Top 10 CHS Sports Stories of 2025

kmarksteiner0
18 hours ago
3 min read

By Don Eskins

Based on available information, this is Carlsbad Local Sports’ choice for CHS’s Top 10 Sports Stories for 2025. Next week, we’ll list an array of other noteworthy performances.

If you don’t agree with our Top 10 picks, feel free to tweak their order. However ranked, they all provided lots of excitement and pride for our community!

Top 10 CHS Sports Stories- 2025

1. Cavegirl Basketball battles its way into the 2025 Class 5A state tournament semifinal round: Having posted an 18-10 regular season record, coach Matt Enloe’s Cavegirl basketball team drew a 12th seed for the 2025 state tournament.

Peaking at the right time, Enloe’s girls went on to register two of the biggest upsets in girls’ state basketball history.

CHS snuck by the fifth-seeded, 21-5 Albuquerque High Bulldogs, 31-29, in opening-round play, and during quarterfinal-round action, the Cavegirls shocked the fourth-seeded 23-6 Farmington Scorpions, 60-56.

In registering their 31-29 win over Albuquerque High, Abbie Dugan scored 22 points, and in their 60-56 victory over Farmington, she scored 31.

The victory over Farmington marked only the third time in Cavegirl basketball history that CHS has made it to the state tournament’s semifinal round.

2. Cavemen Football wins Class 6A state playoff opener: Coach Cale Sanders’ Carlsbad Cavemen, seeded 11th for the 2025 New Mexico Class 6A state football tournament, knocked off the sixth-seeded Rio Rancho Rams 35-13 in the opening round of the playoffs. The Cavemen outgained the Rams 323 yards to 123. (75 passing, 48 passing)

Absent from the state tournament since 2022, it was CHS’s first playoff victory in 15 years.

3. Moyers grabs gold, Wells silver at state track meet: Caveman Jonah Moyers cleared 6’6” on his final attempt to claim the Class 5A High Jump State Championship in Albuquerque.

“Carlsbad hasn’t had a state champion in the high jump since 1997,” said CHS head track coach Charles Millar. “Not only is Jonah CHS’s first state champ in almost 30 years, but he’s also the first and only boy to score points in the high jump at state since 1997.”

Cavegirl junior Atria Wells also had a banner meet. Although coming up just 3.25” shy of repeating as the Class 5A New Mexico Shot Put Champion, she claimed silver medals in both shot put, 39’ 9”, and discus,115’10”.

4. Martin runner-up at state wrestling meet: Carlsbad Cavegirl Aaliyah Martin, at 235 lbs., compiled a record of 3-1 to place second at the state wrestling tournament.

T5. Cavegirls Golf Team grabs 2025 District 4/5A title. Riding Haddi May’s 85 and Lindsey Carter’s 87, the Cavegirls posted a team low score of 366 to capture the 2025 District 4/5A Golf Championship. The victory made it back-to-back titles for the Carlsbad girls.

T5. Cavemen Baseball grabs District 4/5A title. Led by Carlsbad hurler Jonas Molinar’s shut-out performance, the Class 5A, fourth-ranked Carlsbad Cavemen rocked the Hobbs Eagles 6-0. With the victory, CHS clinched the 2025 District 4/5A title. In district play, CHS was perfect at 6-0. On the year, they were 22-7.

T5. Cavegirl Softball grabs District 4/5A title. The Carlsbad High School Cavegirls swept the Roswell Coyotes, 2-0, 1-0, in the Cavern City on Tuesday, April 29. The sweep earned CHS, 10-0 in conference play, the 2025 District 4/5A championship.

It was the third district title in four years for the Cavegirls under the direction of head coach Brian Santo.

T8. Castenada and McKibben First Team All-State Selections. Caveman senior wide receiver Robert Castaneda and junior linebacker Colton McKibben were Class 6A First Team All-State Selections. The duo were CHS’s only two first team All-State selections during the 2025 school year.

9. Santo Named District Coach of the Year. Caveman softball head coach Brian Santo was named the District 4/5A Coach of the Year. Santo led his team to an 18-6 record, a berth in the state tournament, and a perfect 10-0 in conference play.

T10. Fuentes and Brose District POY’s. Cavegirl hurler Kalion Fuentes and soccer standout Hayden Brose were selected as District 4/5A Players of the Year for 2025.

Next week: more noteworthy performances by CHS athletes during 2025.