Top 5 Sporting Events of the Week in New Mexico (September 22)

Sept. 23 — Welcome to Peerman’s Power Rankings (PPR), the five athletes, teams and storylines that caught the attention of Journal sports editor Lucas Peerman this week. Have a suggestion, complaint or compliment? Email [email protected] or find me on X, @LucasPeerman.

5. Devon Dampier

How does the quarterback of an 0-4 team make it into a power ranking? Because that quarterback is the main reason why the winless UNM football team is a 10-point favorite next Saturday against rival New Mexico State.

Oddsmakers have watched Dampier work his way through two-point coverage schemes to allow UNM to cover the point spread in three of its four losses. And in the game the Lobos didn’t cover, Saturday’s 38-21 loss to Fresno State, Dampier completed 33 passes for a career-high 338 yards and led the team with 67 rushing yards. His tally would have been even higher had UNM not tied a team record with 17 penalties.

Dampier (PPR likes to call him The Prestige) is special. Las Vegas knows it. Southern New Mexico is about to find out. And this will likely be the first of three straight weeks where the Lobos are favored to win.

4. Centennial Boys Soccer Team

The Hawks, ranked third in the New Mexico coaches poll, came to Albuquerque to face No. 2 Eldorado on Saturday and came away with a 3-1 victory. Now 10-0, Centennial is the only boys program in the state without a tie or loss, and the Hawks have also picked up some big wins. Centennial has outscored its opponents 54-5 on the season.

Centennial seniors Evan Kraenzel and Santiago Magana lead their teams, each with more than 25 points (goals plus assists) on the season. Both are among the top 10 scorers in Class 5A. Goaltender Nick Raitt, a sophomore, has the lowest goals-against average among major schools.

3. UNM Volleyball

In the fall of 1990, “Ghost” topped the box office, Bon Jovi’s “Blaze of Glory” was No. 1 on the music charts and the UNM volleyball team beat New Mexico State twice in one season. That last one wouldn’t happen again for a long time. Last week, the Lobos beat the Aggies 3-1 in Albuquerque and two days later, they won 3-0 in Las Cruces, marking the first time in more than three decades that UNM swept NMSU in volleyball.

Now that the team’s biggest mental hurdle is overcome (proving it’s the best team in New Mexico), the Lobos (7-3) can focus on winning their first Mountain West title since 2014. Conference play begins this week, with home games against UNLV (Thursday) and San Diego State (Saturday).

2. Rio Rancho Boys Cross Country

The Rams’ Cody Sullivan is one of the top three cross-country runners in the state, having won one race and finished second three other times this season. But Sullivan might not win again this year, unless of course teammate Charlie Vause (who, along with Organ Mountain’s Corbin Coombs, is 1-2 in the state) decides to take a break, as he has twice already this season. In those two races, Sullivan won one and lost to Coombs by a second in the other.

With two of the top three distance runners on one team, Rio Rancho has won team titles at Super Cinco, the UNM Invitational and the Rio Rancho Jamboree. Add in Mateo Herrera, also a top 10 runner in the state, and the Rams are guaranteed to win the team title in any cross country race those three compete in.

1. New Mexico United

The Black and Yellow beat Sacramento Republic FC and Loudoun United at home last week to clinch a spot in the USL Championship playoffs and strengthen their grip on the best record in the Western Conference. It would be surprising if United didn’t host a first-round playoff game for the first time in team history.

United is a formidable and entertaining team that can absolutely challenge for a league title this year. But they are also a team that has scored just eight more goals than they have conceded. Six teams in the USL have a better goal difference on the season. However, all of those one-goal games make for exciting nights at the stadium. Catch United in their final home games of the regular season, October 9 against Phoenix Rising FC and October 26 against Memphis Rising FC.

Honorable mention

Lobo golfer Alvaro Portillo beat teammate Carson Herron on the third playoff hole Saturday to win the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate at UNM. Congratulations to Portillo and Herron for finishing 1-2 on the scoreboard, but the Lobos gave up a 10-hole lead to Colorado on the final day of competition to finish the tournament in second place. Ouch. … The Organ Mountain football team beat Alamogordo 18-10 on Friday for its second straight victory. That’s big news for a program that went 0-10 last season. … Chaparral is another long-suffering football program with two wins on the season after beating Albuquerque Academy 44-20 on Friday. The Lobos started the season on a 41-game losing streak. … Hope Christian quarterback RJ Montoya may have had the preseason game of the year, scoring nine touchdowns (including seven rushing) in the Huskies’ 62-12 win over Estancia on Friday. … The movie “Rez Ball,” which was shot in part at the Pit and focuses on a fictional high school basketball team based on the Navajo Nation in New Mexico, premieres next Friday on Netflix.

Meet the Sports Editor

Lucas Peerman, Albuquerque Journal assistant sports and features editor (sports editor), will be visiting a different coffee shop on the last Wednesday of each month to meet with members of the community. This is a chance to chat in person about what you’d like to see in a sports section, or just talk sports.

This month, Journal sportswriter Ken Sickenger, who covers New Mexico United and a multitude of UNM sports (volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball), will also be at the café.

Meet Lucas and Ken at La Luz Coffee, 1115 Griegos Road, from 10am to 11am on Wednesday, September 25. Look for the little guy (Lucas) or the big guy (Ken).