2015 fall sports preview

2 2015 FALL SPORTS PREVIEW THE DAILY TIMES

2015 FOOTBALL SCHEDULES

FARM

INGTO

NHea

dco

ach:

Jeff

Dal

ton

PIE

DRA

VIS

TAHea

dco

ach:

Jare

dHow

ell

AZT

ECHea

dco

ach:

Mat

thew

Ste

infe

ldt

KIRT

LAND

CENT

RAL

Hea

dco

ach:

Gre

gJe

nks

BLO

OM

FIEL

DHea

dco

ach:

Bob

Allc

orn

NAVAJO

PREP

Hea

dco

ach:

Sto

rmTa

llbul

l

SHIP

ROCK

Hea

dco

ach:

Eric

Sto

vall

Aug. 28 Los Lunas Away 6 p.m.Sept. 4 Kirtland Central Away 7 p.m.Sept. 11 Belen Home 7 p.m.Sept 18 Durango, Colo. Home 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Los Alamos Away 7 p.m.Oct. 2 Grants Home 7 p.m.Oct. 9 Piedra Vista* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 16 Aztec* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 23 ByeOct. 30 Miyamura* Home TBANov. 6 Gallup* Home 7 p.m.

Home games played at Hutchison Stadium *Denotes District 1-5A game

Aug. 28 San Juan, Utah Home 7 p.m.Sept. 4 Goddard Home 7 p.m.Sept. 11 Durango, Colo. Away 7 p.m.Sept. 18 Moriarty Away 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Kirtland Central Home 7 p.m.Oct. 3 Roswell Away 1 p.m.Oct. 9 Farmington* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 16 Miyamura* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 23 Aztec* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 30 Gallup* Away 7 p.m.Nov. 6 Bye

Home games played at Hutchison Stadium *Denotes District 1-5A game

Aug. 28 Bloomfield Home 7 p.m.Sept. 4 Durango, Colo. Away NoonSept. 11 Kirtland Central Home 7 p.m.Sept. 19 Del Norte Away 7 p.m.Sept. 26 Cobre Home 7 p.m.Oct. 2 Valley Home 7 p.m.Oct. 9 Gallup* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 16 Farmington* Home 7 p.m. Oct. 23 Piedra Vista* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 30 ByeNov. 6 Miyamura* Away 7 p.m.Home games played at Fred Cook Memorial Stadium *Denotes District 1-5A game

Aug. 28 Bayfield, Colo. Home 7 p.m.Sept. 4 Farmington Home 7 p.m.Sept. 11 Aztec Away 7 p.m.Sept. 18 Los Alamos Home 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Piedra Vista Away 7 p.m.Oct. 2 ByeOct. 9 Zuni* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 16 Thoreau* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 23 Wingate* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 30 Shiprock* Home 7 p.m.Nov. 6 Bloomfield* Away 7 p.m.

Home games played at Bronco Stadium *Denotes District 1-4A game

Aug. 28 Aztec Away 7 p.m.Sept. 4 Pojoaque Valley Away 7 p.m. Sept. 11 Socorro Home 7 p.m.Sept 18 Taos Away 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Hope Christian Home 7 p.m.Oct. 3 ByeOct. 9 Wingate* Home 7 p.m. Oct. 16 Shiprock* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 23 Thoreau* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 30 Zuni* Away 7 p.m.Nov. 6 Kirtland Central* Away 7 p.m.

Home games played at Bobcat Stadium *Denotes District 1-4A game

Aug. 28 Socorro Home 7 p.m.Sept. 5 Chinle, Ariz. Home 7 p.m.Sept. 11 ByeSept 18 Questa Home 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Navajo Prep Away 7 p.m.Oct. 2 Newcomb Home 7 p.m.Oct. 9 Thoreau Home 7 p.m.Oct. 16 Bloomfield* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 23 Zuni* Home 7 p.m.Oct. 30 Kirtland Central* Away 7 p.m.Nov. 6 Wingate* Away 7 p.m.

Home games played at Chieftain Stadium *Denotes District 1-4A game

Aug. 28 Laguna Acoma Away 7 p.m.Sept. 4 Estancia Away 7 p.m.Sept. 11 Escalante Home 7 p.m.Sept. 18 Zuni Away 7 p.m.Sept. 25 Shiprock Home 7 p.m.Oct. 2 Thoreau Home 7 p.m. Oct. 9 ByeOct. 17 Dexter Home 1 p.m.Oct. 23 Tohatchi* Away 7 p.m.Oct. 30 Newcomb* Away 7 p.m.Nov. 6 Crownpoint* Home 7 p.m.

Home games played at Navajo Prep *Denotes District 1-3A game

((HHoommeeccoommiinngg))

((HHoommeeccoommiinngg))

((HHoommeeccoommiinngg))((HHoommeeccoommiinngg))

32015 FALL SPORTS PREVIEWTHE DAILY TIMES

AZTEC TIGERS

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesAztec High School’s offense runs plays during football practice Aug. 12 at Aztec High School.

Aztec looks to reload andrecapture district title

The Aztec Tigers havetheir sights set on anotherDistrict 1-5A title.

The team finished last yearwith an 8-3 record and rolledthrough its district schedule4-0 for the title. The Tigersearned the No. 5 seed in the5A state playoffs and reachedthe quarterfinals beforefalling to No. 4 Goddard.

But after losing 21 seniorsfrom last year’s roster, thisyear’s Tigers are a differentsquad.

Gone are starting quarter-back Marcus Crawford, whothrew for 2,670 yards; widereceiver Josh Harris, whopulled in 73 receptions for1,548 yards and 27 touch-downs on his way to firstteam All-State honors; andsecond team All-State line-backer Jake Harris.

Despite that, Aztec head

coach Matthew Steinfeldtbelieves the Tigers willreload, rather than rebuild,this season.

“I don’t think rebuilding isappropriate. Expectations arealways high for us,”Steinfeldt said. “I think thisdistrict will be very competi-tive, and I expect to be therewith everyone else.”

This season marksSteinfeldt’s fourth, makingthis the first senior class tospend its entire high schoolcareer with him at the helm.

While this year’s squadlacks experience compared tolast year’s team, Steinfeldtsaid, they have a strong graspon the offensive and defen-sive schemes.

“I’m very excited aboutthis football team,” Steinfeldtsaid. “What I see day in andday out, in meetings, on the

field, is a great savviness.They understand what we’retrying to do schematically,and they apply it very well.”

Offensively, the Tigers willstick to the spread offense,throwing around the ballwith sophomore Cody Smithlikely getting the startingquarterback job.

The sophomore will comeinto the season at 6 feet 1 1/2inches tall and 215 pounds.That will give the Tigers thesize and arm strength towork in the pocket, andSmith’s athleticism will allowhim to tuck the ball and hurtopposing defenses with hislegs

Smith with have a danger-ous weapon on the outside insenior wide receiver DylanSutherland.

In the three gamesSutherland played last sea-

son before breaking his foot,he pulled in 26 catches for326 yards. In a game Sept. 5against Durango, Colo., heset a state record for recep-tions in a game with 15,though that record was bro-ken three weeks later whenLas Cruces’ Aeneas Reynoldscaught 18 passes againstCentennial.

“We look to him to reallyfactor in on our offense anddefense,” Steinfeldt said ofSutherland, who will alsostart at linebacker. “His per-formance has been out-standing so far, and he’sgoing to be a good footballplayer on both sides of theball.”

Steinfeldt also expects sen-ior receiver and defensiveback Derek Baca to take onmore of a leadership role inhis final year with the Tigers.

Baca started for the first halfof the 2014 season at defen-sive back before breaking hiswrist.

“I think we’re going to besolid. We have a lot ofspeed,” Baca said. “I thinkit’s going to be a good run forthe district. We’ll just have tosee how it goes.”

Sutherland agreed, sayingthis year’s Tigers could bebetter than those last season.

But, right now, he’s look-ing forward to the first gameof the season on Aug. 28against Bloomfield, when hecan hit someone other thanhis teammates.

“We’ve been hitting eachother for about a week and ahalf now, and we still have acouple weeks left,”Sutherland said. “We’reready to play some peoplealready.”

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesAztec’s Dylan Sutherland (7) receives a throw duringfootball practice Aug. 12 at Aztec High School.


Despite implement-ing a brand new systemon both sides of the ball,Bob Allcorn navigatedBloomfield to a 9-2record last season in hisfirst year as head coach.

Bloomfield won theDistrict 1-4A title, going5-0 in district play. Afterdropping the first gameof the season, the teamwon nine consecutivegames, scoring at least30 points seven timesand eclipsing the 50-point threshold threetimes.

This year, Allcornsaid the team is alreadyin midseason form whenit comes to understand-ing the playbook.

“The kids understandthe concepts a lot better.Defensively, they’repicking things up prettywell,” Allcorn said.“Even though we’ve gota number of newstarters, those kids arecatching on and gettingfamiliar with ourschemes.”

Thirteen seniors fromthe 2014 team havegraduated, but Allcornsaid a lot of his under-classmen receivedmeaningful playing timelast year and are readyto step up.

He pointed to a trio ofsenior two-way players— JD Robinson,Brendan Ramsey andDavid DeHerrera — ashis leaders and standoutplaymakers.

Robinson racked up63 tackles as an insidelinebacker while also

manning the fullbackposition on offense. Thesenior starting middlelinebacker said hebelieves the Bobcats canbe even better this sea-son if they can buy into ateam-first mentality.

“It’s about building abrotherhood, and thatstarts in the weightroom every summer,”Robinson said. “This off-season is the most I’veseen the guys cometogether as a team in myfour years.”

DeHerrera plays righttackle and defensive endfor the Bobcats and

thinks the defensive linecould be a bright spot.

“We got a senior, inme, and a junior on ourline. That should be astrength,” DeHerrerasaid. “We got a lot ofsophomores and somefreshmen (in the second-ary), so it’s kind of onthe defensive line tomake things happen.”

Junior BrendonCharley will be the start-ing quarterback. He hasa full year of experienceunder his belt after start-ing under center hissophomore season.

Allcorn said

Charley’s grasp on theoffense is getting betterby the day.

“He’s come in reallyprepared after getting afeel of what the positiondemanded from him asa sophomore,” Allcornsaid. “Mentally, you cansee he’s taking owner-ship of the offense, andhe really understandswhat we’re trying to do,in depth.”

During the last year,Charley said his biggestimprovement has beenreading defenses. Hewill also be expected tolimit the turnovers and

effectively manage arun-first offense, whichis becoming less com-mon among San JuanCounty teams.

“Everyone’s gonepass happy, and theywant to pass the ball, butwe’re kind of old schoolin that we want to estab-lish the run,” Allcornsaid. “We definitelyhave to have a physicalmindset. It’s not afinesse game like it is forsome.”

Physicality on bothsides of the ball will beBloomfield’s identity in2015, according to

Allcorn. And it’s whyhis players have spentso much time in theweight room during theoffseason.

“Our defense isdesigned to be quick toattack, and we need tobe strong in order to runblock on offense,”Allcorn said. “That’swhy we’ve been hittingthe weight room so hardas a team.”

Bloomfield opens theregular season at Aztecon Aug. 28. The Bobcatshosted Aztec to kick offthe season last year andlost 20-0.

BLOOMFIELD BOBCATSBloomfield ready to build on strong 2014 season

Jon Austria/The Daily TimesBloomfield High School’s David DeHerrera practices with his team-mates during football practice Aug. 18 at Bobcat Stadium in Bloomfield.

Jon Austria/The Daily TimesBloomfield High School’s Chauncey White works out with his team-mates during football practice Aug. 18 at Bobcat Stadium in Bloomfield.


It’s been a summer oflearning for Kirtland CentralHigh School.

This spring, the Broncoshired former Farmingtonfootball assistant Greg Jenksas head football coach. A newcoaching staff usually comeswith an overhaul in teamstrategy, and that has beenthe case for the Broncos.

“I’ve seen the typicalgrowing pains because thesystem is new and different,”Jenks said. “It’s really not dif-ferent football, it’s just learn-ing all the different languageour staff is teaching themversus what they’re used to.”

The Broncos went 5-6 lastseason and 4-1 in District 1-4A. They got off to a roughstart, losing four of their firstfive games, but then reeledoff four straight wins to starttheir district schedule. They

gave up only six combinedpoints in those four victories.

Kirtland’s top three play-ers in all-purpose yards froma season ago — BrycesonArthur, Josh Belin andDavidson Wyatt — havegraduated. So in addition to anew system, the team needsto find new offensive play-makers.

Part of that responsibilityfalls on quarterback RileyHamblin, who will be thestarting signal-caller for thefirst time.

Much like his teammates,Hamblin is learning a lotevery day. A positive part ofthe senior’s learning processhas been his comfort withJenks’ offensive playbook,which calls for plenty of bal-ance between passing andrunning the ball.

“The offense is actually

pretty simple for me becauseit’s pretty similar to what alot of us did in little league,”Hamblin said.

Speed is among Hamblin’sassets, and the former widereceiver said he thinks theBroncos will be faster thisyear.

“Our backfield is probablythe fastest it has been sinceI’ve been in high school,”Hamblin said. “I think our(offensive) line is going to befast and quicker on their feetthan last year, too.”

One speedy member of thebackfield who Hamblin willhand off to is Aiden Cockrell.The senior scored five touch-downs in only 37 carries lastseason and should see a lotmore touches this year.

The three-year varsity start-ing running back said he’sembracing his role as a leader.

“I’m doing my absolutebest to show the youngerguys how to carry them-selves like winners,” he said.

Cockrell will also be theteam’s starting middle line-backer and is looking to puthis improved defensiveawareness on display.

“The longer you play andthe longer you start, thesmarter you get, I think,”Cockrell said. “Knowing howto seek things out and beingable to read and react issomething I feel I can do.”

Still, Jenks said, the teamneeds to improve its physi-cality. He mentioned hark-ing back to the hard-nosedstyle of play favored by for-mer Kirtland coach BillCawood, a member of theNew Mexico High SchoolCoaches Association Hall ofHonor.

“Getting more physical asa unit is our No. 1 focus rightnow,” Jenks said. “We wantto get back to the CoachCawood era of bringing thewood.”

In district play last season,Bloomfield was the only teamto beat Kirtland. Just like anyother program, Jenks said hisgoal as coach is to win a dis-trict title.

“We believe we can win adistrict this year,” he said.“We’re glad that Shiprockand Bloomfield are our lasttwo regular season games.We should be firing on allcylinders by then. We hadbetter be ready for thosegames.”

But long before theBroncos face off against theirdistrict foes, they will hostBayfield, Colo., in their firstgame Aug. 28.

KIRTLAND BRONCOSKirtland Central adjusts to new coaching staff

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesThe Kirtland Central High School football team practices defensive plays duringfootball practice Aug. 14 at Bronco Stadium in Kirtland.

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesKirtland Central High School’s defensive team practices hitting and blocking drillsduring football practice Aug. 14 at Bronco Stadium in Kirtland.


Navajo Prep willhave to overcome a lotof changes to claim afourth consecutiveDistrict 1-3A title.

Rod Denetso, whotook over the Eaglesprogram in 2012,resigned Aug. 7, threeweeks before the firstgame of the season.Five days later, StormTallbull, the Eaglesdefensive coordinatorin 2014, was hired asthe head coach.

In three years,Denetso compiled a 20-14 record, going 11-0 indistrict play.

Navajo PrepExecutive DirectorBetty Ojaye saidDenetso resigned vol-untarily but declinedto comment about whyhe left the program.Efforts to reachDenteso were not suc-cessful.

Tallbull said hisfocus has been makingthe transition betweencoaches smooth.

“For these kids, the

biggest thing is wehave an entirely newstaff to the program,but, at the same time,we’re not changingthings too much fromthe coaching staff thatwas here,” Tallbullsaid. “We didn’t skip abeat, and the biggestthing that I’m proud ofis how they cametogether.”

The players’ mind-sets have helped withthe transition.

“I think everyone isadjusting to it reallywell because we’refocusing on what weneed to do and whatwe need to get doneinstead of everythingelse,” said AnthonyPiochee-Lee, a junioroffensive and defen-sive lineman for theEagles.

Senior linebackerand running back RyanTso said the team hasbonded over the recentchanges.

“With all thechanges, the main

thing the coaches saidwas to stick together asa team,” Tso said. “Ifeel like we’ve come along way since then.We have a lot strongerand tighter bond thanwe did before.”

Coaching won’t bethe only change for theEagles this season.They will also need toreplace standout quar-terback Tyler Sorensen,who threw for 9,746yards and 108 touch-downs in the past threeseasons.

Moving into startingquarterback will besophomore DakotaHalliburton, whotransferred from Aztec.

With Halliburtonleading the offense,Tallbull said he plansto run a similar, high-passing attack.

“As far as theoffense, we don’t planto make many changes.We’re pretty muchgoing to be doing thesame things we’vebeen doing,” Tallbull

said. “We might add insome stuff, but it alldepends on the gameplan and adjust forthat.”

If the Eagles operatethis season like theydid the three previousones, then another dis-trict title will be withinreach.

“It’d be great, espe-cially for the seniorswho have been here forall four years because itwould make us districtchamps for all fouryears,” said seniorwide receiver and safe-ty Danté Alonzo. “Ithink for all of us sen-iors it would be amaz-ing. It’d be everythingwe wanted, four dis-trict titles and possiblya state title. And I thinkwe can make it to thestate title game.”

urgent care • occupational medicine • chiropractic

rCO@LMKC mCJ@KLO gFIDHSPORTS PHYSICALS

Hwalk-ins wCOKINC

SHCK@LO IffCF fIF sHIFEs HAys@KLOs KLM bC fIDMJ IM IDF wCbs@EC

www.reliancemedicalgroup.com

uFBCME cLFC3451 nIFEA BDEOCF

7LN EI 7HN • mIMJLy-FF@JLy LMJ8LN EI 6HN IM SLEDFJLy

NAVAJO PREP EAGLESNavajo Prep looks to conquer challenges this season

Jon Austria/The Daily TimesNavajo Prep’s Kordell Dugi carries the ball during foot-ball practice Aug. 18 at Navajo Prep in Farmington.

Jon Austria/The Daily TimesNavajo Prep’s Ryan Tso carries the ball at football practice Aug. 18 at Navajo Prepin Farmington.


Last season, the PiedraVista Panthers were youngand inexperienced. They’restill young this year, but aftergetting thrown into the thickof District 1-5A, the Panthersnow have plenty of experi-ence.

PV finished the 2014 sea-son with a 7-5 record andwent 2-2 in district play toearn the No. 9 seed in the 5Aplayoffs. The Panthersknocked off No. 8 Valencia44-21 before losing to theeventual champion Artesiain the quarterfinals.

“That’s an invaluableexperience,” PV head coachJared Howell said of theArtesia game. “No matterhow much you prepare, youdon’t know how you’regoing to play until you go

there and do it. That’s anexperience that was reallybig for our program, so nexttime around, we know whatto expect.”

PV grew not only mental-ly, but also physically, overthe last year. After an offsea-son in the weight room, thePanthers are prepared for thegame’s physicality.

“Literally and figuratively,they’ve grown. Physically,we’re just bigger humanbeings than we were last yearwith all those returningkids,” Howell said. “We’reout of large helmets andhave a lot of medium hel-mets, whereas last year itwas the opposite.”

This season, the Pantherswill field a team that’s deepat the skill positions, includ-

ing the running back duo ofsenior Scott Ramirez and jun-ior Elijah Gamboa, who com-plemented each other lastyear with an inside-out run-ning game.

“On both sides, I think wehave pretty good teamspeed. We’ve lost some kidsto injury, but we still have abunch of good kids to fill in,”Howell said. “We have inex-perience on the line, and ourstrength is in the skillgroups. Defensively, it’sprobably the same.”

With a young and inexpe-rienced defensive line, thePanthers will rely heavily ontheir linebackers and second-ary. And senior linebackerShawn Morris said he hasconfidence in that.

“Things have been going

great,” Morris said. “I thinkwe’re going to have a greatlinebacking corps this year,and we have a lot of skillplayers who are fast andphysical.”

Before they try to add theDistrict 1-5A title to their tro-phy case, the Panthers willget a chance in the first twoweeks of the season toavenge two of last season’slosses when they host SanJuan High, of Blanding,Utah, and Goddard.

PV fell to San Juan 35-8 inthe season opener last yearand then lost to Goddard 47-0 the next week.

But this version of thePanthers is different than theteam that suffered those twolosses last season. Morrissaid the team has come

together and has a betterchemistry as the 2015 seasonapproaches.

“I think this team is moreof a team. We’ve bondedwell, and we’re just more of ateam,” Morris said.

Morris added that while itwould be great to end hishigh school career with a dis-trict title and a deep run inthe state playoffs, the coach-ing staff has been preachingone game at a time.

And that’s for a good rea-son.

“We’ve got the type ofschedule that if you lookahead to anybody else,you’re asking for trouble,”Howell said. “Every daywe’re trying to be a little bet-ter than we were the daybefore.”

PIEDRA VISTA PANTHERS

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesQuarterback Trent Thomas throws the ball during practice Aug. 13 at Piedra VistaHigh School in Farmington.

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesCoach Kevin Worth goes over a play with his team during practice on Aug. 13 atPiedra Vista High School in Farmington.

Armed with experience, PV looks toward the future


Last season was arebuilding year forFarmington HighSchool.

After winning thestate title in 2013, theScorps finished 2014with a 7-6 recordwhile going 1-3 inDistrict 1-5A. Theysnagged the No. 10seed in the 5A playoffsand advanced to thequarterfinals, where

they fell to Belen 47-9. Now, with new head

coach Jeff Dalton takingover the program, theScorps are ready to putlast season behind themand show that 2013 was-n’t a fluke.

“These kids showedup committed, andthat’s the first big step,”said Dalton, who servedas Farmington’s defensecoordinator before being

promoted to head coach.“This is probably themost guys we’ve hadcome out in probablyclose to 10 years. It’skind of new territory forus, but we’re learning alot, and the kids areembracing every minuteof it, and I really believethey’re getting betterevery day.”

While the Scorps’ firststep in the offseason was

getting familiar with thenew coach and system,senior wide receiver JebPinckley said it has beena smooth transition.

“Everyone is fittinginto the changes perfect-ly. It’s going a lot betterthan I expected,”Pinckley said. “I wasexpecting someone tocome in from some-where else, but since(Coach Dalton) was

already here, and we allknew him, there’s been alot of changes, but it’salso like nothing haschanged.”

Lineman ChrisRomero said he sharesthat view. Not only wasthe senior happy aboutthe transition, but,Romero said, he wasoptimistic about howthe team would thriveunder Dalton.

“With a new offenseand new coaching, Ithink we came togetherfine,” he said. “Our lineis mainly all upperclass-men, and our skill posi-tion groups are reallygood. And we haveDiego Elebario at quar-terback.”

Elebario, a senior, isback to lead

FARMINGTON SCORPIONSScorps aim to recapture success of 2013

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesFarmington High’s offensive team practices passing and receiving Aug. 12 during football practice at Hutchison Stadium in Farmingtons.


Farmington’s offense after a strong jun-ior season when he first started.

At 5 feet 6 inches and 150 pounds,Elebario proved to the team and coachingstaff that what he lacks in size he makesup for in work ethic and skills.

“I like it when people talk aboutthat small quarterback because theydon’t see him in the weight roomsquatting over 400 pounds and justworking as hard as he does,” Daltonsaid of Elebario. “Maybe he does haveto work a little harder, but that’s whatwe want. That’s who we are.”

In addition to work ethic,Farmington has focused on an atten-tion to detail in its training camp. Theteam has embraced Dalton’s philoso-phy that games aren’t just what hap-pens on the field on Friday nights;

they reflect the time and effort put induring the offseason.

“The little things add up, and rightnow we’re focused on getting all thelittle things right,” Elebario said.“We’re not taking any shortcutsbecause shortcuts mean short sea-sons.”

The Scorps will open their 2015campaign on the road against LosLunas on Aug. 28.

“I think these seniors had a badtaste in their mouth, especially afterthe Belen loss (in the 5A quarterfi-nals) last year,” Dalton said. “I thinkthey’re looking for an opportunityto show that that’s not who they are.I think they want the chance to getthat off their back. We’re all ready toget football started.”

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesThe Farmington High School football team warms up during football practice Aug.12 at Hutchison Stadium in Farmington.

Good Luckto All

Fall SportsParticipants!!


SHIPROCK CHIEFTAINS

The Shiprock High foot-ball training camp placed anemphasis on “brotherhood”this year.

Shiprock is one year froma 3-7 season. With two ofthose wins coming via forfeit,first-year head coach EricStovall has been working tochange the culture of the pro-gram.

“It starts first withChieftain brotherhood,”Stovall said. “Every day wework to develop a cohesivefamily unit. And it’s definite-ly coming along.”

The team is buying intoStovall’s family mentality, atleast early on. Senior runningback Julian Aspass said theteam wasn’t always on thesame page last season, and hewelcomes a culture change.

“Stovall actually pulled ustogether as a team and

reminded us to do everythingas a team,” Aspass said. “Inthe past years, we were justfalling apart at the end of theseason. We stopped commu-nicating on the field and stufflike that.”

As for the on-the-fieldproduct, Stovall wants topick up the tempo on offense.

“We’re going to throw theball around a lot,” he said.“We’re going to go no-huddlea lot, and we’re going towork as hard as we can offen-sively, not only to executefundamentally, but also toscore a lot of touchdowns.”

For that up-tempo offenseto succeed, senior startingquarterback Arjay Miller willneed to pick up the pace,something he said he’s com-fortable doing.

“I like it. I like runningmore plays,” he said. “I’d say

we’re going to pass the ballaround more and run a lotmore dink-and-dunk typestuff. I think it’s going goodso far; it fits me.”

Stovall said Miller hasmany of the attributes need-ed to make his offense work.

“He has a great arm, andhe has good instincts,”Stovall said. “He’s got somespeed, he’s not afraid to runthe ball downhill. He under-stands what we’re doing inthis system and in thisoffense.”

Pace and speed will alsobe important to Shiprock’sdefense, according to Stovall.

“We want to put seven oreight hats on the ball carrieras much as possible,” he said.“Attacking on defense issomething we want to do.Special teams is an importantconcept to what we do, too.”

Along with Aspass andMiller, center and defensivetackle Zander Dale is alsoexpected to be a leader on thefield.

“Zander just leads byexample in the trenches,”Stovall said of the senior. “Hemakes sure kids are properlydoing their assignments. I’veseen some good things fromhim.”

Dale said Stovall stresses amore disciplined brand offootball than the previousregime.

“He’s more disciplined forsure. He does his best tomake sure we limit mis-takes,” Dale said. “He’s moreabout teamwork and over-coming adversity than he isabout stuff on the field; mindover matter.”

Stovall aspires to win aDistrict 1-4A title this year. In

what he perceives as a “wideopen district,” he doesn’tthink that’s too ambitious.

“I think the district is bal-anced, and I think we got ourwork cut out, but we’re goingto shoot for the high mark,”he said. “We want to try andwin the district champi-onship, that’s our goal.”

While Stovall’s work isn’tlimited to what happens onthe football field, he saidthat’s where the end goal lies.

“We have to focus on thelittle things,” Stovall said.“That includes the academ-ics, the behavior standard,the brotherhood standardand then fundamentally get-ting better so we can competeat the highest level once dis-trict play starts.”

Shiprock opens its seasonat home against Socorro onAug. 28.

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesPlayers line up while learning different tackling techniques during football prac-tice Aug. 17 at Chieftain Stadium in Shiprock.

Shiprock focuses on team unity under new head coach

Alexa Rogals/The Daily TimesJehrad Smith, right, gets ready to practice hitting and defense with Donavan Cheeduring football practice Aug. 17 at Chieftain Stadium in Shiprock.


5451 E. Pinon Hills Blvd.Farmington, NM 87402

505-599-0200www.lowes.comGood Luck

Athletes!

Located at the Farmington Airport • Locally Owned & Operated

Open Mon. - Sun. 11am to 11pm

1300 W. Navajo Farmington, NM • (505) 436-2657

Proud Supporters OfLocal High School Sports!!

Energy Pump & Supplygy Pump SupplyProud Supporters of Local High School Sports

For 18 Years!!!

Locally Owned & Operated Since 1997Owners Joe Ferris & Leo Noyes Jr.

Operational Manager Gary Noyes & Richard Frame

(505) 564-2874 • 2010 Troy King Rd. • Farmington, NM 87401

d & Operated


After finishing sec-ond at the state meet in2014, the Shiprock LadyChieftains cross-countryteam will have anotherchance to bring home astate title this year.

Shiprock lost just onesenior from last year'sgroup and returns itstop three state finishers — LaceyHowe, Khadija Lapahie andCassandra Peters — from last year'sstate meet.

Shiprock head coach AliceKinlichee said her team has been morefocused as the girls prepare for theseason, knowing how close they werea year ago to a blue trophy.

The Shiprock boys lost a key mem-ber of their team when Shawvan Levigraduated in the spring, but optimismis growing among the Chieftains thisseason.

Head coach Brian Paniagua saidhe's looking to senior DomonicCrosby and junior Aaron Gould totake charge of the team this season

A talented mix of upperclassmenand underclassmen make up KirtlandCentral's boys cross-country team asthey make a push for the District 1-4Atitle.

The Broncos list severalsolid sen-iors — Aaron Bunny, Jace Curley,Sutton Bluehouse, Grey George andGlendale Allen — who will provideleadership for the underclassmen.

The Lady Broncos showed signifi-cant improvement in the later parts of2014 with the emergence of a youngcrop of runners led by LaKyla Yazzie,who is now entering her freshmanyear at Kirtland.

With Yazzie and fellow freshmenKimora Tso and Brittany Sandovaljoining the upperclassmen, Kirtlandcoach Lenny Esson believes the LadyBroncos can compete with the LadyChieftains for the district title.

The Bloomfield boys will face atough challenge breaking out of the

basement of District 1-4A, listing just 10 run-ners on this year’s roster.

Bloomfield headcoach Julian Garcia willlook to senior DonovanBegay to lead the wayfor the Bobcats.

The Lady Bobcats willface a similar challenge

this season. The Bloomfield girls ros-ter in 2014 included just six runners,all freshmen, and Garcia believesthere's nowhere to go but up for theLady Bobcats this season as all sixgirls return.

After finishing fourth at the statemeet last year, the Navajo Prep girlsare a serious threat for a podium fin-ish at the 3A state meet in 2015.

Senior Sarah Chacon and sopho-more Blossom Yellowhair are back tolead the Lady Eagles after finishing10th and 16th, respectively, at lastyear's state meet.

The Prep boys also finished fourthat state last year with a team that hadno seniors on the roster. They will bein position to improve on that this sea-son.

Set to lead the Eagles this seasonare Tyler Bahe, Deshane Begay, MathisQuintana, Byron Mitchell andCameron Becenti, who all finished inthe top 35 of the 2014 state meet.

At the 5A level, the Piedra Vistaboys and girls cross-country teamsare looking to repeat their successeslast year. Both teams won theDistrict 1-5A title last year, and theboys missed the podium at state byjust two points.

Back to lead this year's boys teamare senior Ryan Krueger and juniorBenjamin Vanotteson.

The PV girls will return all but onerunner from last season, includingjunior Paris Chee and seniorCassandra Crowell, who were theteam's top-two finishers at last year'sstate meet.

After splitting time between cross-

country and soccer in 2014 and finish-ing 16th at the state meet, Aztec'sElana Kresl could be in for a big senioryear for the Lady Tigers.

The Aztec boys will return juniorJared Diswood, who will look to leadthe Tigers after he finished 31st atstate last year.

The Farmington girls listed no sen-iors on last year's roster, setting up aturnaround season for the Lady

Scorps. Back to lead Farmington issenior Melina McDermott, who wasthe team's only runner at the 2014state meet, finishing 43rd.

Tanin McDermott was the only boyFarmington sent to the state meet in2014, with the freshman finishing55th. Similarly to the Lady Scorps,Farmington listed a young roster lastyear and will return all but one run-ner.

CROSS-COUNTRYSan Juan County runners gear up

Daily Times file photoShiprock’s Cassandra Peters and Lacey Howe run to finish line during Farming-ton High School's Totah Invite cross-country meet Sept. 28, 2013, in Farmington.

ONLINE: For full previews

of the teamscompeting in 4A

and 5A, go todaily-times.com.


Piedra Vista’s vol-leyball team has beenat the top of District1-5A for years. Andafter coming up shortin the state titlematches each of thelast three years, theLady Panthers aregeared up for anotherrun.

It won’t be an easy task for PV,which lost seven players to grad-uation after posting a 20-4 record.

Despite that, PV head coachRon Becker said he’d be disap-pointed if the team didn’t makeanother deep run in the 5A tour-nament.

Aztec reached the 5A statetournament last year after finish-ing second in the district with a12-11 record. But the Lady Tigerswill have a new look this seasonafter losing eight players to grad-uation.

Back to lead the Lady Tigersare junior Vanessa Chavez andsophomore Myra McCaskill, whoboth played in 74 of 76 sets lastseason.

After missing the state tourna-ment in 2014, Farmington is ingreat position to climb theDistrict 1-5A standings in 2015.

The Lady Scorps graduatedjust two players from last year’steam — which finished third inthe district with a 10-13 record —and have a roster with meaning-ful varsity experience.

Among those returning aresetter Ashley Flack, who servedas team captain in her junior yearlast season and recorded 596assists.

In 4A, head coach NadiaWatson has high expectations forher Kirtland Central squad.

The Lady Broncos will returnthe majority of their 2014 rosterthat went 16-6 and reached the4A state tournament last year.

Watson said her team wasn’tused to playing at the state level,

but that experiencehas prepared themfor that challenge inthe future.

Senior AlexCambridge, a firstteam All-Districtplayer last season,will play on the out-side for Kirtland and

is expected to be among the bestplayers in 4A.

With a number of top playersreturning for Shiprock, headcoach Terry Atcitty said shethinks her team will be in thethick of the District 1-4A champi-onship conversation.

Hitting will be a teamstrength, according to Atcitty,and the team's success in 2015will rely heavily on the LadyChieftains’ ability to put awaypoints.

Sophomores Kylie McKinleyand Chamika Begaye, alongwith junior Tanisha Begay, areexpected to pack a punch forShiprock as the team’s elitemiddle hitters.

Coming off a disappointing 4-16 season and only one win inDistrict 1-4A, Bloomfield headcoach Rae Collins said her teamwill have to play with confidenceto pick up more wins.

Bloomfield lists just one senioron its roster for 2015. But with ahost of talented sophomores andjuniors, Collins believes the LadyBobcats can be a serious threat.

Navajo Prep reached the 3Atitle match last year, and theLady Eagles are poised to makeanother deep playoff run this sea-son.

The Lady Eagles lost five play-ers from the 2014 squad, but willreturn three All-State selections.Jasmine Coleman returns for hersenior year after being namedfirst team, while Diamond Jonesand LeShauntai Adams returnafter receiving second-teamnods.

Teams look to rack up points this season

ONLINE: For full previewson the 5A, 4A and

3A volleyballteams this

season, go todaily-times.com.

VOLLEYBALL

Daily Times file photoNavajo Prep’s Jasmine Coleman spikes the ball against Texico in the 3A volleyball champi-onship match on Nov. 16 at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho.


Farmington cruised toa District 1-5A title lastseason, but the team thisyear will have to replaceeight seniors from thatsquad.

The team’s defense,which allowed just 10goals in 21 matches, ledthe Scorps to a 16-4-1record in 2014, a districttitle and the No. 4 seed inthe 5A state tournament.

Farmington willreturn second team All-State defender BransonCarter, as well as AndrewMoss, who earned anhonorable mention nod.The Scorps will alsoreturn a good group offorwards, led by seniorJoaquin Gonzalez.

Chasing the Scorpswill be Piedra Vista,which finished second inthe district with a 7-13

record and missed theplayoffs.

Once again, thePanthers will be a youngteam. Piedra Vista lostjust four players to grad-uation, but that includedthe team’s two leadinggoal scorers, JosephDenny and Joaquin Sais,who combined for 34 ofthe team’s 51 goals and20 of PV’s 26 assists.

Back to lead thePanthers this season willbe juniors Richard Crossand Angel Flores, whowere both named cap-tains last year.

Aztec hit double-digitwins in 2014, going 13-6-1, but struggled in thesecond half of the seasonand finished third in thedistrict.

The Tigers also lostfour seniors from last

year’s team and willreturn a senior-laden ros-ter this season.

Back to lead the offen-sive attack will be leadinggoal scorer BaileyWatkins, an honorablemention on the All-Stateteam last year, and ZakkKimbel, who combinedfor 29 goals last year.Joining them will be jun-ior Riley Barber, who ledthe Tigers with 11 assistsin 2014.

In District 1-A/4A,Bloomfield will look torebound from an injury-plagued 2-18 season withnew head coach Scott Reidtaking over the program.

Reid said he thinks hehas a couple of standoutplayers who will help putlast year’s season in therearview mirror. In par-ticular, he is excited abouthis captain, EdgarFonseca, who scored 13goals for the Bobcats in2014.

Reid believesBloomfield will boasta strong defense, withthree seniors on thebackline.

Sports Medicine CertiFed & the Region’s Only EXOS Trained Rehab StaGAllow maximum injury recovery while gaining peak athletic performance.

Call our team for immediate appointments to get you back in the game now!

3832 E. Main St. Ste. E Farmington, NM 87402 • (505) 258-4003

ONLINE: For a full

preview of theboys soccer teamsthis season, go todaily-times.com.

BOYS SOCCERTeams rebuild after graduation, rebound from injuries

Daily Times file photoFarmington’s Kahlil Stoltzfus (19) kicks the ball down field during the first half of agame Oct. 18 against Albuquerque Academy at Hutchison Stadium in Farmington.

Providing a Full Range of Services Since 1997

515 E. Animas St. • Farmington, NM(505) 325-6372

• Location Cleanup• GPS• CompressorWinterization

• Trash Basket Rental• Hotshot• Line Locating & GPS


The Lady Tigers willbe the team the rest ofDistrict 1-5A will lookto overthrow in 2015.

The Aztec team willsee a lot of changes thisseason. In addition tonew head coach KellyKelso, the squad willalso deal with the lossof nine seniors fromlast year ’s team thatwon the District 1-5Acrown with an unblem-ished 8-0 districtrecord.

Among the playerswho graduated werefirst team All-Stateselections Hailie Morrisand Sarah Root. Morrisfinished second in thestate with 37 goals in2014, while Root wasan anchor for thedefense that allowed 16goals during the sea-son, the fewest in thestate.

But Aztec will returna handful of All-Statehonorable mentions,including Kylie Brown,Grace Olson, PaigeAdair and Lece Aviles.

Trying to knockAztec from the top ofthe district will beFarmington and PiedraVista, which both fin-ished last season with5-3 records in District1-5A. Farmington wasranked No. 2 in the dis-trict due to goal differ-ential, and Piedra Vistawas No. 3.

Poised to take thedistrict crown this yearis Farmington, whichlisted no seniors on its2014 roster and willenter 2015 with anexperienced team thatincludes 12 seniors.

Leading the way forthe Lady Scorps will befirst team All-State for-ward and midfielderHannah Kelly, alongwith second team selec-tions Alissa Montoya,Arin Coleman andRiley Coleman.

In 2014, Kelly,Montoya and ArinColeman combined for50 of the team’s 71goals and 30 of 38assists.

PV will look to fillholes in its defensebecause of graduation,including second teamAll-State midfielderJenna Brown, and All-State honorable men-tions Sarah Engert atkeeper and KendraSmith at defender.

But the LadyPanthers will returnthree All-State honor-able mentions from lastseason and the bulk ofthe offensive attack.

Leading goal scorerCydnie Stock, who net-ted eight goals in herfreshman campaign,will return to lead theoffense, along withfreshman MadisonCross and seniorHayden Carpenter,who scored seven andsix goals in 2014,respectively.

The KirtlandCentral, Bloomfieldand Navajo Prep girls

soccer teams will lookto turn things aroundin 2015 and climb theladder of District 1-A/4A.

Kirtland enters theseason with ChadKimball taking over thehead coach positionafter four years as anassistant.

The Lady Broncosfinished 7-13-1 in 2014and will list eight sen-iors on the roster thisseason, includingMegan Silversmith andPhyllis Kitseallyboy,who will anchor thebackline.

Shannon Nygrenwill take over theBloomfield programafter the Lady Bobcatsfinished 2014 with a 7-15 record. Nygren willbe tasked with rebuild-ing a team that has fin-ished with a losingrecord for each of thepast five seasons.

Nygren will look to atrio of juniors — TeeganMosley, Bryanna Parishand Kara Watchman —to spearhead a turn-around this year.

With only two winsin the last two seasons,it’s back to the drawingboard for fifth-yearNavajo Prep headcoach Stacy Irwin.

Prep finished 2014with a record of 1-17-1and went 0-12 in dis-trict play.

Sophomore defendersNichelle Silversmith,Alexandria Juan andDayna Littledog built asolid rapport with oneanother last year, andIrwin hopes they willbuild on that.

Farmington Family Dentistry“We Love New Patients & Cater to Cowards!”

Dan Farley D.D.S. & Jonathan Heaton D.M.D.

Good LuckAll 4 Corners High School Teams!!

• Same Day Appointments • Crowns & Cosmetic Fillings• Wisdom Teeth Removal • Implant Placement & Restoration • Root Canals

505-564-9700703 N. Dustin Avenue, Farmington, NM

www.myfarmingtondentist.com

ONLINE: For a full

preview of theboys soccer teamsthis season, go todaily-times.com.

Local squads cope withchanges, graduations

Daily Times file photoPiedra Vista's Aspyn Tracy, right, gets control of the ball from Aztec's GraceOlson, left, in a game on Oct. 8 at Piedra Vista High School in Farmington.

GIRLS SOCCER

2015 fall sports preview

Documents

thoreau home

shiprock home

farmington home

bloomfield home

newcomb home

valley home

socorro home

utah home