Alex Crespin gets “mugged” as she battles for a rebound against Hot Springs.
Russell Huffman | El Defensor Chieftain

A month ago, it appeared the only way the Lady Warriors basketball team would get to the state playoffs was by buying a ticket, but Socorro proved its doubters wrong on Feb. 16 with a 54-38 road win in Cobre to clinch the District 3-3A championship.

Just before district play started, the Lady Warriors lost head coach Brad Bailey who left the team to deal with some personal issues. Socorro was saddled with a 3-17 record at the time and appeared to be a long shot at making the postseason.

Rather than throw lead assistant coach Brittany McDaniel to the wolves, athletic director Jarrod Storey stepped in. Along with assistant coach Brisa Garcia, the trio has molded their nine Lady Warriors into a district-title winner.

“It was about shedding those losses and focusing on the games we had in front of us. I told the girls it was about developing a winning attitude, and they bought in,” Storey said.

Storey calls the shots during games but quickly throws credit toward McDaniel and Garcia for bringing together the Lady Warriors when it counted. More than anything, basketball had become fun again in Socorro.

The Lady Warriors hoped to clinch the title against Hot Springs but were without starter Tamra Fowler due to a sprained ankle. Fowler made the trip but had to stay on the bench due to her injury, and the 20 or more points she has put up against district foes were missed in a 46-39 setback.

The Lady Warriors’ zone defense made the big difference against Cobre, and despite a slow start, the night would belong to Socorro after trailing 12-7 entering the second quarter.

Jasmine Alvarado and Fowler led a 19-13 second-quarter charge as they scored seven points each, and Socorro climbed into the lead it would never surrender. The Lady Warriors outscored Cobre 28-13 the remainder of the way to secure the win.

Socorro will host the district girls championship game on Feb. 25 at 1 p.m.

Scoring

Jaylin Gonzales 4, Faith Lucero 9, Kaedyn Gonzalez 3, Jasmine Alvarado 11, Arian Crespin 3, Tamra Fowler 22, Alex Crespin 2

Russell Huffman | Assistant Editor