Week 9 In Review: Top Performers
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Week 9 of the New Mexico High School football season was filled with plenty of exceptional performances. Here are some of the top performers (in alphabetical order): Isaiah Abeyta Isaiah Abeyta 5'10" | 155 lbs | WR Centennial | 2023…
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Continue ReadingWeek 9 of the New Mexico High School football season was filled with plenty of exceptional performances. Here are some of the top performers (in alphabetical order):
Isaiah Abeyta Isaiah Abeyta 5'10" | 155 lbs | WR Centennial | 2023 State NM , Centennial: Two TD receptions and the game-winning TD pass in Centennial’s wild 42-41 victory over Las Cruces.
Ashton Aranda, Lovington: The Wildcats’ QB completed 19-of-31 passes for 262 yards and 4 TD in Lovington’s 48-16 win at Silver City.
Aidan Armenta Aidan Armenta 6'3" | 190 lbs | QB La Cueva | 2023 State NM , La Cueva: The Bears’ junior QB threw for 3 TD in their lopsided win over Santa Fe. La Cueva scored touchdowns on their first six possessions en route to staking a claim for a top 4 seed in the 6A playoffs.
Rich Arreola, Roswell: The Coyotes’ QB threw a TD pass and then ran in the two-point conversion in the final minute as Roswell rallied past Artesia, 30-29, at the Wool Bowl.
Diego Baeza Diego Baeza 5'5" | 160 lbs | RB Hobbs | 2023 State NM , Hobbs: Rushed for 88 yards on 19 carries and scored 3 TD in Hobbs’ 56-28 win over Organ Mountain at the Field of Dreams.
Brandon Cabaniss, La Cueva: Rushed for two TD in la Cueva’s big win over Santa Fe.
Ondalis Cardenas, Lovington: The Wildcats are known for their potent passing attack, but the freshman Cardenas fueled a strong ground game at Silver City by rushing for a season-high 119 yards. His previous season high had been 46 yards.
Aden Chavez Aden Chavez 6'5" | 210 lbs | QB Cibola | 2023 State NM , Cibola: Chavez was outstanding in Cibola’s big win over West Mesa, completing 15-of-24 passes for 230 Yards and 4 TD.
Paul Cieremans Paul Cieremans 5'10" | 195 lbs | QB Los Lunas | 2023 State NM , Los Lunas: Arguably the state’s top dual threat QB rushed for 97 yards on 9 carries in the Tigers’ 54-7 rout of Valley at Milne Stadium.
Julian Cobos Julian Cobos 6'2" | 175 lbs | QB Santa Teresa | 2022 State NM , Santa Teresa: The Desert Warriors stuck to the ground in beating Deming, 30-27. Cobos rushed for 206 yards and 2 TD on 16 carries to propel the rushing attack.
Cole Conway Cole Conway 6'3" | 230 lbs | RB Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Albuq. Academy: Rushed for 109 yards and 2 TD on 15 carries in the Chargers’ 48-0 win over Grants.
Dontrelle Denetso, Navajo Prep: Scored 4 TD in a 68-14 victory over Zuni.
Dominic Esparza Dominic Esparza 5'10" | 170 lbs | DB St. Piux | 2022 State NM , St. Pius X: Our Player of the Week scored 5 touchdowns, including a 61-yard punt return, in the Sartans’ 39-6 victory over Valencia
Devin Flores, St. Michael’s: The Horsemen struggled to generate offense in Saturday’s 13-12 win over West Las Vegas, but Flores came to the rescue with a long punt return for a TD and a 36-yard TD reception to account for their points.
Beto Garcia Beto Garcia 6'1" | 150 lbs | QB Organ Mountain | 2022 State NM , Organ Mountain: The Knights QB accounted for 205 yards and two touchdowns in Organ Mountain’s loss to Hobbs.
Damian Gallegos, West Las Vegas: The Dons’ top RB was a workhorse against St. Michael’s, carrying 32 times for 100 yards. His output put hm over the 1,000-yard plateau for the season. He has about 1,100 rushing yards with two regular season games left plus the Class 3A playoffs.
Kellan Gehres Kellan Gehres 5'10" | 150 lbs | WR Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Albuq. Academy: One of the top receivers in Class 4A caught 5 passes for 138 yards and 1 TD in a huge win over Grants.
Tayten Hilliard Tayten Hilliard 6'0" | 175 lbs | WR Lovington | 2022 State NM , Lovington: Hilliard had another big game for the Wildcats by catching 5 passes for 121 yards and 2 TD. He added 7 tackles and 2 passes defended on defense.
Ian Lopez Ian Lopez QB Centennial | 2022 State NM , Centennial: The Hawk’s QB put the exclamation point on Centennial incredible 27-point comeback by catching the winning TD in the closing seconds on a flea flicker. He also threw a pair of TD passes and scored on a 1-run run during the rally, finishing the game with 5 TD accounted for.
Nathan Lopez Nathan Lopez 5'5" | 135 lbs | WR Cibola | 2022 State NM , Cibola: The TV crew for Friday night’s Cibola-West Mesa matchup at Community Stadium had a good description for Lopez: “The People’s Champion.” Lopez did it all on both sides of the ball, catching 2 TD passes on offense and intercepting 2 passes on defense.
Julian Munoz Julian Munoz 5'8" | 155 lbs | QB Capital | 2023 State NM , Capital: The Jaguars QB ran for two touchdowns, including a 69-yarder on a broken play, to lead Capital to a 22-6 road district win at Miyamura.
Robert Nora Robert Nora 6'1" | 180 lbs | WR Clovis | 2023 State NM , Clovis: Nora rushed for 103 yards on just three carries and caught 3 passes in Clovis’ 28-0 blanking of Manzano. The Wildcats have now won three straight games and are a major factor in the district race.
Elijah Ogas Elijah Ogas 5'8" | 160 lbs | DB Las Cruces | 2022 State NM , Las Cruces: The Bulldawgs RB raced 69 yards for the game’s first TD in the opening minute and finished with over 100 yards rushing in Las Cruces’ 1-point loss to Centennial.
Elliot Paskett-Bell, Volcano Vista: After taking over for starter Josh Gerardo Josh Gerardo 6'1" | QB Volcano Vista | 2022 State NM , who was injured while throwing a TD pass on the game’s first play against Cleveland, Paskett-Bell threw for 440 yards.
Jacob Ramsted Jacob Ramsted 6'1" | RB Piedra Vista | 2023 State NM , Piedra Vista: The Panthers’ RB scored 6 touchdowns in a 47-0 victory over Los Alamos.
A.J. Rivera A.J. Rivera 6'2" | 195 lbs | QB Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Albuq. Academy: The Chargers QB was nearly flawless in their 48-0 victory over Grants, completing 16-of-21 passes for 237 yards and 2 TD.
Kash Roberts, Clovis: Caught 5 passes for 83 yards and 1 TD in the Wildcats’ win over Manzano.
Joziah Rodriguez, Highland: Along with the defense forcing six turnovers, Rodriguez rushed for four TD in the Hornets’ 51-6 victory over Del Norte.
Aidan St. John Aidan St. John 6'1" | 195 lbs | RB Eldorado | 2022 State NM , Eldorado: St. John has been Eldorado’s top rusher all season and Saturday he had 138 yards rushing and 2 TD on 23 carries in a 29-15 victory over Albuquerque in a hastily arranged game.
Ryan Sharpe Ryan Sharpe QB Bloomfield | 2023 State NM , Bloomfield: After battling injuries, Sharpe made his first start at QB for the Bobcats since injuring his knee against Valencia last month and scored two touchdowns in the second half to lead Bloomfield to an emotional 20-17 victory over local rival Aztec.
Micah Tippett, Eunice: Rushed for 192 yards on 14 carries as Eunice outlasted Hagerman, 34-28, in OT.
Nic Trujillo Nic Trujillo 6'1" | 160 lbs | WR Cleveland | 2023 State NM , Cleveland: Trujillo played a significant role in the Storm’s comeback from an early 20-point deficit to Volcano Vista by catching two TD passes covering 44 and 66 yards from QB Evan Wysong Evan Wysong 5'10" | 165 lbs | QB Cleveland | 2023 State NM .
Cayden Walton Cayden Walton 5'9" | 180 lbs | RB Raton | 2023 State NM , Raton: Rushed for 113 yards on just 2 carries, including a 70-yarder, as Raton remained unbeaten by cruising past Santa Fe Indian School, 50-14.
Zach Vigil Zach Vigil 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB Rio Rancho | 2022 State NM , Rio Rancho: The Rams offense overpowered another opponent as Vigil rushed for 4 TD and finished with 147 yards rushing on 13 carries in a 50-0 victory over Atrisco Heritage. Saturday, Vigil took an unofficial visit to New Mexico for the home game against Colorado State.
Game 6 highlights (played 1 half)
•13 attempts 147 rushing yards
•11.3 yards per carry
•230 All Purpose Yards
•4 tds@PrepRedzoneNM @nmpreps @BrandonCSmith6 https://t.co/1bi00MA5HJ— Zach Vigil (@zacharyvigil21) October 18, 2021
Week 9 Highlights ‼️ 5 receptions for 138 yards and 1 TD in another great team win ‼️ Check out my highlight – https://t.co/fWRHgky2GW @PrepRedzoneNM @nmpreps @jeffthomas4 @CoachGrine @CoachJoeAustin @CoachGonzUNM
— Kellan “KG” Gehres (@KellanGehres23) October 17, 2021
https://twitter.com/Abe58Lopez/status/1449538771674812422
Varsity vs. ABQ High. Won 29-15 9/14 112 yards 1TD and 1 Rushing TD.
@EldoEaglesFB @Coach_Dickman @SAMOONEY2 @PrepRedzoneNM @nmpreps @BrandonCSmith6 https://t.co/ls3Gf0xrF1— Brandon Olivas (@BrandonOlivasQB) October 18, 2021
Week 9 Highlights
204AllPurpose yds, 143 yds Rec, 4 Rec TDs, 61 Yd PR for TD, 5 Tackles, 3 Passes Defended, 5 total TDs! https://t.co/kI4nkcO4ID @CoachDmontoya @RamarWatson @CoachPMA @PrepRedzoneNM @nmpreps @Coach_Schroeder @LuteFBKeimTime @NMHUCoachKirk @JamesDYodice— Dominic Esparza (@InixDom) October 16, 2021