The Elks of Pojoaque Valley High School climbed back on the proverbial horse Friday night in Michael Marr Gymnasium.

"It would have been hard to wait a week, knowing we had that loss," Joey Trujillo, Pojoaque Valley head coach, said of returning to action two days after a heartbreaking overtime District 2AAA boys basketball loss to St. Michael's.

"It was good for us to get back on the floor and put it behind us."

The Elks did just that with a 56-45 district victory over the Cardinals of Las Vegas Robertson.

"I was afraid that we might have a mental letdown," Trujillo said. "But the kids came out strong and stayed strong."

The Elks increased an 18-14 lead to 34-27 at halftime. The Cardinals closed to within 42-38 heading into the fourth quarter.

"When the game got close, we didn't crack," Trujillo said. "That's a credit to the kids' mettle. This was a good victory for us after our loss to St. Michael's."

Orlando Trujillo finished with 13 points and B.J. Roybal added 10 for Pojoaque Valley (14-8, 5-1 2AAA).

For Robertson (5-13, 1-4), Larry Romero scored 13 points and Mike Martinez and Clint Brayfield evenly divided 22 points.

Mesa Vista 74, Questa 55

Jaime Cruz is a legitimate role player.

Even as a leader.

Downtrodden from a bout with a cold, Cruz came off the bench and led everyone in scoring in a District 3AA win for the Trojans.

"He's missed two games and my bench has really stepped up, so it was a strategic move for me trying to see how the team would look with him coming off the bench," Mesa Vista head coach Thomas Vigil said.

Only like a million bucks.

"It was a new role for him and an opportunity for him to come and give us a spark," Vigil said.

Cruz scored 21 points, the Trojans pulled away early and that was pretty much all she wrote.

"We shot lights-out in the first half," Vigil said. "We were 5 of 6 from three in the first quarter."

That's why Mesa Vista (19-3 overall, 2-0 3AA) led 25-13 after a quarter and 39-31 at half. It was 57-40 entering the fourth quarter.

Adrian Coronado finished with 17 points to complement Cruz, while Frankie Giron had 13 and Jaryd Anderson added 10.

Diego Romero had 16 points to lead the Wildcats (14-8, 0-2), while Cruz Chavez III had 11 and Joe Maes 10.

Monte del Sol 43, Santa Fe Preparatory 41

The team that originally wasn't part of the District 4AA discussion earlier this season, might soon be.

Monte del Sol visited Prep Gymnasium and came out with a win.

The Dragons (10-12 overall, 1-1 4AA) led the entire fourth quarter and stymied the Blue Griffins with a mix of zone and man press. Prep scored just six points in the final quarter.

"It was a heck of an upset and I'm sure Prep is going to be ready for us next time we play," Monte del Sol head coach Jonathan Haack said. "I credit this whole victory to the team, because the team has really learned how to play. And I want to thank my assistant coach, Vince Gonzales."

The Dragons led 35-34 entering the final quarter.

Aaron Vogel had 14 points and Keith Hyde 13 for Monte del Sol.

Joel Van Essen had 24 points for Prep (9-11, 0-2). Ryan Romero added 10.

"Hats off to Monte del Sol," Prep head coach Chris Chakeres said. "They were well prepared. They played their type of game."

Pecos 73, Mora 55

Round 1 in District 4AA went to the Panthers.

Pecos used a diamond and one to corral Mora's James Porter, who is Mora's leading scorer.

"Defense was key," said Clyde Sanchez, Pecos head coach. "We came out at them hard and kept everything in front of us."

Pecos lead 16-8 after one quarter, 35-24 at half and 55-39 entering the final quarter.

Tim Baca had a game-high 31 points, while Joseph Gonzales added 12 and Del Gonzales 10 for the Panthers, who are 12-9 overall, 2-0 in 4AA.

Porter finished with 15 points and Henrique Chavez and Derek Gallegos each had 14.

St. Michael's 64, Raton 38

The Horsemen made quick work of the Tigers and hung on tightly to their District 2AAA lead.

St. Michael's (15-7 overall, 6-0 2AAA) led 34-11 at half and 51-20 after three quarters.

Jordan Romero led the Horsemen with 15 points and Justin Smith had 11.

Justin Silva had 12 points to lead Raton and Lucas Serna added 10.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Española Valley 53, Capital 28

The Lady Sundevils have a two-game lead in District 2AAAA with three games remaining after defeating the Lady Jaguars in Edward Medina Gymnasium.

Española Valley is 5-0 in district, 15-6 overall. The win was the fourth straight.

"I'm so proud of my defense," said Ron Drake, Española Valley head coach. "We're still not there, but we're working on it."

The Lady Sundevils limited the Lady Jaguars to six points in the first quarter and the fourth quarter. Capital evenly divvied 16 points in the middle two quarters.

Española Valley was just as consistent offensively, scoring 12, 12 and 10 points in the first three quarters before finishing with a 17-point period.

Melanie Vigil drained four 3-pointers en route to a game-high 18 points for the Lady Sundevils.

"She's only 5-foot-2," Drake said. "She don't go inside."

Justine Vigil and Nisa Duran each added 10 points to the win.

Vandora Montoya scored 15 points for the Lady Jaguars (4-15, 3-2).

Los Alamos 56, Taos 43

No one can fill Taylor Ealey's uniform. No one had to.

"It was a total-team effort," Tarah Logan, Los Alamos head coach, said of the District 2AAAA victory in Griffith Gymnasium.

That's Ealey-less, total-team.

Ealey, a 5-foot-10 junior forward, was sidelined with a knee injury. So, too, was her 14.9 points per game.

Bryanna Richins and Shelby Courtright combined for 25 points, with Richins dropping in a team-high 13 for Los Alamos (12-11, 3-2 2AAAA). Every other Hilltopper contributed to the scoring.

Sydney Swinehart scored 28 points for the Lady Tigers.