Hobbs Beats Rio Rancho 66-53, Claims Class 5A Girls Basketball Title

Kareli Rivera hadn't even cracked the starting lineup, but the Hobbs sophomore had seen enough of a halftime deficit to know something had to change. She walked off the bench to open the third quarter at The Pit on March 14 and started a 13-2 run that turned a two-point hole into a championship.

Rio Rancho had led 25-23 at the break, momentum building behind a crowd that believed the Rams might deliver the program's first girls basketball title in school history. Instead, Rivera's opening three-point play ignited a sequence that buried that hope: Matysen Zepeda scored twice, Rivera added another three-point play, and Hobbs led 36-27 before the third quarter was half done. The Eagles held a 44-39 edge heading into the fourth and never relinquished it, finishing with a 66-53 victory to claim the Class 5A girls state championship.

"I think people doubted us," Hobbs head coach Joe Carpenter said. "I know that's cliche, but when you lose seven seniors as good as the ones we had, it says a lot."

Rivera finished with 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting and led Hobbs with five assists. Muniez paced the Eagles with 17 points, going 4-for-8 from three-point range. Xoey Ross, a standout eighth grader who had briefly left the game with an injury at halftime, returned to score 13 points and nail a late third-quarter three. Zepeda added 12 points and five rebounds, including a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter that pushed the lead to 47-39. Aliana Armitage, listed at 5'2" and Hobbs' smallest starter, led the team with seven rebounds.

Rio Rancho refused to fold. The Rams cut the deficit to 47-43 early in the fourth, and Larissa Martinez drained a three-pointer with 2:19 remaining to bring it to 57-53. Hobbs answered the first challenge with six straight points. The second time, Rivera scored twice within 16 seconds to push the margin to 61-53 and seal the title.

Sophomore sisters Madi and Larissa Martinez carried the offensive load for Rio Rancho, combining for 33 points. Madi finished with 21 and Larissa with 12. Defensively, Lilly Martinez and Daysia Jack worked to limit Hobbs' elite scorers, but the Eagles' pressure proved relentless: Hobbs recorded 20 steals, with at least three players logging four or more, and converted 23 Rio Rancho turnovers into 20 points.

"I thought our girls battled," Rams head coach Lori Mabrey said.

The 2026 Rams, who finished 27-5, were the first girls basketball team in Rio Rancho High School history to reach a state final. The season included wins against top-tier competition, but Hobbs had spent the year knocking off the state's elite as well, beating Sandia, Albuquerque, and Kirtland Central, ranked No. 1 in New Mexico by MaxPreps.

The title was the program's third this decade for Hobbs, which improved to 29-2 on the season. Carpenter credited a team that entered March carrying a chip and something to prove.

"They had a chip on their shoulder and they had a lot of fun," Carpenter said. "Put those two things together, (and you get) what this team was. They love each other, they have fun with each other, and they want to win."

Zepeda, one of the seniors who helped shoulder the burden of replacing last year's departed class, kept it simpler: "We let everyone talk. And we let our hard work do the talking for us.