The Carlsbad Local’s Top CHS Sports Stories of 2024

kmarksteiner0
Jan 23
4 min read

By Don Eskins

Listing all of the outstanding sports stories that Carlsbad High School athletes recorded during 2024 would be tough. Narrowing that list down to the top 25, even tougher.

However, that’s just what we at the Carlsbad Local have attempted to do. On Jan. 10, we presented 15 of our top 25 picks for 2024. This week, we’ll add another 10.

But, although we have listed 25 of the top stories recorded at CHS last year, we haven’t ranked them. This year, we’re letting our readers do that.

So, from the list we’ll present today, Jan. 24, plus the 15 posted on Jan. 10, readers should narrow the number of stories down to their Top 10 CHS stories of 2024.

Keep in mind that our list contains only 25 of the many stories that took place at CHS last year. So, readers should feel free to add a few of their own.

Articles listed—and photos posted—have been compiled with available information.

The previous 11-15 choices were added behind this week’s additional 10 for our readers’ convenience.

Top 2024 Sports Stories at CHS

1. Cavegirl Atria Wells State Shot-Put Champion CHS head track coach Charles Millar proudly holds up a No. 1 in honor of Cavegirl Atria Wells, who tossed the shot 37’2” to capture the 2024 Class 5A state championship.

2-3 Carlsbad High’s Trap and Skeet Teams Place First The Carlsbad High Trap and Skeet team’s varsity placed first in skeet, while their intermediate team placed first in skeet and sporting clays at the 2024 New Mexico State Tournament. Overall, both teams placed second in their respective divisions.

Varsity Team members are, front row, left to right, Liam Baggs, Savannah Tupper, Gus Lopez, and Avinlee Hoopes. Back Row, left to right, are Zane Luedecke, Jacob Griffin, Mason Mendez, and Aidan Riley. Intermediate Team members, front row, left to right, are Ike Huskey, Wyatt Hunt, and Taite Hoopes. Back Row, left to right, are Noah Gordanier and Zander Luedecke.

4. Cavegirls Golf Team Grabs District 4/5A Championship The Cavegirls Golf Team fired a team-low 347 to grab the 2024 District 4/5A Championship.

Isabella Smith carded a 78, Lindsey Carter an 87, Haddi May an 89, Averee Padilla a 93, and Haily Carter a 104 en route to claiming this year’s tournament title.

Pictured left to right are Cavegirls, Averee Padilla, Haddi May, Hailey Carter, Lindsey Carter, Isabella Smith, and Hana Heft.

At the Class 5A state tournament, CHS placed fifth.

5. Cavemen Baseball Squad Captures District 4/5A Title In a three-game series played in the Cavern City on Thursday, May 2, and in Hobbs on Friday, May 3, Carlsbad High rolled over the Hobbs Eagles 12-2, 18-2 and 13-0 to claim the 2024 District 4/5A title.

6. Caveman Kason Perez Class 6A’s Top Quarterback Carlsbad Cavemen quarterback Kason Perez’s efforts on the gridiron this past season earned him one of the Land of Enchantment’s top gems.

Perez, who completed 170 of 273 passes for 2,173 yards and 27 touchdowns, closed out 2024 as New Mexico’s top quarterback for total yards passing in Class 6A football.

At 5’10” and 175 lbs., the Carlsbad High School senior connected on 62.27% of his passes with just seven interceptions.

7. Danica Medina Becomes First Cavegirl Wrestler to Earn a Collegiate Scholarship On March 5, Carlsbad High School wrestler Danica Medina signed a letter of intent to wrestle for the University of Ottawa in Arizona. In doing so, she became a groundbreaker at CHS.

Medina, who grapples at 152 pounds, became the first Cavegirl wrestler in the history of the CHS program to earn a wrestling scholarship.

As a junior, she posted an overall record of 19-5, qualified for state, and finished fifth at the Big Dance in Albuquerque. However, during her senior year, a torn ACL ended her quest for a New Mexico state title.

8. Cavemen Basketball Coach John Zumbrun Collects 300th Win For Cavemen head basketball coach John Zumbrun, a 57-54 victory over the Lovington Wildcats on January 23, 2024, was especially significant.

The win marked his 300th career victory. Of those wins, 239 of them came at the helm of the Cavegirl basketball program. Another 61 of them came as head coach for the Cavemen.

9. Former Caveman Patrick Pyle in Olympic Silver Medal Circle Olympic high jumper Shelby McEwen, left, and his coach, former Caveman Patrick Pyle, proudly hold up the Silver Medal McEwen won at the 2024 Summer Olympics. At the Olympic festival, McEwen cleared 7’8 3/4”.

10. Cavegirl Dance Team The CHS Dance Team topped the field to finish first in Pom and Jazz competition at the NMSU Championships in Las Cruces. Team members are, front row, left to right, Bailey Moisa, Samantha Bradford, Addison Edmonson, and Angeliq Cortez. Back row, left to right, are Coach Sara Edminsten, Taylor Caddell, Sydney Hanway, Madison Hutchinson, Kailey Lambert, and Coach Cheri Young. (CHS Dance Team Photo)

The following are the Local’s choices for 11-25, as posted on January 10.

11. Eight Cavemen Baseballers Receive All-State Recognition

12. Cavemen Football’s Diego Ramirez Named to All-State Team

13. Five Cavegirl Softball Players Named All-Staters

14. Colette Dhenin District 3-4/5A Butterfly Champion

15. Isabella Smith District 4/5A Individual Champion

16. Cavemen 4x400 Relay Team District 4/5A Champions

17. Eric Carrasco District 4/5A 3200 Champion

18. Isaiah Williamson District 4/5A 300 Hurdles Champion

19. Cavegirls District 4/5A 4x800 Relay Champions

20. Cassie Bielstein District 4/5A Triple Jump Champion

21. Sophia Trujillo District 4/5A Shot-Put Champion