NO PITY PARTIES
SFHS SPORTS PROGRAMS ‘STARTING TO TURN THE CORNER’
Things certainly have not been easy for the athletes and the sports programs at Santa Fe High School in the two-plus seasons since moving to New Mexico’s highest classification.
As a matter of fact, the litany of despair is an exceptionally lengthy one.
The football program has lost 24 straight games and now is looking for a new coach since Ray Halladay resigned last week after eight seasons.
Both the boys and girls basketball programs have new head coaches this season after both the prior coaches were replaced amid turmoil. The Demonettes didn’t even meet their new head coach, veteran and former state champion Lanse Carter, until a couple of days before their first game.
The girls soccer program couldn’t even finish its junior varsity slate of games after too many varsity players were needed to complete the roster because of a spate of injuries. Meanwhile, the varsity hasn’t won a district game in three seasons.
Pretty much other than girls track and field and cheerleading — which won a state championship two seasons ago — the navy and gold are essentially a non-factor when it comes to the postseason.
Santa Fe is one of the smaller Class 6A schools, with about 1,550 students — on par with Highlands and West Mesa and more than Valley. Highlands and West Mesa are Albuquerque schools that are also struggling to remain competitive across the athletic spectrum, while the Vikings have had more success, especially with soccer and basketball.
“It’s kind of a process,” said Santa Fe Public Schools athletic director Sara Baca. “Most people kind of anticipated this with them going to 6A. We are where we are. We’re not the only school in this situation across the state. We know we’re not alone.
We’re not going to throw any pity parties. We’re trying to get the job done as best we can.”
Baca pointed out that the boys basketball team did qualify for the state tournament last season — as the 12th and final seed. But when issues of hazing arose, then exploded with a video, coach David Rodriguez was fired and district officials pulled the Demons from the tournament.
Former Santa Fe Indian School coach Zack Cole has been brought in to lead the boys team and the Demons are off to a 2-0 start heading into this week’s Al Armandariz Tournament.
“I think boys basketball will make some noise this year,” Baca said. “We’re really excited where they’re at and where they’re going.”
Carter, who was already on staff at Santa Fe and applied for the position there when it opened up after the 2014-15 season, replaced Rick Apodaca in November. Apodaca’s dismissal from the position has been shrouded in mystery, called simply “a personnel matter.”
“That was a fluke,” Baca said of the Demonettes basketball team seeing a third coach in as many seasons. “They’ll be fine. They’re talented kids. And there are good people running the program. We met with them, and told them their job is to play basketball and to have fun.”
As for football, that’s a different beast altogether, she said, as the Demons have the state’s second-longest active losing streak behind Rio Grande.
“Football is definitely something else,” she said, adding there’s been talk of going independent “to gain some momentum. It would be a short-term solution. We want to stay in the district and qualify for the state playoffs. But, based on Santa Fe’s numbers, there doesn’t seem to be any kind of light at the end of the tunnel.”
The school is accepting applications for Holladay’s replacement for the next few weeks before starting the screening and interviewing process.
Overall, however, Baca said there’s definitely progress being made.
“I think we have some really good coaches in place,” she said. “I think we’re starting to turn the corner. I think we have really good kids. Really athletic kids. Our athletes are dedicating more to their sports and hopefully we’ll see some changes.”