23 New Mexico Girls Gatorade Player of the Year. Was New Mexico's fifth leading scorer averaging 19.3 points per game and 11th in rebounding averaging 9.2 rebounds per game. Her outstanding play led Albuquerque to the best record in NM this year at 25-3. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jordyn Dyer</strong> "La Cueva" - Was easily the best freshman in the state of New Mexico this year. Was an efficient scoring shotting guard averaging 12.5 points per game on 49% shooting from the field. Despite her size, averaged an impressive 8.0 rebounds per game which was second among the 2026 Class. Played a critical role in the La Cueva Bears reaching the 5A State Semifinals for the second straight year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">2nd Team All-Metro</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391109' first='Audriana' last='Wright']</strong> "Sandia" - </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='357673' first='Eva' last='Love']</strong> "La Cueva" - Led the La Cueva Bears to a 23-8 record this year. Reached the 5A State Semifinals for the second season in a row. Averaged 10.1 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game as the Bears second leading scorer. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='459606' first='Mari' last='Manzanares']</strong> "Volcano Vista" - Volcano Vista's most important player was [player_tooltip player_id='459606' first='Mari' last='Manzanares']. She was the team's glue player that did everything on the floor. She could score, rebound, pass and play elite defense which helped Volcano Vista reach another State Championship Game appearance this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='353911' first='Ariana' last='Sanchez']</strong> "Albuquerque" - Was arguably the most important piece to the 25-3 Albuquerque Bulldogs. Was a consistent #2 scorer averaging 13.0 points per game and was tied for 6th in New Mexico in assists per game averaging 4.1. Was solid defensively averaging 2.9 steals per game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='459605' first='Alexis' last='Ayers']</strong> "La Cueva" - The senior leadership that [player_tooltip player_id='459605' first='Alexis' last='Ayers'] provided this year was a huge reason for the La Cueva Bears success. She was the team's most important piece and played winning basketball all season long. Alexis averaged 10 points per game, was one of the states best passers and was one of the biggest pests defensively. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">3rd Team All-Metro</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Liliana Duncan</strong> "Volcano Vista" - A scoring first guard that was another reliable weapon for the Volcano Vista Hawks. Liliana Duncan provided long-range shooting to space the floor for the Hawks this year and made big shots in critical moments in big games this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391104' first='Hope' last='Giddings']</strong> "Sandia" - As a sophomore, [player_tooltip player_id='391104' first='Hope' last='Giddings'] increased her numbers across the board from her freshman season. Her scoring, rebounding and steals each increased as did Sandia's record this season which included a longer playoff run. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='370403' first='Kindyll' last='Sandoval']</strong> "Cleveland" - Led the Cleveland Storm to another winning record and playoff berth in 2023. Was the team's leading scorer in points per game this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Julie Espinoza</strong> "Rio Rancho" - Was the Rio Rancho Rams best player this year while leading them to the 2023 Girls 5A State Tournament. Competed in a tough district that sent four of the five teams to the playoffs. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391323' first='Mila' last='Espinoza']</strong> "Volcano Vista" - The Hawks second best player and the team's second leading scorer. She averaged an impressive 11.7 points per game as a sophomore while helping Volcano Vista advance to the 5A State Championship Game for the fourth straight year. [player_tooltip player_id='391323' first='Mila' last='Espinoza'] made 49 three-pointers which ranked 14th in the state this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>5A Girls Metro Coach of the Year: <strong>Marisa Cogan</strong> "La Cueva". </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>5A Girls Metro Defensive Player of the Year: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='357657' first='Taejhuan' last='Hill']</strong> "Volcano Vista" and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391103' first='Sydney' last='Benally']</strong> "Sandia". </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>5A Girls Metro Player of the Year: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='370329' first='Bella' last='Hines']</strong> "Eldorado". </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->