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Articles written by Zech Lucero


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  • Prep football roundup: Dora, Texico conclude seasons

    Zech Lucero|Updated Nov 11, 2017

    CLOVIS— Friday night saw two local teams say farewell to the 2017 season with playoff losses. As for Bovina, the Mustangs take a top seed in the playoffs, while Muleshoe is hoping to find their mid-season selves coming into the playoffs. Tatum 40, Dora 26 Friday night Dora and Tatum exchanged blows in what had been an all out dog fight in Tatum, but the outcome wasn’t what Dora head coach Mason McBee was hoping for. Dora added the first six points of the game midway into the first quarter as Hayden Skinner found Kaull Bur...

  • Regional football: Dora, Texico claim wins

    Zech Lucero|Updated Nov 5, 2017

    Playoff starts, redemption and revenge were the themes across eastern New Mexico and west Texas Friday night, with three local teams claiming victories — one of them a playoff rout. Dora 64, Pine Hill 0 The No.5-seed Dora Coyotes (6-3) entered Friday night's matchup coming off of a bye week that allowed little notification of their seeding arrangement, but managed to focus on their game and shut out Pine hill (3-4) 64-0 in the first half. The bye also allowed for head Coach Ma...

  • Regional football roundup

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 29, 2017

    CLOVIS — Area football teams like Texico, Muleshoe and Farwell were put to the test on Friday night. While Texico came up short, the other two overcame their obstacles. Farwell 54, Springlake-Earth 6 The Farwell Steers find themselves heading into the postseason, but look to focus on Bovina for the district title. Farwell (5-3, 3-0) blew Springlake-Earth (1-6, 0-2) out of the water in a huge 54-6 win. Farwell had three unanswered touchdowns in the first quarter, with Ethan Stancell starting their first-quarter scoring drive w...

  • Clovis boys cross country team, girls' McNaughton advance

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 28, 2017

    ALBUQUERQUE — It was a tough day for the Clovis High School boys and girls cross country teams on Friday afternoon according to head coach Mark Bussen, though his boys team did manage to pull out a third-place win to qualify for the next meet. The girls, however, needing to place at least third, wound up fifth. Jasmine Morales of Eldorado finished first of 52 competitors with a final time of 19:18 in Eldorado’s first-place win. Clovis High’s Kelsey McNaughton finished in the top ten (8th, 20:37) to qualify individually for t...

  • College soccer: ENMU falls 2-1 to West Texas A&M

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 23, 2017

    PORTALES — The Eastern New Mexico University men's soccer team came up shy in their Heartland Conference matchup Saturday, losing 2-1 to regionally ranked West Texas A&M at Greyhound Stadium. The Greyhounds' 2-1 loss puts them at 3-12-1; 2-10. Christopher Mesquita knocked in his fifth goal of the season, cutting the two goal deficit to just one early in the second half. ENMU launched 10 second half shots, but couldn't manage to sneak them behind Alexander Vencel of the B...

  • Area football wrapup: Local teams win big

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 23, 2017

    CLOVIS— A pair of area high school teams were on byes, but nearly everybody else won and won big. Dora 54, Logan 26 Wesley Poling scored twice, and Dora got it to the running clock before the Longhorns scored in the final minutes. The Longhorns (2-6, 1-2) actually led early in the second, but Poling rushed for a 10-yard score to give the Coyotes (5-3, 2-2) the lead for good. Kaull Burton added a 20-yard touchdown in the first half. “Our guys did very well overall,” said Dora head coach Mason McBee. “Logan busted us a little...

  • ENMU roundup: Women's soccer team ties at Texas Woman's

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 21, 2017

    DENTON, Texas — The Eastern New Mexico University woman’s soccer team traveled on the road Friday to face Texas Woman’s. With the Greyhounds trailing 1-0, Ariel Lopez notched the equalizer. Neither team scored in the sudden-death overtime sessions and the Greyhounds posted their fifth tie of the year. The Greyhounds (3-7-5, 2-4-3) fell to a quick 1-0 deficit as Haley Ward scored the first point in the 18th minute for Texas Woman’s (4-7-4, 1-5-3). Throughout the remainder of the first half and a large majority of the second, b...

  • Regional football round-up

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 15, 2017

    CLOVIS — Seven regional teams were in action Friday night. Mountainair 66, Dora 48 With the injury bug still on the Coyotes’ side, having Kaull Burton and Joseph Urioste back really made a difference for Dora on offense and defense. “Kaull and Joseph really looked good out there,” said Dora head coach Mason McBee. “They really stepped up and looked healthy all the way through.” Burton and Urioste had been out several weeks after their win against Gateway Christian on Sept. 22. Dora’s junior quarterback Bradley Ramirez made...

  • ENMU volleyball falls to No. 15 TexAnns

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 14, 2017

    PORTALES — The Eastern New Mexico University Volleyball team suffered its first loss at home of the season as it was swept by Lone Star Conference rival and 15th-ranked Tarleton State Friday night at Greyhound Arena. The loss puts the Greyhounds at 7-12 overall and 4-5 in Lone Star Conference play. On the offensive end, Brooklyn Biel was able to lead the Hounds with six kills and Jasmine Gannon and Natasha McClendon followed behind with five a piece. The Greyhounds had a total...

  • Regional football preview: District play in full swing

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 13, 2017

    CLOVIS — District play is now in full swing in regional football, with some teams starting it and others in the thick of it. Logan at Melrose, 7 p.m. The defending state champs look to maintain their undefeated season as they host Logan in tonight’s match-up. Melrose (6-0, 2-0) is coming off of a 58-8 blowout win over Mountainair last week, which happened to be one of its better opponents this season. “The win against Mountainair was a big one for us,” Melrose coach Dickie Roybal said. “The only downside is that after thi...

  • Clovis cross country teams sweep Hobbs meet

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 13, 2017

    HOBBS — The Clovis high school boys and girls cross country teams cruised to first place Thursday afternoon at the Hobbs Invitational. The boys meet consisted of 45 competitors and six teams with Clovis winning big with a score of 22, followed by Carlsbad (57) and Southcrest (85). Clovis’ Jose Salas lead the meet with a time of 16:25 coming in first followed by Clovis’ Juan Fuentes coming in second with a time of 16:27. Clovis had six competitors each making it within the top 10 for the easy team win. T.J Greg came in fourt...

  • Regional football roundup: Melrose, Dora win in routs

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 8, 2017

    Local eight-man teams won convincingly Friday night, Texico lost a nailbiter and other area teams were less fortunate. Dora 50, Springer 6 For the Dora Coyotes, the game was ran through junior quarterback Bradley Ramirez during their match-up with Springer Friday night. With five starters being out this week, head coach Mason McBee needed someone to fill in the position at quarterback for Dora (4-2) and Ramirez had a week to learn the offense. Ramirez clearly learned enough. He had two quick rushing touchdowns in the first...

  • H.S. football season heads into October

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 6, 2017

    CLOVIS — As the season quickly winds down, area teams have either started or are about to start district play. Melrose at Mountainair 7 p.m. In this Melrose and Mountainair match-up, it looks to be a battle on who can remain undefeated. Melrose (5-0) is coming off of a 56-6 win over Dora, but Melrose looks to have a bit of a test as Mountainair (4-0) could possibly be a bump in the road. The Mustangs are coming off of a 50-0 win over Mescalero Apache. “They have a lot of speed on their offense, which is why they’re beati...

  • Clovis cross country teams place third, fourth in Odessa

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 6, 2017

    ODESSA, Texas — The Clovis High cross country teams traveled to Odessa on Thursday, with the boys finishing third and the girls fourth in races that each featured more than 100 competitors. Clovis took home fifth with a score of 151 points and having Kelsey McNaughton finishing within the top 10 at fourth place (19:30). Lubbock Cooper took first in the girls competition with a score of 40 points. San Angelo Central took home second with 70 points and Odessa High took third with 94. The Wildcats also got a 30th-place finish f...

  • NMAA announces sportsmanship honorees

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 3, 2017

    ALBUQUERQUE — The NMAA Subway Director’s Cup winners were announced Monday afternoon on the New Mexico Activities Association Facebook page. The Subway Director’s Cup is awarded annually to the top New Mexico Activities member schools in each classification and are awarded based on success in activities, athletics, and Sportsmanship that are gained through points in each categories. Here are the 2016/17 winners in each classification. 6A: 1st. Cleveland, 2nd. Eldorado, 3rd. Artesia 5A: 1st. Albuquerque Academy, 2nd. Los A...

  • Regional football round-up

    Zech Lucero|Updated Oct 2, 2017

    CLOVIS — Friday night football was a night the tide turned for some area football teams. For others, the waves came crashing down. Muleshoe 33, Idalou 3 Muleshoe picked up its first win of the season, and won big at that. Ryan Rodriguez got the Mules started with an 11-yard rushing touchdown and followed with a 27-yard run to put the Mules ahead to a quick 14-0 lead in the first. Michael Lozano added a 73 yard-run for a touchdown in the second quarter. Muleshoe had a total of 379 rushing yards and 86 passing yards. “We kin...

  • Greyhounds sweep UT-Permian Basin, move to 3-2 in LSC play

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 30, 2017

    PORTALES — The Eastern New Mexico Greyhound volleyball squad had a successful night against Texas-Permian Basin Friday as it ended with a 25-12, 25-13, 25-21 Lone Star Conference sweep at Greyhound Arena. Texico native Jasmine Gannon led on the offensive side with a total of 10 kills and three blocks on the night, while Brooklyn Biel added nine kills and a block as the Greyhounds (5-9, 3-2 LSC) moved back above .500 in conference play. "Overall we did very well," said ENMU v...

  • Regional football preview: Dora faces tough task on road

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 29, 2017

    CLOVIS — The 2017 football season has hit its midpoint. Some are looking to stay unbeaten, others are looking to break into the win column and everybody wants the W column to go up by one. Dora at Melrose, 7 p.m. With Dora (3-1) coming off of a 62-31 win over Gateway Christian last week, the Coyotes have a huge test in front of them this week as they head on the road to face undefeated Melrose. The three-time defending eight-man champion Buffs (4-0) are coming off of a 68-0 win over Magdalena last week. Dora coach Mason M...

  • NMAA eliminates bottom two teams in football playoff brackets

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 21, 2017

    CLOVIS — Next year’s football playoffs will be a little more competitive for the first-round byes — and the playoffs will be a little thinner overall. The New Mexico Activities Association board voted Wednesday to reduce the playoff field by two teams in six-man, eight-man and Classes 2A-6A, effective in the 2018 playoffs. The five largest classes will move from a 12-team field to a 10-team field. Only the top two seeds will receive first-round byes, compared to four teams receiving it this year. In six-man football, the f...

  • Trek for Trash kicks off Saturday

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 15, 2017

    CLOVIS — Melissa Ham plans to help pick up Clovis on Saturday. Oh, the treasures she might find in her annual Trek for Trash adventure. The radiologic program director at Clovis Community College said her Radiology Student Association team found a live snake one year. It also ran across a twin-sized mattress and a pillow. But mostly the Trek produces trash - dead animals, newspapers, fast-food sacks, old election signs, cans and beer bottles. That's according to Vicki R...

  • Looking ahead from 9/11

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 11, 2017

    David Stone plans to look back and remember as usual on Monday. But the James Polk Stone Community banker in Portales also is looking ahead. “Back after World War II, America got up and we picked up our heads and went on with life united,” Stone said. “Nowadays we as American people forget how to reunite with one another and (are) quick to label each other.” And so Stone plans to focus his annual 9/11 ceremony — scheduled for 7:30 a.m. Monday outside the bank at 109 E. Second St. in Portales — on the future. “After 9/11...

  • Rams sweep Pojoaque in doubleheader at ENMU

    Zech Lucero|Updated Sep 3, 2017

    CLOVIS — Portales high school girl's varsity soccer team came to play on Saturday against Pojoaque Valley in Portales. The girls came out with a strong offense as well as a solid defense to give them a quick 4-0 lead in the first half, and Portales moved on to an 8-0 win Saturday at Greyhound Stadium. "These girls played great today," said coach Ruben Tellez. "We had better touches today and better teamwork as well as plenty of opportunities that helped us; I was very proud o...

  • H.S. FOOTBALL: Portales learns a lot from scrimmage

    Zech Lucero|Updated Aug 19, 2017

    PORTALES — As the football season kicks into gear for the Portales High Rams, their preseason scrimmage Friday — consisting of Eunice, New Mexico Military Institute and Clovis' junior varsity — gave the coaching staff a better insight into what they can expect from each player and opposing teams this season. "This year we have the opportunity to find out our strengths on offense and defense," Portales head coach Jaime Ramirez said. "This scrimmage allowed us to respond to op...

  • H.S. SOCCER: Young Clovis girls team aims to be force in 2-6A

    Zech Lucero|Updated Aug 15, 2017

    CLOVIS — With plenty of graduation losses from last season, it shouldn't be a surprise this season is somewhat of a rebuilding job for the Clovis High girls soccer team. But seventh-year coach Traci Sievers doesn't think that means the current Wildcat roster can't regroup and compete in its second — and final — year in District 2-6A. "We do have a lot of freshman this season who have been stepping up," Sievers said. "With one returning starter as a senior and only two senio...

  • Water line issue forces softball postponement

    Zech Lucero|Updated Aug 11, 2017

    CLOVIS — With recent rains, the Clovis Softball Association has had to postpone a few nights of action. But Thursday night, a lack of water was the problem. Games were called off as the City Of Clovis announced a bust in the main water line at Guy Leader Softball Complex. According to Clovis Softball Association Director Roger Jackson, the water was spotted on Field 4 and reported Wednesday on the Clovis Softball Association Facebook page. The fields could have possibly been ready for the evening’s games, but the broken water...