Cibola, Hope send boys, girls to Armijo semifinals
The semifinals of the Joe Armijo Classic will be defined by two matchups between Cibola and Hope Christian.
The girls will square off at 3 p.m., followed by La Cueva and Cleveland at 4:45 p.m.
The Cougars and Huskies have the late boys semifinal at 8:15 tonight. Host Albuquerque Academy faces Oñate at 6:30 p.m.
It was part of a busy tournament day Thursday around the metro area.
Boys
JOE ARMIJO CLASSIC: Cibola’s Isaac Brito scored 17 first-half points, including five 3-pointers, in leading the Cougars to a 56-31 victory over Mayfield. Brito finished with 19 points.
Cole Yearout, Nelson Longmire and Marcus Medina combined to score 47 points for Hope Christian, which held off La Cueva 52-47. Thomas Jenson of the Bears led all scorers with 20 points.
In the late first-rounder, Hardy Stone scored 13 of his team-best 15 points in the second half to pace the host Chargers to a 51-42 victory over Aztec.
For Oñate, the Knights had five players in double figures as they routed Clovis 64-39.
SUNDEVIL INVITATIONAL: At Sandia Prep, St. Pius, Valencia, West Las Vegas and Española Valley won first-round games Thursday.
The Sartans and Sundevils meet at 5:15 this afternoon in the first semifinal, followed by the Jaguars and Dons at 7 p.m.
For St. Pius on Thursday, Brennan Myers pumped in 27 points, including four 3s, as the Sartans beat Mesilla Valley 61-54.
Valencia won its first game of the season, beating the host Sundevils 52-43. Daniel Calderon had a team-high 13 points for the Jags, who got points from 11 players.
CLEVELAND 83, WEST MESA 54: At Cleveland, the Storm buried eight treys in its rout of the Mustangs.
ALBUQUERQUE HIGH 65, DEL NORTE 48: The Bulldogs moved to 6-0, with junior forward Marlon Cunningham and guard Randy Castillo each scoring 18 points.
VOLCANO VISTA 70, SANDIA 48: The Hawks have senior forward David Cormier back on the team — he had previously said he wouldn’t play this season — and the 6-foot-4 Cormier had 10 points in the Hawks’ victory.
Girls
JOE ARMIJO CLASSIC: La Cueva put together a huge fourth quarter to rally past Oñate 61-58 in the first round Thursday. Delaney Markham led the Bears with 13 points, while Noir Hawash scored all eight of her points in the fourth quarter, when La Cueva outscored the Knights 27-16.
Desiree Forster scored 21 points for Cleveland, 14 in the second half, as the Storm defeated the host Chargers 42-37. Sophie Long’s 18 points paced Academy.
In Hope Christian’s 56-45 win over Mayfield, senior guard Hanna Valencia had a team-high 17 points. Jayce Gorzeman of the Trojans also scored 17.
Cibola cruised past Los Alamos 62-34, as the Cougars amassed a 24-point lead by halftime. Kavi Brown scored 17 points, Olivia Barela 16 for Cibola.
MEL OTERO INVITATIONAL:
See the story on D1 in today’s section on Roswell’s Jaedyn De La Cerda for first-round results.