Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Portales sophomore Adrianna Garcia goes up for a transition jumper in the first quarter of Friday's Class 4A first-round game at the Ram Athletic Center. The host Rams, seeded fourth in Class 4A, topped Valley 60-47.
Portales guard Taris Rippee puts up a scoop shot after stepping around a Valley defender in the first quarter.
PORTALES — For the season, Valley’s girls shoot about 29 percent from 3-point range.
That doesn’t mean the Vikings couldn’t get hot on a given night, and Portales High wasn’t about to take that chance in Friday’s Class 4A state round-of-16 matchup.
The Lady Rams limited Valley to six 3-pointers — four coming in the final quarter when the game was all but out of reach — en route to a 60-47 victory over the 14th-seeded Vikings at the Ram Athletic Center.
Sophomore forward Kylyie Paden led the way with a personal-best 17 points as third-seeded PHS (21-7) won for the 13th time in 14 games and advanced to an 8 a.m. quarterfinal game on Wednesday at The Pit in Albuquerque against No. 6 Bernalillo, a 39-36 winner over 11th-seeded Grants on Friday.
Portales scored the game’s first six points, then took complete control with a 16-0 run during which six players scored for a 22-4 lead early in the second stanza. The Vikings (17-12) never got closer than 10 late after a furious run against PHS reserves.
“We got off to a good start,” Lady Rams coach Wade Fraze said. “These kids’ consistency helped us (early).”
Paden scored 12 of her points in the first half as Portales rolled to a 37-14 lead. The margin stayed at 20 or more until the final 3 1/2 minutes of the game.
“They’re good shooters,” Paden said of defending the 3-point line. “We just needed good communication out there and (playing with) ‘high’ hands.”
Paden compared the Vikings to district foes Artesia, which she said is “scrappy,” and Roswell Goodard, which has some good shooters, adding that even with the big lead it wasn’t hard to stick to the game plan.
“This game we kept up our energy and focus,” she said. “I think we’re playing with confidence. We just need to come and play every game.”
Sophomore guard Teagan Faust added 11 points, six steals and three assists for the Lady Rams, while junior forward Kinzie Davis posted a team-best nine rebounds as PHS won the battle of the glass 34-16,
Fraze said Faust’s contributions don’t always include scoring.
“She could not score a point and possibly have the biggest impact of anybody in the game,” he said. “If she scores, that’s a bonus.
“There’s not a selfish bone on the team. The kids pride themselves on being fundamentally sound.”
Portales harassed the Vikings into 23 turnovers during the first three stanzas in building a 47-24 lead. The Lady Rams shot 19-for-29 from the foul line — 12-of-15 in the first half — to 9-of-20 for Valley.
Three players reached double digits for the Vikings, each with 10 points — junior guard Gillian Roybal and senior guards Destiny Maez-Sisneros and Shawntell Martinez.
