Sports Files

Sports Files Behind the scenes of some of Roswell’s best-known sports moments and memories

June 2020

A Special Supplement to the

Roswell Daily Record

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Sports Files Publisher

Cover Design

General Manager

Creative Design

Editor

Layout Design

Managing Editor

Advertising Sales

Barbara Beck Saralei Fajardo John Dilmore Misty Choy

Advertising Director Manny Gonzalez

Aric Loomis

Sandra Martinez Aric Loomis

Melanie Page Melissa Page

Writers J.T. Keith

Submitted photos

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Catching up with some of softball’s best

By J.T. Keith Roswell Daily Record

There was Hector Lujan, and original member Willam Robert (W.R.) Gunnels, the founder of the team, and Sam Martinez, another member of the Chihuahuita Raiders team, sitting around a table reflecting about the glory of their youth and softball days. All three had glazed-over looks in their eyes as if they were about to play again this moment. The other original members: Warren “Junior” Hunter lives in Colorado, and Junior Lucero is still around. Two of the valued members of the team, Ron Garcia and Horace Reese, have each passed away.

Each man stands taller in his chair even though he is sitting down. Their chests are puffed up when they talk about how they took on all comers and defeated the best of the best.

As a little kid, Gunnels used to watch a local softball team: Garcia’s Grocery.

Gunnels was asked by a friend to play for a team sponsored by Roswell Lumber & Hardware. Gunnels played first base. At the time there were 23 teams that played in the league.

Games were played at Optimist Field where Arby’s and Wendy’s are now.

While playing games his team lost often. He was upset when he heard an opponent say his team was a bunch of “screw-ups.”

“I didn’t like losing much,” Gunnels said. “In ‘77, I made a team. All I could get for a sponsor was Burger Time. We were aggressive, all of the teams had the same colors. I wanted our team to be different, so our colors were USC cardinal and gold.”

After a .500 season the team never quit playing or working out. They continued to play games and train while going on a 50-game winning streak.

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The team lost a game 6-5 before going on a 48-game winning streak in 1977-78.

One of the most important things that has been a guiding force in Roswell — regardless of education, status or money — is what side of town you are from. Today, the two-time state football champion Roswell Coyotes football team rallies to the claims of south side football.

In 1978, William Gunnels set out to prove to do what no one from the east side of town has ever done before.

He wanted to put together the best softball team in America. Gunnels envisioned a team traveling all through the country measuring their talents against the best that other teams had to offer, regardless of race.

“One of the things I wanted to show people,” Gunnels said, “one of my main goals, is that people always said, that ‘Mexicans are dumb, and Mexicans were welfare and Mexicans could do nothing,’ I wanted to show people that with a fair chance, any kind of fair chance, that we could do better than anybody. I feel like we basically did that.”

The Raiders didn’t have money that the other teams had, but they had their pride and kept adding players from the east side. In ‘79 the team added Sam Martinez and Warren “Junior” Hunter. That season the team went 22-0 and was undefeated in the league three times. They used to play nine months out of the year and over 100 games a year. The team has won

more games than any softball team in New Mexico history.

The Chihuahuita Raiders were so successful they changed their names to represent all of Roswell. They became known as the Roswell Raiders. Twenty-six of the 43 players that played for the team were from the east side. And between 1978-1998, five of the players have been inducted into the Softball Hall of Fame. The team is in two different Hall of Fames.

In February of 1996, they were inducted into the American Softball Sports Association Hall of Fame and in February of 2007, the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Hall of Fame.

Gunnels feels like in the late ‘70s and ‘80s Roswell had at least five

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD teams that could go to any tournament in the state and win it, with the Buena Suerte Studs (also known as the Pirates and the Roswell Retailers) providing competition for the Raiders.

The Raiders were so good that they often had to give teams five-run leads and then seven runs until the home run was finally taken away from them.

The team was so good and played together for so long that they rarely practiced. Most of the time they would use the game to practice.

“We played so many years together,” Sam Martinez said. “We were like family, if somebody makes an error, we never got on anybody. We just said, ‘don’t worry about it, we’ll pick up your slack.’

“We had each other’s back — if something went down emotionally or physically, we were there. ” These men were so good that at times, they had trouble playing in tournaments. When tournament organizers found out they were playing in the tournament the organizers would send them their money back. They were told that if the Raiders played other teams would pull out because they were too good.

The Raiders feel good about their record with over 1,680 wins and an 86.5% winning percentage. Gunnels said that any teams that wanted to break their win record would have

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to win 100 games for 23 years. Every team that beat the Raiders were eventually defeated.

They beat the Drillers, 2-1, out of El Paso, Texas. The Raiders also beat the El Paso Spurs.

Ron Garcia, who passed away five years ago, played all-star shortstop, and then he moved to left field and then pitcher. As a pitcher, he would throw a curveball and be selected to the all-star team.

Another family member-teammate that passed away was Horace Reese.

He passed away seven years ago.

The Raiders were sponsored by Bill Van Winkle for 17 years. At their prime, they won the Roswell Budweiser All-Nighter tournament in consecutive years.

That tournament was the biggest softball tournament in New Mexico and it was an all-day and night tournament.

Softball started to wane in the late The 90s.

“The thing that hurt us,” Hector Lujan said. “We have so many guys in the Hall of Fame already.”

One of Gunnels’ goals was to keep a team going with their sons, they had four father-son combinations play for the Raiders. His other goal was to win a World Hispanic softball championship.

The team was ranked third in the USSSA and was ranked sixth in the world when they played the World tournament in Albuquerque, with the feather of beating the Mexico all-star

team once in Las Cruces.

Gunnels believes his team at their height would have beat the New York Yankees in a softball game.

“Family,” Gunnel said. “This was our whole world. We have seen each other’s kids grow up.”

In ‘96 the ending was beginning. It was harder to replace the talent that was aging.

Drive, desire, and determination to win led the team to win over 1,680 games, they also have won 130 individual team tournaments. They are seven-time New Mexico State runners-up and four-time third-place finishers. The Raiders won the state championship in the New Mexico/ U.S. Slow Pitch Softball Association (USSA) in 1992, 1993 and ‘95.

The Raiders are 19-time Roswell Men’s Softball Open League Champions, 13-time Roswell City Champions, winners of over 150 state titles, seven runners-up, and four thirdplace finishes. and two-time District V ASA Champions, and have over 200 trophies.

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

A look back at the boys of summer 2019

By Julie Beeman Stokes Special to RDR Sports

As the wife of the Intermediate Little League baseball coach, Kyle Stokes, Julie witnessed the highs and lows of being a baseball wife and mother.

We look back one year later at their incredible journey.

Roswell captivated and brought up comparisons to the 1956 Little League World Champion Lions Hondo team.

What is the one thing that can bring a community together and instill local pride? A winning baseball team full of 13-year-old boys! In the summer of 2019, the Roswell Little League All-Star team dazzled the city of Roswell. The team, made up of both Lions Hondo and Noon Optimist Little League players, showed that when the cream of the crop comes together, greatness is inevitable.

The last time New Mexico sent a baseball team to the World Series was in 1956 when Lions Hondo Little League was crowned the World Champions in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Team manager Kyle Stokes explained that “every team I have coached is unique. These are kids that we are nurturing into young men.

Whether we have a winning season or not, we are trying to get them to perform at their best.”

And that is just what they did. The team was able to secure wins at the District, State and Regional levels to earn the right to complete at the Little League Intermediate World Series in Livermore, California. The team worked its way to a 3-2 record at the World Series and played in the National Championship game against the eventual World Champion winners, Southeast Region, from McCalla, Alabama.

The regular season was highly

competitive with teams from Lions Hondo, Noon Optimist, and Hagerman Little League. “I knew this team was going to be special as I watched them improve through a total of 30 regular-season games,” Stokes said.

The team began regular-season play in April.

The All-Star team was announced on June 1 and All-Star play began June 24 and lasted until they were welcomed home on Aug. 5.

It was noticeable as you watched the team mature over the summer that “this team had chemistry. They were relaxed from day one. Even the coaches were relaxed. The players got along very well and their parents enjoyed being together too,” Stokes said. “This team is a family. We will be getting together regularly for the rest of our lives.”

The All-Star team had some exciting moments through their 17-game All-Star tour. The team began their run at the district level in Ruidoso and then on to the state level in Albuquerque. Next, it was on to Houston for the Regional tournament.

“If you didn’t see us play in Houston, you missed out on the biggest treat of all! We played our best baseball in Houston. We made some amazing plays and pitching decisions that gave us the edge. Most importantly, we were able to put the bat on the ball,” Stokes said.

The team began the Regional tournament in Houston, Texas by defeating Oklahoma 19-2. The next game brought on the best competition the team had seen in Texas West, from Brownsville. Texas West pitched their ace a full 95 pitches to secure the 7-8 win and give Roswell their only loss of the Regional tournament.

The Roswell All-Stars came back, winning the next four nights to win the Regional title, including wins over Texas West (7-5) and the home team, Texas East (10-3).

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Roswell wasn’t expected to win the Regional tournament. “You could say that we were the underdogs. No one knew anything about us. After we hit four home runs in our first Regional game, we noticed the other teams were scouting us and asking questions. Our coaching was spot-on in Houston. Chad Holloway called the pitches and was able to make quick decisions that kept us alive. Jeremy Kermode kept our stats, maintained focus in the dugout and motivated the team,” explained Stokes.

After winning the Regional Tournament, the parents scrambled back to Roswell to make plans to get to California. The players and coaches stayed in Houston awaiting their flight to San Francisco. “It was nice to relax and get to know the kids even better. I was so impressed with their manners and how they represented our community,” shared Stokes.

The team arrived in California the next day and began a whirlwind of uniform fittings, meet-and-greets and press conferences. “The World Series

volunteers were absolutely amazing!

Their only job was to help with every small detail to make the World Series experience unforgettable,” said Stokes.

Little League International provided transportation, catered meals, housing and laundry services for the team.

The competition was steep at the World Series level.

“I was so proud of the way the kids persevered through the World Series. They hadn’t been home in weeks and were absolutely exhausted. But somehow, they never gave up and fought until the very end,” said Stokes. After losing their first-round game to the Southeast Region, Roswell came back to win three nights in a row, taking out the West Regional (10-9); California District 57 (the host team, 7-5); and the Central Region (11-6).

Southeast Region would end the team’s summer run with an 11-1 loss.

“Southeast was the overall best team and deserved to win. They were well-

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD coached and had some depth in pitching.” Southeast would go on to beat Mexico for the International Championship the following day.

Stokes will not soon be forgetting about the summer of 2019.

“As a dad, I’m always proud of my boys. The World Series run was special to our family because Ross, Rhett, and my wife, Julie, were all in 100%. As a family, we understood the end goal and we all wanted it. As a coach, I’m proud that we were able to represent our community and give hope to so many. I want other baseball kids to know that the goal of the World Series is attainable for anyone.

We were just lucky enough to peak at the right time.”

On April 30, Little League International announced that there would be no Regional or World Series tournaments in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s disappointing that we will not be able to make a run at the Junior Little League World Series in Michigan this summer. The kids have grown and improved so much over the past year. I look forward to watching them play again. I expect great things out of all of our players as men and baseball players.

“They all have a lot of confidence and I know they will continue to excel,” said Stokes.

“I’d like to thank the Roswell community again for the prayers and support throughout the summer. It was amazing how our entire town joined together to support this team,” said Stokes.

Interesting facts from the 2019 Roswell All Stars’ World Series Run • The team played 30 games of Intermediate and Junior League baseball before All-Stars began.

• The team hit a total of 32 home runs during their 17-game run.

• The team outscored their opponents 262-84 throughout the 17game run.

• Every player on the team was con-

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sidered a utility player and could pitch, if needed.

The Intermediate League is sometimes called 50/70. This name comes from the field dimensions; 50 feet from home plate to the mound and 70 feet between bases.

The Intermediate division is made up of 11-, 12- and 13-year-old players.

6 of the 12 team members had not flown on an airplane prior to the flight from the Regional tournament in Houston to San Francisco, California.

Opening Ceremonies for the Intermediate World Series were held at Rickey Henderson Field in Oakland, during an Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers game.

The last team to represent Roswell at a Regional Tournament was in 2014 when Lions Hondo and Noon Optimist Little League combined for the event.

The team drank Pedialyte before and after the games in Houston to stay hydrated despite the extreme humidity and heat.

The team parents took turns doing the team’s laundry until they reached the World Series. At this level, there were dedicated host team volunteers who wash the team’s uniforms.

The Roswell All Stars wore red, white and blue uniforms to show the unity of Noon Optimist and Lions Hondo Little Leagues.

Players arrived back in Roswell on Aug. 5 and started school on Aug. 7. Many players reported sleeping all day on Aug. 6.

Members of the 2019 Roswell All Stars: Andrew Baca, Matthew Campos, Wesley Gallegos, Isaiah Herrera, Cinco Holloway, Dylan Kermode, Isaac Loya, Reeco Lujan, Michael Mathison, Jack Peterson, Jonathan Silva, Ross Stokes.

Kyle Stokes (manager), Chad Holloway (coach), Jeremy Kermode (coach).

NMMI’s band of brothers NMMI Sports Press Peter Dindinger

Out in left field at NMMI Ballpark there’s a sign displaying the names of the All-American players who attended the Institute.

Three of the four names on the board helped pave the way for the program in the early 60s.

Fifty-eight years ago, NMMI captured its second straight conference title under former head coach Capt.

Robert Dennis.

The Broncos would not reach the Region V tourney again until 2016 under current head coach Chris Cook.

In 1961, Roger Staubach, Gene Hardman and Marlin Wells helped lead NMMI to victory.

“Well, it’s obvious it’s one of the best two-year periods in Bronco baseball history just based off their overall wins,” Cook said. “It’s tremendous to have a guy like Marlin in town who’s a huge supporter of the Institute.

“He’s also a huge supporter of the baseball program.”

NMMI went 14-4 overall and 13-3 in conference during the ‘61 season. The squad outscored their opponents 16367 during the regular season while batting a collective .296.

Hardman, a two-time All-American as a team captain at catcher, batted .563 in 1961 with a team-high 31 hits and four home runs.

Staubach, an All-American in 1961, covered the outfield as a centerfielder while he also worked out of the bullpen as a relief pitcher.

He sported a .328 average with 21 hits while he tossed 13 1/3 innings with 14 strikeouts.

NMMI was led on the mound by Wells who struck out 58 batters in 54 2/3 innings with a 7-1 record while he walked just 11 batters.

Wells was tabbed as an All-Ameri-

can in 1962 before he attended Pasadena College, which is now known as Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, Calif.

At Point Loma, Wells recorded 125 strikeouts while compiling an ERA of 3.00 his two years there. He has the best walk to strikeout ratio in school history.

Before his time at NMMI, Wells led Roswell High to a baseball state title in 1960. The Class A Coyotes defeated Valley in the championship match, and Wells hurled a no-hitter during the tournament.

“I was very blessed. I have wonderful memories of the baseball team,” Wells said. “I had several good years pitching and I think the main reason was because we had such good players and good hitters.”

Band of brothers Staubach prepped for one year at NMMI before moving on to the Naval Academy where he had a storied career at quarterback winning the Heisman Trophy in 1963 and landing in the Cotton Bowl a year later where Navy fell in the national title game to the University of Texas.

He later served in the U.S. Navy and had one tour of duty in Vietnam before returning to the states to begin a 10-year career with the Dallas Cowboys where he won two Super Bowls and was invited to six Pro Bowls.

“He was a low-key guy. Just very personable and a natural athlete,” Wells said about Staubach. “Roger was well liked by almost everyone and he had a great sense of humor.”

Hardman had also prepped at NMMI for the Naval Academy where he played alongside Staubach in the ‘64 Cotton Bowl.

He served in the Marine Corps Continued page 8

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NMMI continued from page 7 where he did two tours of duty in Vietnam.

Hardman was also a longtime tennis coach at NMMI as he was appointed director of the program in 1994 before passing away in March 2013.

Wells and Hardman were lifelong friends and neighbors.

“He was a real high energy guy. He was very intense and if you messed up, he would let you know about it,” Wells said about Hardman. “At the plate he was a great power hitter and behind the plate he had a cannon of an arm.”

Wells, who was inducted into the Point Loma Nazarene University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006, served his country for four years in the Army where he reached the rank of captain.

He served one tour in Vietnam during the climax of the war in 1969 where he was attached to an artillery unit while he also spent two years in Germany with a howitzer battalion.

At the age of 23, Wells entered the Army as he spent one year stateside after being commissioned as a second lieutenant before going overseas.

Wells was decorated with a pair of Bronze Stars, the Army Commendation Medal, and the American Spirit Honor Award.

“I’m just blessed to be back. Several guys in my unit got hurt and several were killed,” he said. “God took care of me and I’m just thankful to be here today.

“I developed an appreciation for America and for family because I missed a year with my family.”

Wells, who is now semi-retired, went on to work in the financial services field. His business is now entering its 41st year, offering assistance in investing and retirement planning.

Roswell has been a special place for Wells and his inspirational wife Kathleen who have been happily married for 57 years.

Heavily involved within the community, Marlin has served on the Chaves

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County Economic Development Finance board.

In addition, he’s also been president of the Roswell Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Roswell City Council, and has served previously on the NMMI Foundation Board.

Marlin also teaches a weekly bible study class and at night he still does his reading and studying just like his old days as a cadet.

Marlin and Kathleen have two sons, Greg and Rich, who both played baseball at the college level, graduating from Point Loma Nazarene University and Grand Canyon University, respectively.

They also have been blessed with two beautiful daughters-in-law and seven grandchildren.

“I just feel like this has been a very great place to live. It’s been good to me and I’ve tried to give back every way I can to the school, the community, and my church,” Marlin said.

It’s unique how a pair of pitchers and a catcher all made their way into the military and served during the same period before going on their own separate journeys.

One thing that set this group of

teammates aside from others was their overall common goal.

“It was really just about teamwork, working together, setting goals, and helping each other out,” Wells said about his team’s success. “We wanted to win and be the best that we could be, and I think that carried over into my life. It’s still there today after all these years.”

NMMI strong As the years went by, NMMI played an important role in helping Wells mold into the man he is today by increasing his confidence and helping him discover new leadership abilities.

“When I look back on it, it taught me the discipline, commitment, goal setting and just not giving up,” he said. “I valued my two years there.

“As I look back on it I didn’t necessarily like it, I don’t think, but I made the best of it. I’m glad that I went here. It made just an amazing impact on me.”

Wells attributes hard work, God’s blessings and generosity to his success.

He encourages current and future cadets to look at the old students that

have passed through the Institute and say, “If he or she can make it at this school, I can make it.”

NMMI has prided itself by producing great leaders during its 129-year history of existence. The system has been going strong ever since then.

“Secondly, just do what you’re told, do not fight the system, you cannot beat the system,” added Wells. “It’s been around for over 100 years so just accept it and make the most of it and this too shall pass.”

Wells wanted to commend coach Cook for keeping the Bronco baseball legacy alive and taking it to the next level.

Jake Wells, Marlin’s grandson, was a member of the Bronco baseball team that qualified for the Region V tourney four years ago in Lubbock, Texas.

“I had the pleasure of coaching one of his grandsons for the year we went back to the regional after that long dry spell,” Cook said. “It’s been great getting to know Marlin over the last eight years.

“He and those other guys are all worthy of recognition for what they accomplished here at the Institute for the Bronco baseball program.”

JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

A behind-the-scenes look at Roswell’s 2016 title

J.T. Keith Roswell Daily Record

Even though Roswell had a 20-point lead against the No. 1 team in the state, Gallup, it wasn’t enough that the Lady Tigers’ fans started to file out of The Pit with two minutes remaining to be played. Roswell head coach Joe Carpenter had been in this position to win state before, and yet something fluky would always happen.

With less than a minute left in the game, Carpenter began to empty his bench. He was able to relax and smile as he hugged his players and celebrated his first championship as a coach at Roswell in his 14th year. Roswell would finally win their first girls basketball title in school history. Not many people know the struggle and the story behind Joe Carpenter’s rise as well as Roswell’s first champion-

ship in school history.

Follow us on his journey and how he came to Roswell and played in 12 finals at state in 14 years.

See how he gave confidence to Jaedyn De La Cerda to become leader of the team and Gatorade Player of the Year in her senior season.

How it all began Joe Carpenter has always had luck and good fortune smile upon him. He has been in the right place at the right time. That is the main reason he was the Roswell girls’ basketball coach in the first place.

Joe played high school basketball at Hanks High School in El Paso, Texas through his junior year. In his junior season, he averaged six points a game, along with six assists. He was a hustle player. Even though he enjoyed playing the game of basketball,

he did not play his senior year. Baseball was his passion. During his senior year, Joe was offered a scholarship to attend CSW (University of Southwest) and played baseball.

Joe was called to be a coach in life, but if he had his druthers, he would have chosen to be a baseball coach.

“I would have never dreamed of coaching girls basketball,” Joe said,

“The whole time I wanted to coach baseball, but there were no baseball openings.”

When he started teaching, he was offered several opportunities to coach basketball at Hobbs.

Joe coached both boys and girls at the middle school level. Being in the system, he often had the opportunity to mentor under Ralph Tasker. He

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD would eventually move up to coach junior varsity girls’ basketball. It was apparent that Joe had a gift of getting the most out of his players, and they responded to this young, enthusiastic coach.

Former Hobbs basketball coach Kent Williams resigned at the end of the season, which opened up the head girls’ basketball position. Joe was led to believe he would be named the next head coach. They took him out of classes at the middle school and moved him to the high school for the basketball class.

He was encouraged to apply for the head coaching position and he was confident that he had a shot. After he applied the job was whittled down to three candidates, Joe, Miles Waters, and Johnny Casaus.

Joe arrives in Roswell On a Sunday morning at 9 a.m., the athletic director called him and said they decided to go in a different direction. They were going with Casaus.

Joe was floored by the decision. He asked why they did not tell him from the start they were going in a different direction?

“Why weren’t you honest with me?”

Joe said. Looking back, Joe realized that youth and inexperience was probably a deciding factor; Casaus had been an assistant for 18 years in Clovis and was well qualified for the position. Williams told him to call Waldo Gutierrez in Roswell and that Gutierrez needed an assistant. Joe and his wife made the decision to move to Roswell where Joe became the junior varsity coach at Roswell High School.

By Christmas, Carpenter wasn’t sure he had made the right decision.

The difference in coaching philosophy and a rough season made the transition difficult.

Eventually the in-season departure of Gutierrez meant Joe was coaching both the junior varsity and varsity girls for the rest of the season.

The team was 3-14 when he took over. The team responded to his positive coaching and began to win games in the district.

“We went 4-2 in the district,” Joe said, “We were a three-point bank shot away at the buzzer from going to the state tournament. Parents were crying and could not believe we had won more games in the last three weeks of the season than all season. I encouraged the girls to shoot the ball and rebound it. Once they rebounded the ball, they had to put it back in.”

It seemed like a repeat of what had happened in Hobbs. Here he was taking over a team again and hoping to get an opportunity to be a head coach.

Joe and his wife were not planning on staying in Roswell. It had been a pretty rough season. This time, his luck would be better. He was made an offer he could not refuse. At the end of the 2000-2001 season, athletic director Don Alsup offered Joe the head coaching job.

Joe went 7-16 in the 2001-02 season, his first full-time season. In 200203, Roswell went 12-14, scheduling the toughest opponents they could find. In 2002-03, Roswell went to their first Final Four before losing to Kirtland Central. Kirtland Central ended the year being ranked as a top 50 team in the country.

“It clicked for us that season,” Joe said. “I was an idiot back then. We scheduled all of the tough teams, and the tough teams would schedule us.

Our record might not have looked good, but when we got to district play, we were battle-tested. We went to Final Fours from then on.”

He credits that first trip to the Final Four to a tough group of seniors who refused to lose: Nicole Rogers, Chanelle Martinez, Edelina Vigil, Brandi Broomfield and Stephanie Perry.

They started a winning tradition at Roswell High School for girls’ basketball.

He and his future teams never looked back, and Roswell High would go to the Final Four 12 times in the next 14 seasons.

Coming up to short In the 2014 season, Carpenter took Roswell to a matchup in the semifinal game against Los Lunas. Roswell would either have a call not go their way, or an unlucky break go against the team at crucial moments of the game.

“I couldn’t get it done,” Joe said.

“We played the toughest schedule in the state for 4A. There were a lot of those years where Roswell and St. Pius X would run into each other in the championship games and they would beat us.”

There were question marks going into the 2016 season. Would there be any lingering effects of a 51-40 loss to Los Lunas in the semifinal game played at the Pit? The 2015 semifinal game with Los Lunas would be a tough matchup for the Lady Coyotes, to stop the Lady Tigers’ Division I player.

That player would go on to play at The University of Nevada. Los Lunas would also have three other players play college basketball. The Lady Tigers came into the game 30-2, and 6-0 in the district. Roswell would be young, led by Gali Sanchez, Alexis Angeles and Jaedyn De La Cerda.

During the game, Roswell had the lead down to five points in the fourth quarter and had opportunities, but couldn’t close the gap.

After the game, Joe hugged his seniors and made a commitment to winning the state title for the 2015 team.

That was the mindset going into the summer program.

“We would go years and years and get to the Final Four,” Joe said. “We would lose by one point. There were nine years in a row that we lost to the state champions in 4A. “It was as if you beat us, you were

going to win it all. Weird things kept happening to us.”

Joe knew his team would be in the hunt for the 2016 Blue Trophy, which would turn out to be his last on the Coyote sideline. Roswell would begin the season as the No. 2 team in the state behind Gallup. For the Lady Coyotes, the key to the season, according to Joe, was the summer.

In the preseason, Gallup was ranked No. 1 in the state. Joe wasn’t upset about the rankings because he felt Gallup was a good team and better than Roswell.

Joe felt like the key game in the summer was when they beat a team out of Waco, Texas. That team went on to win the state title in Texas.

The making of a champion “Blue Trophies are won in the summer,” Joe said. “That game was a good gauge for us, I knew we were going to be good and competitive. I knew we would be a better Final Four team.

“Any time a team beat us to end our season,” Joe said, “they (teams) physically knew when we shook hands after the game, we’re going to be in a dogfight every time.

“I have major revenge factors. I can tell you all the teams that ended our season: Gallup, Kirtland Central, St. Pius X, Los Lunas, Artesia, Shiprock, Farmington, Los Alamos, Santa Fe, La Cueva, West Mesa, and Deming.

Because at some point in my career they ended our season. I remember my girls crying at the end of the game.”

Coming back in 2016, Joe had some nice pieces of the puzzle returning with players: Deavion Allen, Sheyanne Sandoval, Gali Sanchez, and Alexis Angeles, among others. In Joe’s mind, the key to the season, and the player he was counting on to be a leader of the team, and the scorer, was Jaedyn De la Cerda.

De La Cerda was ahead of her age Continued page 14

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Roswell continued from page 13

best, we are going to win.

group, had been one of the top freshmen and sophomores in the state. Joe gave her the reins to the program in her junior season. Joe could see how De La Cerda developed in the summer and she was special. Joe’s only fear going into the season was a volleyball injury that could happen to any of his players. Joe saw De La Cerda becoming De La Cerda before she did.

As the season started, Joe told his team about raising their game at different points in the season. Early in the season, the team played a tough schedule but didn’t have a tough game until they lost to Carlsbad, 37-30, on Dec. 8, at the Coyote Den. They also lost on the road to Carlsbad on 36-34 on Jan. 5, at Carlsbad.

One play almost ended the Lady Coyotes’ season. In a game against Centennial, De La Cerda stole the ball and pulled up at the elbow for a jumper. As De La Cerda was shooting a Centennial player undercut her leg. De La Cerda went down, writhing in pain as she grabbed her knee. De La Cerda did not get up, nor did she return to the game. That game was a tough one without De La Cerda. Roswell would end up beating Centennial, 36-33, in Las Cruces, on Dec. 19.

On Dec. 22, the Lady Coyotes traveled to Alamogordo, where they managed to hang onto a 35-34 win.

Alamogordo was up by five points with a minute to play. De La Cerda got a steal and hit a three-pointer. Roswell would steal the ball again and score to tie the game and eventually win the game.

The game that gave Roswell confidence in their quest to win their first Blue Trophy was their win against 5A Hobbs.

Roswell felt like there were no teams left on their schedule, including teams in the state tournament, they could not beat. Roswell believed if a team plays their best and we play our

Playoffs Roswell opened the tournament as the No. 2 seed at home against Lovington. The Lady Coyotes steamroll them, 58-15. Next up, Roswell traveled to the Pit to play Valencia and beat them, 47-36. The game was closer than the score would indicate.

Valencia fouled Roswell late, trying to extend the game. Roswell trailed in the fourth quarter but used their experience to pull away after Valencia missed some three-point shots. It was a three-point game with a minute to go.

Los Lunas was next. Roswell was ready for a measure of payback as they defeated the Lady Tigers 57-36 in the semifinal game at the Pit. “We remembered what they did to us the year before,” De La Cerda said.

“We were ready for them at the opening of the game.”

“This game could have gotten ugly,” Joe said. “We were very motivated; we were playing well as a team and we were hungry. You could see it, the look in our kids’ eyes, like we were not going down in this Final Four. It was so fun to be a part of.”

Roswell was in the championship game against Gallup. Gallup had 6-foot Ni’asia McIntosh. For the next 24 hours, all Roswell heard was how great Gallup was. Gallup came into the game with a record of 28-0. Pit announcers were saying, this could be the greatest team in New Mexico basketball history. There were 15,000 fans there, with 1,500 fans from Roswell.

Gallup fans showed up early that day. When the teams playing would lose, Bengal fans would move down in their seats until they were right on top of the court.

Joe did not want his team to get psyched out before the game, telling them to stay in the locker room until it was time to go out for warmups.

Joe tried to get the Lady Coyotes to run out behind Gallup during warmups, so his team would not hear the boos from the Gallup fans. Seconds before Roswell was going to follow Gallup onto the floor, an official from New Mexico Activities Association stopped them and made Roswell run out first because they were the visiting team.

Roswell heard the loudest boos they had ever heard. Then the loudest cheer for Gallup. People could not get tickets to get in the game. Joe recalls buying tickets the day before for the player’s families.

“Our game plan was to see what McIntosh was going to do,” Joe said.

“We ran this play called “weave” — we would handoff, handoff, handoff, as soon as De La Cerda would get it, I told Gali (Sanchez), ‘go up and set a high pick-in-roll for her, let’s see how they’re going to defend it?’”

McIntosh stayed under the basket, and De La Cerda hit her first threepoint shot. And then another and another and another until she scored 28 first-half points. Gallup had the lead 15-10 in the first quarter.

But the game was over at halftime, as Roswell was up 32-21.

At halftime, Joe told his team to get themselves focused again. He told them they had seen this time and time again.

In the third quarter Gallup made a big run at Roswell, cutting their lead down to two points.

Roswell ended the third quarter on a 10-0 run. In the fourth quarter, Roswell led by 20 points with five minutes left in the game. De La Cerda would end up scoring 34 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

Sanchez would score 12 points as well. On the defensive end of the floor, Roswell held McIntosh to 26 points and would win, 59-41.

“You always think,” Joe said, “that you’re doing the right things for your kids, parents, and your program.

When you keep coming up short, you

start questioning yourself, ‘What the heck, man?’ Britt Cooper kept telling me, ‘Your time is coming.’”

Joe feels exceptionally good about his first Blue Trophy, because of the way Roswell won, with class, hustle, and discipline. Some of Joe’s feelings after winning were about his kids growing up in Roswell, playing little league baseball at Lions Hondo, and the south side of Roswell.

Roswell would return to the semifinal game the next year, losing to Goddard 54-52 in De La Cerda’s senior year. De La Cerda would go on to win New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year and earn a scholarship to the University of New Mexico.

Joe finished up at Roswell with a record of 300-136 with 12 Final Fours in 14 years, and one Blue Trophy. At Hobbs, he has a 117-8 record since taking over in 2017. His overall record is 417-144 career, 16 Final Fours in 18 years, and three Blue Trophies.

He is eighth in wins according to the New Mexico Activities Association. He credits his wins to so many great players he has coached over the years. Some of them not already mentioned include Chantale and Deja Riddle, Shanice Steenholdt, Desirae Allen, Diana Carrillo, Natalie Mendoza, Savannah Romero, Ricki Ornelas, Marika Trujillo, Ariana Gomez, Tiffanie Bolanos, Samantha Matta, Justine Ledesma, Kim Ingram, Priscilla Lucero, Alexis Flores, Georgia Eldridge, Tara Shields, Myla Brown, Stephanie Gomez, Sugar Tarin, Erin Mitchell, Amber Walker, Brittany Thompson, Desirae Barraza, Ashley Silva, and so many more that made great contributions to his teams.

“I won’t talk about the Hall of Fame until it’s over,” Joe said. “I’m sure I will reflect on my career when it is over, but I still have fire in my belly.

“I absolutely loved my time in Roswell and I miss being in Roswell. My kids and my coaching career was born and raised in Roswell, New Mexico.”

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Year of the Bow Tie: Honoring Judge Jones

By J.T. Keith Roswell Daily Record

May 28 marked a year since Judge Alvin Jones died. The one thing people might not have recognized is, Judge Jones died as he lived — competing and pursuing victory with honor. As a retired judge, Jones was fulfilling the things that gave him joy: training for the Milkman Triathlon and helping others less fortunate than himself.

Jones was instrumental in making a difference in his life and the lives of others. The one thing dearest to his heart was Character Counts! That organization meant so much to him that at his passing, he requested that in lieu of flowers, donations were to be made to Character Counts!

A lot of people might not know how the organization began.

In 1994, U.S. Senator Pete Domenici started a Characters Counts! program in Albuquerque. Meanwhile then-Roswell Mayor Tom E. Jennings read about it and thought that Roswell needed this as well.

The Character Counts! program emphasizes six pillars of character: Citizenship, Caring, Fairness, Respect, Responsibility and Truthfulness.

When he read about the program, Jennings thought that would be great to have in Roswell and contacted Domenici and asked him to help him start the program. Jennings felt like he should include the Valley as well, so he asked he mayors of Lake Arthur, Hagerman and Dexter, to see if they wanted to join.

The program formed Character Counts! in Chaves County to make it the first countywide program in the country. Jennings is proud of the fact that all of the schools joined the program. Roswell was the second program in the state.

Jennings also asked attorneys

JoAnn S. Jaramillo and Alvin Jones to co-chair the program.

Character Counts! was founded by law professor Michael Josephson in 1987. Jennings met Josephson multiple times with Josephson coming to Roswell. Jennings also met with him in Washington, D.C., as well as at a national meeting in Albuquerque.

“I think Josephson,” Jennings said, “felt like we did. We needed to change things about character development in our communities, families and country.

“Make a small change today in direction, makes a huge difference in the future. Every day you make a decision, it’s right or wrong. Right or wrong. A little bit of change makes a huge impact on a kid’s future.”

Jennings felt like the way to affect a country is to affect the youth.

He believes the kids that took part in the program when it began — and the kids that have come after — are teaching the six pillars to their children.

Amy McVay Davis, president of Character Counts! shared a story of how a teacher talked a student out of taking their life. If it were not for this organization, the student could be dead.

“Some schools might think it’s optional (Characters Counts!),” Davis said. “It’s not optional, it should be a way of life. It can make a difference in building a foundation of which, it could save a kid’s life in high school. I don’t think there should be an option, I think it should be a way of life.”

Character Counts! this year has honored Judge Jones. The motto has been the Year of the Bow Tie. As it has been a year since Jones passed, a way to honor him is to be able to give time, money and live out character each day in every decision each of us makes, to affect the youth and the people in our lives.

“My husband was a strong ad-

vocate of Character Counts!” Linda Jones said. “He believed that you had to start teaching character in the schools and when children are young.

“My husband was an advocate of Character Counts! being implemented in the principles for sports and kids’ play. How they react and behave after a loss.”

Character Counts! in Chaves County Mission Statement: “Character Counts! At least it should. Individuals are not born with great character.

Rather, it is learned through direct teaching from those around us and by observing, especially adults. Character Counts is not a command, or a religious philosophy. Instead, Character Counts is a concept that is a national movement. It is an idea that, basically, says it is time for people to start talking again about good and bad, right and wrong. It’s time to encourage ethics among adults and businesses; time to recognize and reward individuals whose lives are examples of good character and ethical behavior. Now is the time to begin again to teach our children the value of good character.”

History The Character Counts movement began in 1992 when educators, youth

leaders, ethics scholars and other concerned individuals met in Aspen, Colorado to discuss the declining national standards of moral and ethical behavior. The result of the gathering is the “Aspen Declaration” — a document which outlines the six elements that are believed to lie at the core of all societies.

These elements are referred to as The Six Pillars of Character: Respect, Caring, Trustworthiness, Fairness, Responsibility, Citizenship.

Roswell was the second community in the state to adopt the program. Soon after, the city councils of Lake Arthur, Hagerman, and Dexter, as well as the Roswell Independent School District and the Chaves County Commissioners, gave their support to the program and Chaves County became the first to adopt the Character Counts! Program on a countywide basis. There is now a working relationship with all of the public and private schools in Chaves County as well as many other civic organizations and businesses.

Programs Character Counts! in Chaves County has been able to provide training and recognition programs during its existence and continues many of these today.

They include but are not limited to the following: • National Character Counts! Week celebrations • Athlete Recognition Program • Coaches Recognition Program • Roswell Zoo tour and signage • “Pursuing Victory with Honor” Youth Coaches Seminars • Teachers of Character • Honor the Volunteers • American Youth Character Awards • Honoring the Badge: Building and Upholding the Public Trust programs • School-based recognition programs

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Goddard’s Hill looks back on 40-year journey

Hayden Hill - Submitted photo J.T. Keith Roswell Daily Record

It was a surprise when his beloved wife of nearly 40 years, Deborah, walked into the living room and told him it’s done, it’s over. Over? Not knowing the coronavirus would end Goddard’s 2020 school year and his career.

“With this virus,” Hayden Hill said, “I learned there is no guarantee. I remember holding her and crying because I wanted to finish this year out, but it was done. I could hardly wait to get to school and that’s why I cried when it ended. I cried because of the finality of over. It’s something I’ve loved for 40 years, from 1979-2019.”

Outside of God and his family, all he’s loved and lived for was to be at Goddard. Not to coach volleyball, boys’ basketball or girls’ basketball, no, those were byproducts of getting to wake up and do what he loved for a living: be a teacher at Goddard.

With that, he dropped his head in sadness and started to cry. He and Deborah held each other and cried together. Both knew that there would be no chance to say goodbye to the students he had grown close to in the last

four years. He would remember this senior class as special because while they were graduating from high school, he would be graduating for life with the class of 2020.

Hill knew he would not get to hear principal Brian Luck’s congratulations over the loudspeaker, wishing him a happy retirement after 40 years. Luck would share so many memories with Hill because Luck was an assistant basketball coach under Hill.

Hill would not get to walk the hallways one last time or visit the coach’s offices and say goodbye to his colleagues and coaches.

It’s funny how 40 years can seem to go as fast as the wind blowing. Hill can remember how daunting the hallways were and how big he thought the school was, and now he knows every trace of the school like his backyard.

Forty years in one place will do that.

“I guess I’ve learned,” Hayden said.

“The way you can do it for 40 years is because you’re blessed by people around you. If you’re not blessed by people around you, you can’t last. I could hardly wait to get to school every day to teach U.S. History. I don’t know what it’s like at other schools, but our school is like a family. We all take care of each other.”

Goddard High School was home to Hayden Hill, it’s the only job he’s ever had or wanted. He could have left many times, he was offered more money and could have chased the Blue Trophy as a head coach other places, but the Columbia and navy blue and white was the itch he could never scratch.

Early life For Hayden, his life didn’t start out great. He lost his father, Delbert, in a car accident before Hayden ever had a chance to know him, when Hayden was 4 years old. He decided to make something out of himself. His mom,

Ruth, played a big part in getting him to believe he could go to college, and she encouraged him to be a good-finder in himself and people.

He would add value to people’s lives, even if it meant he couldn’t always win.

In Hayden’s eyes, teachers and coaches were bigger than life to him.

He played for two Hall of Fame coaches at Silver City High School basketball in Marv Sanders and Pete Shock.

After graduation, at Western New Mexico, Mustangs coach Richard “Drag” Drangmeister taught Hayden, “that if you don’t have what other people have, but if you work hard, you can accomplish your dreams. And it’s been true throughout my life,” Hayden said.

For Hill, it was about the school and faculty being a family and knowing that when the bad times came everyone would rally and pull together.

He never met a bad student, and yet most of the students and faculty that have met him have cherished him and his friendship.

Basketball In 1979 Hayden interviewed with basketball coach Leon Sims and athletic director Duane Evans. He ended up getting the job as the assistant coach.

The team was not very good when they got there. Some of the players he coached were Sean Schooley, Kevin Jones and Larry Barbour.

Sims built the program into “Showtime.” One year the team played Hobbs in the district championship, and the little theater was packed as the fire marshal was turning people away.

“Coach Sims,” Hayden said, “taught me to think outside the box. He also showed me you can be a really good person and win. He is a better person than he was a coach. Through the years, Leon’s gone from being a mentor to being a friend.”

In 1988, the Rockets were not ranked but ended up beating Socorro for the state championship. Hayden remembers telling his wife how blessed he was because he had friends that had never been to the state.

One of the losses Hayden still thinks about the loss to La Cueva at the state tournament. Goddard tipped the ball three times above the rim and it rolled off at the buzzer.

“I learned how fragile it is to win a state championship,” Hayden said “and how many good, decent people had never had that opportunity.”

Athletic director Don Alsup hired Hayden to be the head basketball coach, taking over for Larry Dunnaway. One of the things that Hayden learned was that no matter how ready he thought he was for his first job, he wasn’t ready.

Hill head coach In his tenure on the bench, his teams beat seven No. 1 teams. Goddard lost several times to Roswell and Brit Cooper with no time on the clock.

When he took over as coach, he tried to do things differently than Hobbs, Clovis and Alamogordo. Goddard ran a motion offense and a matchup zone.

Back in that time, only two teams could go to the state playoffs. Hayden’s best winning season was when he went 14-10 in his last season on the bench.

He coached from 1997-2001.

The following year, he resigned and went to coach his son, Joshua, at Sierra Middle School and won the city. That season brought back the innocence of the game for him. He enjoyed the moment of coaching his son.

He later was asked to be an assistant coach with Kevin Jones. Jones was a former player for Hayden. From those years on the bench, Hayden felt that if one of his key players didn’t get

SPORTS Files 17

JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD food poisoning the night before the Espanola game, they had a chance to win, but lost at the end.

While he was assistant coach, Goddard won three district championships in six years.

Girls Goddard girl’s coach Jared Neighbors asked him to be an assistant coach. It was when they were at a summer basketball tournament in Tucson, Arizona.

Hayden was beating himself up over not doing better that day. Neighbors said to him: You don’t have anything else to prove. You have done it. Just enjoy.

“I will never forget him doing that,” Hayden said. “He’s a good example that most of the coaches I coached under, that if they have a choice between winning state or the game of life, he would pick the game of life every time.

I passionately believe that.”

The night before the girls would play Los Lunas, Hayden reflected upon the team meeting and Neighbors reading them Bible verses to give the team strength. Neighbors also talked to the team about life and dreams and the players talked about their dreams.

Hayden remembers a lot of crying and laughter and walking out of the meeting feeling like Goddard would not lose to Los Lunas.

Hayden wasn’t worried when Los Lunas outscored the Lady Rockets 11-0 in the third period.

“There was just a calm,” Hayden said, “knowing that we would win. I learned from Neighbors to compete.

On the court, that’s the way he is every day, but the thing people don’t see is him in the room at night. He cares so much for those kids and that’s what hurts me, in that some people go to the games they don’t see the good and decent with him with the kids off the court.”

Volleyball In 1980, He remembers coaching volleyball with Pam Allen, who had taken over the worst program in the

Submitted photo

state and she moved up six freshmen and started them all. Up until that point, Roswell with Flo Valdez coaching had been the team in town and at state.

Those freshmen won the state title in their senior year.

In 1982 Judy Smyth took over and led Goddard to five state titles. He remembers Smyth telling him you can win all the Blue Trophies you want, but if you don’t have Jesus, you have nothing.

As a junior varsity coach, Hayden’s team won 48 matches and the thing he learned was Smyth was happy for him and his takeaway was to be happy for others’ success.

Bobby Bates won three titles in a row. As they were scrimmaging in practice, Bates’ varsity team was beating Haydn’s junior varsity bad. Bates walked over to Hayden and said: You don’t like it, do you?

Hayden told him no. Bates said “good,” and walked off.

“What Bates taught me,” Hayden said. “That at Goddard it’s okay to have high expectations. In all aspects. Sheri Gibson won two state championships, but she taught me that you can have

a kind heart and a soft soul and still be extraordinarily successful. I remember the volleyball players taking a tremendous responsibility to carry on the traditions.”

Hayden says the kids playing have had moms that have played for Goddard and they want to win state.

If someone would have told him that 40 years will go by in the blink of an eye, he would have laughed as a 24-yearold. But not today. See, Hayden knows that the clock has struck midnight and by his own choosing. He knows it is time. He would rather leave too early than stay a year too long.

“My wife, Deborah,” Hayden said, “she is a better teacher and person than I’ll ever be. Without her, there’s no way this journey would have been the way it was with me. We have four kids, Brittany, Joshua, Serena and Matt, eight grandkids.”

Hill’s memories One of Hayden’s favorite memories was winning the state title in 1988 and being able to find his wife, Deborah, and hug her and their kids and share winning state with them.

“I love Goddard,” Hayden said. “I want to share what’s good and decent about kids,” Hayden said. “I wish people can see the kids at Goddard, they’re so good. Our teachers at Goddard care about others and the kids they teach.”

The biggest disappointment in his 40-year career was that he wasn’t able to relax and enjoy the moment more.

He noted that he put pressure on himself and did not realize his best was good enough. Hayden felt like if he lost a game, he may never win another game. Sometimes he would apologize to coaches after a loss.

If a teacher starting out were to ask him for advice, what he would tell them is: I think the main thing is to look at what is good and decent about the profession. Find people that see what is good about it and don’t let someone take away your dreams.

Hayden feels like sometimes their best times are their worst times — a team loses a heartbreaker, or someone fails a test. A teacher gets a bad evaluation — that Goddard realizes how special their school is.

“My wish for others,” Hayden said, “is to be able to say on the last day,

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JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

Submitted photo

wow. That day could not be any better.

If it had been a job, I would have been done at 25.”

Hayden does not have any plans.

He would like to go fishing and be with his wife and kids. He would like to see an NCAA tournament, and he really wants to know how it feels not to have to be on a time clock.

Hayden’s thoughts on Don Alsup: “He gave me an opportunity. During those five years, I was a head coach.

I felt safe with him. After a big game, he would write me a note. Looking back that was the best thing he could ever have done for me. It was like him saying I believe in you. I owe him a lot. I could have quit after that first year and been satisfied. He helped me believe.”

Ralph Tasker: “He was always a gentleman. He always made me feel good.

After we beat him, he said, ‘I’m really happy for you, Hayden.’”

What others are saying about Hayden Anthony Mestas: “Coach Hill is an amazing person,” the Goddard basketball coach said. “He loves each person he encounters. He loves Goddard so

much and it shows in how passionate he teaches and coaches.

“Ever since I’ve been at Goddard, coach Hill has supported me and guided me along the way. He understands what it takes to be a coach at Goddard.

When my son was sick, coach Hill came and brought us dinner one night.

This shows what type of person he is to others. He always thinks of others. I love this man.”

Jared Neighbors: “Coach Hill has had a long and successful career. It’s hard to pick one quote or one story about Coach Hill. There are attributes about him that are rare, and he is probably the most loyal person I know. To be at one school your whole career is staggering. He has been married for over 40 years. As I reflect on our time together though … I can’t remember a time he ever said anything bad about a coach he worked under.

“He did not have an ego and suggested things quite frequently. Sometimes I did them, sometimes I did not.

He never took it personally. He was loyal. For an assistant to be that loyal is so important. I believe his time as

a head coach taught him the stresses of a head coach, that he loved being an assistant, but the fact that he never acted or spoke poorly about the head coaches he coached under speaks volumes. The other attribute I really respect is normally when you close in on the end of your career, most coaches unfortunately just coast and don’t put a lot of time into their craft. Coach Hill was always looking for something new or something to help our team. He was always still learning and trying to better our team.

“When I arrived in Roswell six years ago, I did not know a soul. Mr. Luck and Mr. Miramontes, the principals at Goddard at the time, encouraged me to look at Coach Hill as an assistant, they said he would be a perfect fit. They were right! Coach Hill loves God and loves his family. Our program is about creating a family. Coach Hill loved our basketball family and will always be a part of it, even if he isn’t on the sideline.

And even though he isn’t my assistant anymore, he will always be my friend, and for that, I am truly thankful.”

Pam Allen: How awesome that

Coach Hill is retiring. He has given his all to the children of Roswell and more over the volleyball program at Goddard High. One of the greatest joys of my career was coaching alongside Coach Hayden Hill. In reflection, I remember him as a first-year teacher. He loved kids and he loved his job. Over time Hayden matured into a fantastic coach and motivator. His primary theme was family, working hard for the good of the team and supporting one another. He never hesitated to follow through with a task, always producing a positive result. To those coached by him, I would say that they were truly blessed to have been in the gym with him and influenced to be great people.

To the parents of the athletes coached

by Hayden, you were blessed to have such a great man lead your children.

There are not enough words for me to say thank you for all you have given and accomplished. Your influence is far-reaching. I appreciate Hayden Hill for his constant positive approach to everything.

“I am immensely proud of him, to know him, and to call him my friend.”

SPORTS Files 19

JUNE 2020 • ROSWELL DAILY RECORD

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