It’s supposed to be hard to beat a team three times in a season, but Socorro was up to the task with a 59-47 win over Cobre on Feb. 28.

Playing without head coach Ray Gonzales, who was out due to illness, the Warriors turned to assistant coach Kenneth Greenwood to lead the way.

It was Greenwood’s first time calling the shots in a game situation, but he wasn’t nervous because he knows the Warriors.

“I’ve been around these guys since they were kids, so I knew they could do it. I just wish they’d had a few more shots in the second half,” Greenwood said.

After taking an early 12-4 lead, the Warriors owned a 32-17 halftime advantage, but Cobre refused to go away, and the second half ended up being a 27-27 tie.

“I tried to let them play their game. Try and get them relaxed when I need
them to calm down, erase the mistakes and keep level-headed out there,” Greenwood said.

Jaquavis Brawley, Alex Amaro, Jacob Robinson, and Andrew Handrich paced the first-half start. Brawley’s 18 points led all scorers.

As the second-place finishers in District 3-3A, some basketball fans were surprised to see the Warriors headed into the state Class 3A basketball tournament with a 10-14 overall record.

Officials considered Socorro’s grueling schedule and ranked the Warriors No. 12, where they are bracketed to play No. 5 Bosque (20-7, 8-0) on the road at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Scoring – Joshua Gutierrez 8, Jaquavis Brawley 18, Fernando Torres 2, Alexander Amaro, Jacob Robinson 11, Andrew Handrich 14, Jason Padilla, William Griego, Luke Ganadonegro 8, Brenden Chavez 2, TJ Silva, Andres Gonzales.

Russell Huffman, El Defensor Chieftain Asst. Editor