2023 New Mexico Girls State Tournament Semifinals Review

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This year's 2023 New Mexico State Tournament has just finished through the first half of the bracket. Each Class from 1-5A started with sixteen teams at the start of this tournament and we are now down to the final four in each class. We have concluded through the first two rounds and give you a recap of the State Semifinals today Thursday March 9th, 2023. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">4A #1 Kirtland Central vs #4 Hope Christian at 8:00am at "The Pit"</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending 4A State Champion; Kirtland Central Broncos are heading to the 4A State Championship Game for the second straight year following their 53-35 victory over the Hope Christian Huskies in the 4A State Semifinals. The Broncos had three players in double-figures with <strong>Aaryanna Lansing</strong> leading the team in scoring with 13 points while <strong>Emilia</strong> <strong>Clani</strong> and <strong>Teghan Begay</strong> both scored 12 points each. For the Huskies, <strong>Charlotte Bitsoih</strong> scored a game-high 15 points while <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='391172' first='Kathleen' last='Obisike']</strong> recorded a double-double with 14 points and 16 rebounds. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">5A #1 Hobbs vs #5 La Cueva at 9:45am at "The Pit"</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A rematch of last year's 5A State Semifinals, the Hobbs Eagles and La Cueva Bears met again for another trip to the 5A State Championship Game on the line. The La Cueva Bears led for the majority of the game while the Hobbs Eagles stormed back late in the 4th quarter. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='459604' first='Karleigh' last='Gutierrez']</strong> made a game-tying layup with up 14 second left as <strong>Aliyana</strong> <strong>Armitage</strong> made the game the game winning layup the other way just moments later. [player_tooltip player_id='459605' first='Alexis' last='Ayers'] and [player_tooltip player_id='357673' first='Eva' last='Love'] both scored 11 points for the Bears while <strong>Jordyn Dyer</strong> scored 8 points &amp; grabbed 14 rebounds. [player_tooltip player_id='458555' first='Bhret' last='Clay'] led Hobbs in scoring with 14 points and grabbed 6 rebounds. Hobbs defeated La Cueva 44-42 to advance to the 5A State Championship Game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">4A #2 Gallup vs #3 St. Pius at 11:30am at "The Pit"</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Gallup Bengals are heading to the 4A State Championship Game for the second time in three years following their 68-49 victory over St. Pius X in the 4A State Semifinals. <strong>Alysa Maes</strong> led the way with 21 points for St. Pius while Gallup had more balanced scoring with three players in double-figures. <strong>Kierea Livingston</strong> scored 13 points while <strong>Daliyah</strong> <strong>Morris</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='467051' first='Rylie' last='Whitehair']</strong> scored 11 points each. Gallup will face #1 Kirtland Central in the 4A State Championship Game and its a matchup of the last two 4A State Champions; Gallup in 2021 and Kirtland Central last year in 2022. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline">5A #3 Volcano Vista vs #7 Las Cruces at 1:15pm at "The Pit"</span></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='357657' first='Taejhuan' last='Hill']</strong> had a dominant performance in the 5A State Semifinals to help Volcano Vista advance to their fourth straight 5A State Championship Game Appearance. She led the game in scoring and rebounding with 19 points &amp; 14 rebounds. Volcano Vista won 56-35. They will face Hobbs in the 5A State Championship Game for the fourth straight season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->