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Natalia Chavez, center, is mobbed by her Volcano Vista teammates after hitting a shot from beyond 45 feet at the OT buzzer to beat Hobbs for the 5A girls basketball title. (Jim Thompson/Albuquerque Journal)
Saturday, April 10, as much as any day, defined the staggering weirdness of the spring 2021 prep sports semester in New Mexico.
On the same day, the state was staging fall sports in the form of state soccer finals, winter sports in the form of basketball, and the start of spring sports. That kind of confluence had never before occurred.
Or, maybe it was April 1 that underlined this point with more clarity, with prep football played inside University Stadium, part of a five-games-in-three days “bowl game” experiment by the New Mexico Activities Association in lieu of an actual football postseason.
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Valencia Jaguars finish fourth at state cheer championships
Albuquerque Although fewer people occupied the Pit this year due to capacity restrictions for the New Mexico Activities Association 2021 Spirit Competition, energy was still high as teams from across New Mexico competed for the coveted state championship rings.
The cheer and dance state competition, typically held in March and filled to the brim with parents, friends and other spirit supporters saw heavy competition especially in the 5A Cheer and 5A Dance categories.
Valencia County high schools may not have taken home any of the large trophies, but they still put their best foot forward after a year of uncertainty due to state regulations surrounding COVID-19.