THS spikers topple Estancia

Tucumcari's volleyball team dispatched of a depleted Estancia squad on Thursday by a score of 27-25, 25-14, 25-16, all but eliminating the Lady Bears from district contention.

The Lady Rattlers dominated the Lady Bears 34-21 in kills during their annual Think Pink game where the players wore specially made black-and-pink jerseys.

Sophomore Cambree Benavidez, celebrating her 16th birthday that day, led THS with 12 kills.

July Lafferty, apparently recovered from an ankle injury in mid-September, added nine kills and Kyla Lopez eight.

"Our hitters hit well," coach Dana Benavidez said. "July hit really well tonight. She's been working on getting herself back to where she needed to be, and I'm very proud of her for that.

"And we ran some good quick-sets in the middle with Kyla. Our hitters hit well when we got good touches. Sometimes we struggled on serve-receive a little bit, but that's something we continue to work on."

Tucumcari also totaled nine service aces, with senior Caylee Benavidez leading with four.

Tucumcari improved to 14-4 overall and stayed in first place in the district with a 5-0 mark.

Estancia dropped to 10-8 overall and fell further behind in the district standings with a 2-3 record. Estancia had been considered a district contender early in the season but has dropped two straight matches.

Lady Bears coach Alicia Pope said two players quit her team that week, and three more were at the FFA Convention in Indianapolis.

That lack of continuity was reflected in Estancia's passing and hitting errors.

"This is a whole new rotation ... well, not entirely new, but a lot of it is new," Pope said. "The girls aren't used to playing where they're playing and who they're playing with. But it was a valiant effort, I think."

Even so, Estancia showed what it could do when it rallied from a 23-18 deficit in the first set. The Lady Bears scored six unanswered points to take a 24-23 lead.

Twice, the Lady Rattlers repelled their opponents' bid for a set-winning point. Cambree Benavidez pounded home a kill, Caylee Benavidez executed a point-scoring block, and Lopez served an ace to win the opener, 27-25.

"I got after them when we were down, and they turned it around," coach Benavidez said. "I'm proud of them for that because they don't ever give up. I love that about my team."

Pope admitted her team lost its mojo after squandering its big chance in the first set.

"We're working towards closing those games, and we haven't been able to do it yet," she said. "When we're in that high-stress situation, we start playing really, really hard, but we just can't close."

Tucumcari surged to a double-digit lead in the second set during its 25-14 win.

In the third set, the Lady Rattlers briefly trailed 10-9 before going on an 11-3 run to wrest back control.

"They lost their intensity a little bit at times," the THS coach said. "We've been battling just a little bit of not feeling well ... not deep sickness."

Before the game, Tucumcari and Estancia players helped honor eight local cancer survivors, including Cathy Garcia, who is battling liver cancer. The survivors received a loud and long ovation at the end of the ceremony.

A bake sale and other events helped raise $608 for Garcia.

Tucumcari 3, Santa Rosa 0

Tucumcari notched a crucial district match Saturday with a 25-23, 25-16, 25-17 victory at Santa Rosa.

Cambree Benavidez led the Lady Rattlers with 18 kills, and July Lafferty made 10.

"During the match, Santa Rosa came out strong, and we had to adjust our defense to their hitting style," THS coach Dana Benavidez said. "Once we did that, we were able to run our offense effectively.

"We struggled serving in the first set, which made the game close, but came through in the following sets."

The Rattlers coach said Aliyah Marez served well during a critical run in the third set, and Caylee Benavidez served sever big aces when the game was close. She also praised Nevaeh Montoya for strong defensive digs in the middle.

Tucumcari improved to 15-4 overall and 6-0 in district play. Santa Rosa well to 7-12, 4-2.

Legacy Academy 3, Logan 0

Legacy Academy, the top-rated team in Class 2A, ended Logan's winning streak at seven with a 25-19, 25-18, 25-17 non-district victory Thursday at Albuquerque.

Logan, the top-ranked team in Class 1A by MaxPreps.com, fell to 16-4 overall.

Desta Rose led the Lady Longhorns with 10 kills, while Haylie Bidegain made eight. Jadyn Garcia totaled 15 digs, and Abby Paris made four blocks.

The host Silverbacks improved to 16-2 overall, with its only losses to Class 2A contender Texico and to Class 3A power West Las Vegas.

"Legacy was tough," Logan coach Glynna Strand said. "I predict they will win 2A."

Logan has a two-week break before resuming district play with a key match at home against Fort Sumner on Nov. 7.

Logan 3, San Jon 0

The Lady Longhorns breezed to a 25-8, 25-11, 25-11 victory over visiting district foe San Jon on Oct. 21.

Logan improved to 5-0 in district play. The Lady Longhorns hold a one-match lead over Grady in the district standings with two remaining in the schedule.

San Jon fell to 5-13 overall and 0-7 in district play.