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Down goes Socorro

Socorro's baseball team entered the fresh new season as the preseason No. 1 team, but they may not be No. 1 for long. 

Riverside defeated Socorro 8-7 Tuesday after five innings of play due to darkness. 

The Rangers rocked the Bulldogs starting pitcher Bobby Mares to take a 4-0 lead early in the fourth quarter first inning. By the top of the third Socorro tied it up but Riverside inched ahead again with a two-run third. 

In the fourth quarter inning, the Bulldogs scored three to go up 7-6, but Riverside answered back in the bottom of the inning with two runs of their own. Both teams bats were silenced in the fifth and as the sun settled Riverside walked away with their first major win of the season.

Julio Velez got the win for the Rangers and offense Eric Rodriguez had three runs and two RBI's, while Josh Blancarte went 2-for-2 and tacked on 2 RBI's of his own.

Mares suffered the loss, but Tavi Amparan went 3-for-4 with a home run and George Stoltz had two runs and a homer of his own, for the Bulldogs.

With 14 players returning from last season, Socorro looked like perennial powerhouses, while Riverside returned its fair share of weapons from last year. While it's still early, Tuesdays game was definitely a wave maker in El Paso high school baseball. It will be interesting to see how this affects both teams in the upcoming weeks.

Socorro will head to the Houston Tournament, while Riverside will be at the San Antonio tournament.

NOTE: For those who noticed my mistake between quarter and inning, thank you for bringing it to attention. I have been writing too many basketball stories and by this time it is muscle memory for my fingers. I promise no more mix ups.

End of girls basketball season

Unfortunately, it's over. In the area round, all of our local girls basketball squads (5A and 4A) were eliminated from the state playoffs. While it appears that El Paso is still in need of improvement to compete at the state level, I want to just highlight some of the good hoops action we saw this year.

In District 1-5A:

We saw Hanks dominate throughout the year with only one loss in the city. They showed great poise and determination when it got tough and they now have a district championship to show for that. In the playoffs they were only one-point away from advancing and who knows what they could have done in the next round. 

Americas, despite losing Tammy Acosta, had another strong showing and even found a brand new star in Teshia King, who will graduate this year. Next year the question will be if Americas can find it's next new star or if it will be a year of rebuilding. 

Socorro broke into the playoffs for the first time since 2000. They're sharpshooting guards helped dig them out of holes with a plethora of 3's. It will be interesting to see if next year can the Bulldogs take another step forward.

El Dorado emerged as a bit of a contender in 1-5A. Despite not making the playoffs, the Aztecs saw time in the top 10 poll and were fighting for a playoff spot.

In District 1-4A:

Burges and Chapin battled for first all-season long, until Andress rose up and grabbed the No. 2 spot from Burges as Chapin won it's district championship. All three teams used teamwork and  to climb to the top of a competitive district. 

Next year it will be interesting to see if Chapin and Burges continue its rivalry and if Andress can move from runner-up to championship contender.

Irvin may have been young but they sure didn't play like it. The Rockets, which had only one senior, rallied around teamwork and the hard-nosed play of Kayla Thornton to make the playoffs and win their bi-district match against Parkland. With just about everyone coming back how much better will Irvin be next year?

District 2-4A:

What can you say about Parkland? They have won the District title for five year straight now and continue to find great players like Priscilla Jordan and Angela Vines. There is no reason to believe that the Matadors won't be competing for their sixth championship next year, but they will have competition.

Ysleta and Riverside are both emerging programs and challenged Parkland in their meeting. Both coaches have their players believing in the system and using a mix of fundamentals and hustle to get better every day. They could be teams to watch next year.

But Horizon may be a team to watch for the next three years. The Scorpions used a late season surge to make the playoffs as the districts No. 4 seed. Once there they pulled off the biggest upset in El Paso defeating Chapin in overtime with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. The shot was made by one of the teams three freshman starters. Meaning, they're young and dangerous in 2010.

In District 3-4A:

Clint dominated its district, and they looked good doing it. While they suffered the same fate as other in the playoffs, the question remains: will they do it again next year?

Meanwhile, the Tornillo girls looked like they were ready to make a run at the playoffs this year. They did come up short but its a good step to take into next year?

For those who like to comment, what was your favorite moment, team or game of this year? Was it a superstar performance, a team that you couldn't stop rooting for or was it classic game you will always remember? There were several bright spots in this year and I would like to hear what your favorite was.

Talking high school sports

The latest edition of the El Paso Times preps sports podcast is now available.

Lenny Juardo and Aaron Bracamontes talk about high school swimming, wrestling, playoff basketball, soccer, plus the beginning of baseball and softball.

To listen to the podcast click here. (right click to download)

Talking high school basketball, soccer

KTSM's Beau Bagley joins Lenny Jurado and Aaron Bracamontes of the El Paso Times to talk about boys, girls basketball, and boys, girls soccer.

To download or listen to the podcast, click here.

Extra thoughts on Parkland-Ysleta boys basketball

Just a few things I noticed or wasn't able to get into my article on Ysleta's 72-66 victory over Parkland on Tuesday (Feb. 3, 2009) in boys basketball.

— Ysleta post Hector Lopez and guard Javier Ramos are the real deal, ballers through and through. The seniors combined for 55 points Tuesday and made several other "small" contributions throughout the game that made mounds of difference. Most important, they came through with complete games in the fourth quarter with Parkland leading then later tugging at Ysleta's lead. Of note going into this game, Ramos was Texas' fourth-leading scorer (29.0 ppg), while Lopez is No. 9 (26.4), according to Maxpreps.com. Americas senior Justin Nahle (25.3) is No. 10.

— I liked the inside presence of Parkland senior Darren Mickens. Kid was a force underneath on the boards and as a scorer. He finished with 20 points but also made seven trips to the foul line, making 10 of his 12 attempts.

— Parkland guards/forwards Assad Taylor, a junior, and Micah Mitchell, a sophomore, must be guarded tight from the perimeter. When they're on, they're white-hot. The pair combined for nine 3-pointers (Taylor had five) and led a 27-point second-quarter outburst that featured five Parkland 3-pointers.

— Ysleta and Parkland are two of the more athletic and up-tempo teams in town. Only once did I see either team try to hold the ball, and that was Ysleta with only about 2 minutes left in the game up 65-63. Parkland overcomes occasional mental lapses with sheer, blinding speed, while Ysleta blends a blurring transition game with animal-like reflexes, making it a team that rarely makes mental mistakes and always looks in fluid motion.

— And Ysleta's Wafer Gym still is the loudest gym I've ever visited in El Paso. Year in and year out, the Indian faithful bring it "full roar." I love covering games at that gym, especially when it's Parkland-Ysleta, one of the most intense and entertaining rivalries in El Paso boys basketball.