Believe it or not, one key to Magdalena’s boys’ basketball success is home-baked cookies prepared by Mary Anne Mirabal. She’s got some numbers that almost overshadow her husband, Jory’s 400 career wins.

“Now that our girls are playing basketball, I bake cookies for them as well,” Mirabal said.

What started as a couple of cookies per player, or 2-3 dozen per batch, has turned into 120 cookies every home game night, or around 1,800-2,000 per season.

All the players and coaches get hooked up with a Ziplock bag of Mirabal’s treats. Then there are the managers, cheerleaders, and other select individuals who have earned “cookie status.” There’s even a pair of fans who drive from To’hajiilee to watch the Steers who have made the list due to their dedication.

It’s a tradition that’s been going on since the 2008 season when her husband’s coaching career in Magdalena was taking off. His start was a bit rocky, as the Steers were an up-and-down team, and Mary Anne got an idea of how she might be able to help motivate the team.

I said, ‘Tell the boys that every time they win, I will make cookies,’ and he did. Then, all of a sudden, they started winning,” Mary Anne said. I was even taking them on the road. It just kind of evolved to where I would bake cookies for all home games.”

Mary Anne Mirabal’s cookies are legendary around Magdalena, and they were part of the recipe for the Steers’ basketball success.

Jory Mirabal was all for the suggestion because he knew it could instill a sense of belonging, which was essential in building his program’s culture.

“Mary Anne didn’t come from a sports background, but she knows kids. She said, I can’t do a lot, but what if I made cookies for the boys? Because they had come over to the house, they knew that she could bake. So we told them we’re going into the district, and there will be cookies when you win.”

The dangling carrot, or in this case, chocolate chip, peanut butter, or some other delicious treat, may or may not have been the spark the Steers needed. Still a 4-9 team, the Steers evolved to a 9-2 district record that season. The Steers made it to the state tournament, and the success that has followed has turned Magdalena into one of New Mexico’s truly legendary basketball programs.

For a couple of seasons, the boys would break their timeout huddles with the chant of “cookies”.

A tradition was born that season, and as a crumb or two was shared here and there, the legend of Mirabal’s baked goods also grew, and people were willing to shell out big bucks for a taste.

Yummy, this story was researched to the maximum to include taste-testing fresh baked cookies.

The annual auctions used to raise money for the teams have seen her pecan pies sell for $700, and the price of a dozen of her cinnamon rolls breaks down to somewhere around $14 per roll.

“I’ve been baking all my life. I have all kinds of cookie recipes, and sometimes I mix it up, or the boys might ask for something like banana bread, so I mix it up,” Mirabal said.

As the mother of six children who also teaches kindergarten in Magdalena, Mirabal has often turned to her mother, Debbie Tigner, for help. Who better to step in than the woman who taught Mirabal how to bake?

“Growing up, everything we had was home-baked, so I’ve been baking since I was tiny. I made my first biscuits by myself when I was six. My mom steps in and helps me pick up the slack if we have several games in a row or when I have teaching obligations,” Mirabal said.

There’s nothing magical about Mirabal’s cookies except for the taste. Still, the sense of belonging and family they have brought has certainly helped her husband build his basketball program into the dynasty it has become.

Some people have different home lives; for some athletes, Mirabal’s cookies, banana bread, or brownies might be the only baked goods they have ever had.

Unfortunately, logistics prevent Mirabal from baking during the state tournament, but that has yet to stop the players from coming up with ideas to get more cookies.

“The players were making suggestions about renting a BNB for the tournament, and then I would have a place to bake,” Mirabal said.

Russell Huffman | Assistant Editor