Thursday preps: Elida, Dora advance to semifinals in tourney

DORA — Elida and Dora advanced to the boys’ semifinals in Dora’s J.P. Stone Invitational with first-round wins on Thursday … and in much different styles, no less.

Elida (1-1) had to battle all the way through for a 70-65 victory over the Portales junior varsity, while the host Coyotes (2-0) rolled to what can be described, in an understatement, as an easy 93-4 victory over Corona.

Elida faced Logan, a 64-25 winner over Whitharral (Texas), in one semifinal on Friday while Dora was slated to play Roy/Mosquero, which downed Amherst (Texas) 38-30.

Elida pulled away late, outscoring Portales 21-16 in the final stanza to nail down the victory. Brothers Jose and Seth Jimenez led the way for the Tigers, scoring 28 and 20 points, respectively.

Meantime, the Rams (0-1) were paced by 16 points apiece from sophomore Xavier Tarpeh and 13 from sophomore Joel Lujan.

Dora led 44-2 at the quarter against the overmatched Cardinals (0-1). Senior Steven Masini paced the Coyotes with 15 points, while sophomore Aaron Combs added 14, junior Cole Kirchner 12, senior Conner Rooney and sophomore Mason Christensen 10 each and sophomore Ashton Davis 9.

In other area boys tournaments on Thursday:

American Heritage Bank tournament, Melrose — Melrose and Grady reached the semifinal round with dominating first-round victories.

The host Buffaloes pummeled Quemado 81-35 while the Bronchos posted a 66-35 victory over Hagerman. In Friday’s semifinals, Melrose faced Tatum, a 55-35 winner over Floyd, while Grady was slated to duel Clayton, which defeated Gateway Christian 64-34.

Junior Michael Cardonita poured in 35 points for Melrose (2-0), while sophomore Cy Draper had 23, sophomore Josiah Roybal 11 and junior Dathan Yeary 10. The Buffs led 29-9 at the quarter and never looked back.

For the Eagles (2-1), sophomore Blazen McPhaul scored 17 points.

Grady (2-0) jumped on Hagerman for a 16-4 lead at the quarter, then used a 25-5 run in the third stanza to lead by 37. Junior Zane Rush tallied 31 points for the Bronchos, while sophomore Jax Piepkorn added two 3-pointers and 15 points and senior Carlos Martin added 11.

For the Bobcats (0-1), junior Cesar Mendoza scored 16 points.

Tatum held Floyd to 12 first-half points in taking control. The Coyotes (1-1) were led by senior Mason Brown’s 20 points, while the Broncos (0-1) got 15 points from senior Brayan Gallegos.

Cliff Round-Up — Texico put four players in double digits en route to a 72-32 quarterfinal win over Hatch Valley. The Wolverines (2-0) were slated to face Lordsburg in the semifinals on Friday night.

Junior Cade Figg scored 21 points and senior Jahvon Askew added 20 for Texico, which led 27-11 at the quarter and cruised while holding the Bears (0-2) to just eight second-half points. Senior Ayden Carey and sophomore Alex Fuentes chipped in 10 points apiece.

For Hatch, junior Jacob Gomez finished with nine points.

Steer Stampede, Magdalena — Clovis Christian romped past Carrizozo 64-14 in a quarterfinal game, and was slated to face Reserve in Friday’s tournament semifinals.

CCS (2-0) opened a 23-3 lead at the quarter and never looked back, getting 26 points from senior Carter Teune and 11 and 10, respectively, from seniors O.B. Blanco and Caleb Van Beek.

No one had more than four points for the Grizzlies (0-2).

DC Shootout, Denver City — Muleshoe improved to 2-0 on Thursday by winning the first of two pool-play games, a 69-11 obliteration of Midland Texas Leadership Charter Academy.

Nine players scored for the Mules, led by junior Adam Alarcon with 12 points, senior Eliasar Cisneros with 10 and junior Sebastian Kirven with eight. Muleshoe was to face Big Spring in pool play on Friday morning to determine the semifinal round later Friday.

In girls tournaments on Thursday:

Nazareth Invitational — In a rematch of a 54-53 win by Muleshoe at Hereford on Nov. 15, this time the Lady Whitefaces got the better of the Lady Mules, posting a 51-40 victory in Thursday’s opening round.

Muleshoe (5-5) was slated to take on Canadian, the No. 4 team in Class 3A, in Friday’s action.

Senior Autumn Wilburn scored 18 points for the Lady Whitefaces, who opened a 31-16 halftime lead. For the Lady Mules, senior Aaliyah Sanchez finished with 12 points.

American Bank tournament, Melrose — The host Lady Buffs advanced to Friday’s semifinals, pulling away from a relatively tight game at halftime for a 57-27 thumping of Quemado.

Senior Isabelle Sena netted 18 points and senior Paityn Nicholson scored 14 for Melrose (2-0), which broke open the contest by outscoring Quemado 29-8 in the second half. Junior Lexi Hood topped the Lady Eagles (2-1) with six points.

In other area first-round action, Tatum posted a 66-33 win over Grady while Hagerman handed Floyd a 57-26 setback.

Tatum (2-0) built a 29-point halftime lead and put four players in double digits, led by junior Valeria Marizcal with 14 points and sophomore Louann Villasenol with 13. Freshmen Avery Henard and Sydni Rice chipped in 10 apiece.

For the Lady Bronchos (1-1), junior Shayla White led the way with 14 points.

Hagerman (1-0) opened a 20-4 lead at the quarter in knocking off Floyd. The Lady Bobcats were led by six 3-pointers and 22 points from junior Briana Lard and 13 tallies from senior April Necaise.

Junior Jona Baros scored 13 points and sophomore Nevaeha Brown tallied 11 for the Lady Broncos (0-1).

J.P. Stone Invitational, Dora — The host Lady Coyotes ran away from Corona 49-25 to move into Friday’s semis against Roy/Mosquero, a 52-12 winner on Thursday over Cloudcroft.

Junior Bre’Ann Rodriguez led Dora (2-0) with 15 points, followed by sophomore Justice Deason with nine, freshman Dakota Jones with 8 and junior Faith Jasso with 6. For the Lady Cardinals, senior Arecely Caraveo tallied 11 points.

The Elida girls were beaten by the Portales JV 49-13 in the opening round.

Lady Maverick Fiesta tournament, Lordsburg — In the first game of pool play on Thursday, the host Lady Mavericks handed Texico a 48-33 setback.

Lordsburg (1-1) led 23-15 at halftime and pulled away in the final stanza. Senior Alicia Jaquez posted 21 points while sophomore Valerie Guerrero added 11 for Lordsburg.

Texico, which was to face Cliff on Friday night, was paced by nine points each from sisters Desiree and Maya Holman.