Lady Rattlers tournament champs fourth time running

The Tucumcari girls basketball team captured its fourth consecutive Girls BVC Tournament championship Saturday with a 44-29 win over host Estancia in the title game Saturday.

Lady Rattlers point guard Ashley Shipley was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament, and teammates Jasmine Jones, Kalani French, Aliyah Herrera and Aaliyah Brown each were named to the all-tournament team.

Tucumcari coach Gary Hittson said Brown didn't score a lot, but "she rebounded well and played great defense, which helped a lot."

Against Estancia, French led Tucumcari with 14 points and Shipley added 10.

The Bears, wary of the Lady Rattlers' deadly fastbreak game, slowed the pace and attempted just 20 shots for the night. As a result, the Lady Rattlers led just 25-15 at intermission before pulling away.

"They were very deliberate in shooting the basketball," Hittson said of Estancia. "They really slowed it down. They had a very good game plan against us. We're going to see a lot more of that, I think."

Asked what was the difference in the game, Hittson said: "We changed up our press and got to run a little bit."

Lainey Fastnact led Estancia with 12 points.

Tucumcari improved to 10-4 overall. Estancia fell to 7-3.

Tucumcari 66, Santa Rosa 22

The Lady Rattlers overwhelmed the Lady Lions 66-22 during the semifinals Friday of the BVC Tournament.

Jones used her strong post game to score 24 points against Santa Rosa, whom Hittson said didn't match up well inside. Shipley added 11 points.

"We were a little sluggish," Hittson said. "I don't know if it's because we got home late (from the Bosque game) and had to leave early for a 2 o'clock game."

Tucumcari commanded a 38-12 lead at intermission.

Elysa Chevez led Santa Rosa with nine points.

Tucumcari 71, Bosque 32

Tucumcari opened the BVC Tournament on Thursday with a resounding 71-32 win over Bosque.

The Lady Rattlers jumped out to a 23-5 lead in the first quarter and went into the locker room at intermission with a 43-15 advantage.

"We came out and just played," Hittson said. "We pressed them."

Shipley led Tucumcari with 25 points, while Herrera added 23.

Abby Schneder led Bosque with 10 points.