4A boys: Defending champs Highland upset top-ranked St. Pius; Artesia staves off Valley

The fourth time was the charm for defending Class 4A champion Highland.

After losing to top-seeded St. Pius three times during the regular season, the No. 8 Hornets came through when it mattered most, pulling away in the second half for a Class 4A quarterfinal triumph over their district rivals in the Pit on Wednesday afternoon.

That sets up a showdown at 3 p.m. Thursday against No. 4 Academy, which topped No. 12 Taos to advance in the bracket.

Meanwhile, No. 2 Artesia avenged an early season defeat to No. 7 Valley to advance to the semifinals on the other side of the bracket. They’ll play No. 3 Española Valley at 6:30 p.m.

No. 8 HIGHLAND 59, No. 1 ST. PIUS 51: Jesus Licon was pretty good early, but in the second half, the Highland senior took his offensive game to another level.

Licon scored 24 of his 35 points in the second half to lead the Hornets (17-14) past the Sartans (22-6). After shooting 3-for-12 — including 2-for-11 from 3 — in the first 16 minutes, Licon improved his efficiency down the stretch, going 6-for-9 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the third and fourth quarters. He also scored nine points at the foul line in the second half.

“It was more just getting to the paint, getting their bigs in foul trouble,” Licon said. “We had pretty wide open layups.”

Licon and junior guard Juan Limas (20 points) provided nearly all of the offensive production for Highland. However, the Hornets’ defense on District 5-4A Player of the Year Mason Montoya was just as significant. Montoya didn’t make a shot from the floor for St. Pius until late in the final stanza.

“We were just really good on the ball defense and then helping. We had some guys we thought we could help off of and kind of double team him to limit his paint touches,” said Highland coach Justin Woody.”

The Hornets trailed by two at halftime but took the lead for good as Licon scored his team’s first eight points of the third quarter. Highland would lead by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter before making enough free throws to hold off a final St. Pius rally.

No. 2 ARTESIA 41, No. 7 VALLEY 37: The Bulldogs (19-9) led wire to wire but had to survive more than a few tense moments in the fourth quarter against the Vikings (15-15).

Artesia was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief after Valley’s Ivan Jaquez missed a potential game-tying three in the waning seconds. The larger Bulldogs shot 52.9% from the floor, outscored the Vikings 26-10 in the paint and held a 30-12 edge in rebounding. Still, when Valley ramped up the pressure in the fourth quarter, Artesia had nearly as many turnovers from that moment (five) as it did leading up to that point (six).

“They played for the title last year,” Artesia coach Michael Mondragon said. “So we knew it was gonna take a big punch, and we knew they weren’t gonna quit.”

Clay Kincaid, a 6-foot-8 post, led Artesia with 13 points, while Trent Egeland had 11 and Charlie Campbell chipped in 10 for the Bulldogs. Luciano Mondragon and Angelita Villa led the way for Valley with 14 apiece.

No. 4 ABQ ACADEMY 54, No. 12 TAOS 43: The Chargers (21-8) opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run and led the rest of the way against a scrappy Tigers (17-11) squad.

Taos’ only lead of the game came at the end of the first quarter, when Roman Quintana hit a 3 at the buzzer. From there, Academy was simply too big and too efficient offensively, as it shot 51% from the floor behind 23 points from forward Eli Dominguez and 15 from post Hunter Aime.

“I think now as we’ve matured throughout the season, we’re just swinging the ball and getting better shots, more high percentage shots, and realizing what we need to do to beat teams,” Dominguez said.

Taos was aggressive with its pressure, forcing 16 turnovers, and its effort was also reflected in a 20-9 advantage on the offensive glass. However, that was offset by 23% shooting from the floor. Aime’s presence — which included seven blocks — had a lot to do with it.

“There’s not much to it. Obviously, if they want to take the ball into the paint, I’m 6-10,” Aime said. “I’m gonna block their shot if they wanna come just jump off of one (leg) and lay it up.”

No. 3 ESPAÑOLA VALLEY 69, No. 6 SILVER 60: The Sundevils (24-6) were in command throughout, for the most part, and punched their ticket to Thursday’s semifinals with a victory over the Colts (21-7).

Española Valley’s 5-foot-7 senior guard Josiah Fresquez was stellar throughout, scoring 37 points. He was 14-of-25 from the field, and made five of his nine attempts from beyond the arc. He also added six rebounds.

The Sundevils led by 18 points early in the second quarter, and while Silver pushed back in the second half, getting to within five at one point (59-54), Española Valley remained steady.

Junior Jerek Duda added 19 points and Matthew Lovato chipped with 10 as only four players scored for the Sundevils.

Angel Maciel’s 21 points and 10 rebounds both were team bests for Silver.

Journal staff writer James Yodice contributed to this story.

Artesia beats Valley in boys 4A quarterfinals: Photos