NMAA adds three members to Hall of Fame
Affentranger, Casados, Gerheart join the elite club of 108 people
The New Mexico Activities Association added three members Wednesday to its Hall of Fame.
Cleveland High principal Scott Affentranger, Chama Valley School District Superintendent Anthony Casados and longtime Los Alamos Public Schools music teacher Don Gerheart were introduced at a Wednesday press conference at the NMAA offices.
“The greatest honor I could have ever thought about,” Affentranger said. “The people represented in this hall are some of the finest New Mexico educators — ever. To be considered among them is humbling.”
Affentranger, 51, has been principal at Cleveland since 2006 — three years before the school officially opened its doors.
He is a former wrestler at the University of New Mexico and a former wrestling coach at Sandia High School. He is also a current member of the NMAA’s Commission.
He describes his time at Cleveland as “the best time of my entire career.”
Casados is a 1983 Escalante High graduate and a former all-state football player. He also is a former principal at Escalante, and he coached boys and girls basketball at his alma mater. He is currently the vice president of the NMAA’s board of directors.
Gerheart spent decades in Los Alamos, where he was band director.
The three men will be given their Hall of Fame rings during state basketball week. The NMAA Hall of Fame has 108 members, including the three announced Wednesday.
GONZALEZ HONORED: Robertson football coach Leroy Gonzalez on Wednesday was honored with a Heart and Soul of the Game award through MaxPreps.
Gonzalez recently completed his 16th season as the Cardinals head coach, and has led Robertson to the last four championship games in its class. Gonzales has been awaiting a kidney donor for months. In fact, he was in Albuquerque receiving dialysis on the day before last weekend’s Class 3A final at Dexter. THIS AND THAT: Sandia High has made it official: Jay Sheraden is the full-time coach of the Matadors girls soccer team. Sheraden, serving on an interim basis this year, led Sandia to the Class 5A state title last month.
On the subject of interim coaches, Manzano has not made its final decision on Phillip Martinez, who led the Monarchs football team into the Class 6A state quarterfinals this season. That decision is expected, however, before the end of the month.
Former Cleveland runner Amanda Mayoral’s indoor track debut with Oklahoma State included her placing third in the 1,000-meter final at the Bob Timmons Challenge in Lawrence, Kan.
Kirtland Central’s Kashon Harrison, coming off his victory at the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships West Regional last weekend, will be in San Diego this weekend at the national finals.