SFHS wins first battle with Capital

Round 1 went to Santa Fe High on Saturday night. The championship game of the Al Armendariz Tournament was a Demons-Jaguars tussle, and it lived up to the billing.

Santa Fe High and Capital went toe-to-toe for 30 minutes before the Demons finally gained the upper hand, scoring the last seven points to secure a 69-62 win and earn the tournament title in Edward A. Ortiz Memorial Gymnasium. It was the first time the Demons (3-0) won Capital’s regular-season tournament and the third time in the last four games they gained the upper hand on their intracity — and now District 5-5A — rival.

Santa Fe High’s guards stepped up against the Jaguars, led by Dove Hernandez’s 17 points which included three 3-pointers. Antonio Lovato, the 5-foot-9 senior Demons guard, stepped up in the second half with 11 of his 16 points and he assisted on several more baskets with his drive-and-kick ability. Meanwhile, Christian Kavanaugh added 16, and had six points in the fourth quarter.

“Antonio got into a little bit of foul trouble in the first half, but he really came through in the second half,” Santa Fe High head coach Zack Cole said. “Christian controlled the ball and was really good down the stretch.”

Their contributions helped overcome an injury to 6-6 forward Fedonta “J.B.” White, who had just 12 points as he played despite a thumb injury.

Capital (2-1) jumped out to a 17-8 lead after a quarter as Seth Arroyos had six of his 16 points in the quarter, but the Demons rallied in the second quarter and tied the score at the half at 27. Chano Herrera and T.J. Sanchez each had 12 points and Dominic Luna added 10 for the Jaguars.

In other games in the boys bracket, Grants beat Española Valley 60-51 to take third place, Carlsbad held off Pecos for a 75-72 win in the fifth-place game and Pojoaque Valley hammered Jemez Valley 82-39.