Turrubiates and Lady Coyotes beat Clay and Lady Falcons
JASON FARMER/NEWS-SUN
Friday afternoon former Hobbs Lady Eagle basketball teammates Elise Turrubiates and Bhret Clay took the court, as opponents. It was a battle of young versus old, with Turrubiates being a senior with South Dakota while Clay is a freshman with Air Force.
The two former Lady Eagles, who were teammates on Hobbs’ one-loss state runner-up team in 2021, faced off on the college hardwood and it was the senior and her Lady Coyotes getting the victory over the freshman and her Lady Falcons. South Dakota beat Air Force 75-50 in Vermillion, S.D. at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center.
“It was a pleasant experience,” Turrubiates said about playing against her former Hobbs High School teammate. “She played very well, very confident, very poised. I was proud of her.”
“(It was) definitely a different feeling being on opposing teams,” Clay said of facing Turrubiates on the court. “But, it was such an amazing feeling to see how far we’ve both come.”
According to Clay, the former teammates got the chance to visit before and after the game. When the game was over the two former Lady Eagles even had time to take a photo.
“We got to speak before and after the game, which was really nice,” Clay said. “It was awesome getting to catch up with her and see how she’s been. But, we are both super competitive, so once the game started we treated each other no different than if it was an opponent we didn’t know.”
“We discussed what the scouts said about each other,” Turrubiates said of the two former Lady Eagles’ brief chat after the game. “We were catching up and (talking about) how she was liking it at Air Force and how I am liking it here at South Dakota.”
While the second and third quarters were close, South Dakota controlled the game, dominating the first and fourth quarters.
Thursday during practice, Turrubiates injured her finger.
“It happened the day before the game,” Turubiates said. “Thursday during practice my fingernail came off. The entire thing is gone.”
While the injury limited the two-time state champion to just three points in the game, her game is more than just scoring. Turrubiates, who is one of just two Lady Eagle basketball players to win multiple state titles had four rebounds, four assists, three steals, and a block to help the Lady Coyotes. Turrubiates was also 1-for-1 at the charity stripe.
“Games aren’t necessarily about scoring,” the 2021 Hobbs graduate said. “I mean, it is great to score, but sometimes that is not your role for that particular game. I had two teammates who came out and really showed up, so I was very proud of them.”
As for Clay, the freshman once again came off the bench had more minutes that two of the Lady Falcons’ starters. Clay played 27 minutes Friday and was second in scoring for Air Force.
“My role is to come off the bench and provide a new look for my team,” Clay said. “I just went out there and worked as hard as possible.”
After debuting with six points, Clay scored nine on Friday. Clay, who won helped Hobbs win the 2023 Class 5A state championship, also grabbed three rebounds, handed out two assists, and came up with a steal. The 2025 Hobbs graduate was a perfect 2-for-2 at the free throw line.
Turrubiates and the Lady Coyotes (2-0) will now prepare for a busy week with three games in seven days beginning with Buena Vista at 7 p.m. on Monday.
“We have Buena Vista next week along with K-State and Idaho State,” Turrubiates said. “We have some big games ahead of us.”
As for Clay and the Lady Falcons (1-1), they have already arrived in Corvallis, Oregon for a game against Oregon State on Monday at 7 p.m. Air Force will then return home and host Manhattan University on Saturday in the Lady Falcons’ home opener.
