Harper Invitational to kick off Friday
Another 4-homer player surfaces
The elite metro-area track and field athletes who skipped the Marilyn Sepulveda Meet of Champions on Monday — and most of the athletes who did attend the Sepulveda — will all be on display this weekend at the Richard A. Harper Memorial Invitational at Albuquerque Academy.
The Harper — probably the most popular regular-season meet of the season for athletes — gets underway Friday with two running finals (the 3,200 and 800), plus 12 of the 14 field events.
The 3,200 final is slated for 1 p.m. (girls) and 1:30 (boys) Friday. The 800 goes at 2:50 p.m. for the boys and 3:05 for the girls.
All the field events except the discus will be contested Friday, starting at 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. More running finals begin at 9:45 a.m. Saturday.
With the exception of Albuquerque High, West Mesa and St. Pius, most of the larger-division metro schools, including Rio Rancho and Cleveland, are competing
THREE WITH FOUR: Following up on an item that appeared in the Journal last week, there is a third athlete who hit four home runs in a single baseball game.
Eldorado’s Josh Day swatted four against Rio Grande in 2011, driving in six runs in a 19-13 victory.
Day eventually graduated from West Texas A&M. His name is not listed on the New Mexico Activities Association website as having accomplished the feat.
Last week, Artesia’s Aaron Natera hit four in a game against Lovington.
The first, Ruidoso’s Brad Davidson, did it in 1999. But he had a more memorable day than Day or Natera, since he belted home runs in six consecutive at-bats in a doubleheader against Hot Springs. That streak ties him for first on the national records list.
CLOVIS BASEBALL: The Wildcats face Sandia for two District 2-6A games on Friday with a sixgame shutout streak, having not allowed a run in 43⅓ innings. It is unknown what the New Mexico record is, but the national record is 62⅔ innings by St. John Lake Central (Ind.) in 2016. COACHING SEARCHES: Sandia Prep will not bring back J.P. Rael as girls basketball Aaron Natera coach, and the Sundevils are looking for a replacement. Those interested are asked to contact athletic director Willie Owens at 338-3023.
Highland, meanwhile, interviewed ■ candidates Wednesday for its boys soccer vacancy. The Hornets had one of their best years in recent memory under Scott Simpson, who resigned after the season. Highland reached the 6A state quarterfinals in November, losing on penalty kicks to eventual state champ Albuquerque High.
The Hornets are dropping down next season to Class 4A, which will be the second-largest division in New Mexico. A FIRST FOR CCP: The latest signing period included a historic first for Cottonwood Classical Prep: The school had its first two home-grown signing athletes.
Runners Tyler Gibson and Rhylyn Jones signed last week with Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., for cross country and track. There was a girls soccer player who signed two years ago — goalkeeper Dmitri Fong, now with New Mexico State — but Cottonwood doesn’t offer soccer so she played at Cibola.
Jones and Gibson also are the school’s first five-year athletes.
A HIGHER CALLING: Two Academy athletes, Tomas Lujan and Markus Parrish, are headed to service academies.
Lujan is going to West Point, where he plans to play Sprint Football for Army. It’s a sport for walk-ons who weigh less than 180 pounds. Cornell, Navy and Penn are among the other schools that offer Sprint Football.
Parrish is going to the Air Force Academy, where he plans to fulfill his dream of becoming a pilot. Both his grandfathers, he said, served in the Air Force.
Parrish said he might walk on to the Falcons’ baseball team.
A third Charger, Hardy Stone, already has received several fouryear ROTC scholarship offers. Stone, Parrish and Lujan all were teammates on the Academy basketball team.
THIS AND THAT: Menaul big man Michael Ou, who helped the Panthers into the state championship game last month, has a pair of Division I offers on the table, from Northern Arizona and Cal-State Northridge. … In the latest Perfect Game USA Top 50 prep baseball rankings, La Cueva comes in at No. 33. … Many of the best golfers from around the state — in all classes — will be at Canyon Club on Monday for the Desert Shootout, prep golf’s equivalent of an all-star event. The tournament, put on by the Sun Country Amateur Golf Association, is slated to have 20 teams (12 boys, eight girls), and 108 players, including many competing as individuals. … The Albuquerque Metro Tennis Championships will conclude Saturday at Academy, with singles and doubles finals starting at 8 a.m.