A question of fairness

Saturday, the New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) seeding committee voted a No. 8 ranking to the Ruidoso High School boys soccer team. At the same time, the powers that be gave Santa Fe Prep, a team the Warriors had beaten 1-0 earlier in the season, a No. 6 seed.
Three of the top four ranked teams were from the Albuquerque area, while the fourth, Bosque, is from Gallup.
The Warriors finished the regular season with a 15-6 overall mark – the best record the soccer team has had in many years. Santa Fe Prep was handed a gift, especially since that squad could manage no better than a 6-13 win/loss season.
To add insult to insult, the NMAA gave Hatch a No. 9 ranking but let them start the state finals on Friday, a day later than the Ruidoso boys.
The final shovel of dirt heaped upon the village boys was “allowing” them to play Sandia Prep in the first match of the playoffs. Sandia is a great soccer squad, no doubt about it. At 16-3-1, the Demons from the Duke City are a perennial force to be reckoned with. But that’s not the point. This will be the third successive year the Warriors have had to play them.
In 2005, RHS was also ranked eighth but that year the team had a 6-13 record. They played Sandia first that year, too.
There seem to be some inconsistencies with the playoff format that the NMAA uses. And, by the way, this is the third year in a row they have changed that format.
Even if they changed that setup next year, I doubt that would change their predilection for northern New Mexico teams in all sports. That leaves southern area athletes as the odd “men” out.
And before you think this only applies to soccer, consider this. Last season’s Ruidoso baseball team ended up with a 14-10 overall record and were 8-8 in district action.
They had beaten all their district rivals at least once and posted the best record RHS has had in many years.
The year before, with a 5-13 mark, the Warriors made the state playoffs under a 16-team format.
In the 2006-07 season, the process had changed to a 12- team setup, and even though they had earned a “moral” invitation to state, it was not to be.
And, with a few exceptions, no one put up much of a fuss about it. It’s almost as if people from this area are resigned to their fate – getting what leftovers they can.
I’m very familiar with this mentality because I lived it for many years. Back in Pennsyl-vania, those in Philadelphia are known as the “haves,” and the people in Pittsburgh call themselves the “have-nots.”
The state capital, Harrisburg, is located four hours east of Pittsburgh, and Philly is five.
The City of Brotherly Love has a population five times larger than the Steel City, so guess who gets first dibs at the money trough?
For decades, whenever monies were distributed, it always seemed Pittsburgh had to go begging for bones.
Some people in the Burgh would complain for a while, but after a short period of time, the dissenting voices returned to the back of the bus where they knew they belonged.
I figure, after decades of enduring a condescending attitude by the representatives in Harrisburg, it was now in their genes.
I see the same correlation (haves and have-nots) between Philadelphia and the rest of Pa. as I do for Albuquerque and the remainder of New Mexico.
When teams such as the Ruidoso soccer or baseball squads work hard and earn a winning record, they should be recognized at a higher level. It’s something they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.
And it doesn’t matter where the athletes (men and women) are from – Roswell, Capitan or Tularosa – give them their due.
Let them have their de-served 15-minutes of recognition.
With no professional sports within the boundaries of New Mexico, giving due-diligence to amateur athletics is what this state should be about.
New Mexico residents don’t yet have to worry about getting their pockets picked by their friendly representatives to build monumental Taj Mahal stadiums for multi-million-dollar professionals.
There’s no doubt in my mind, when that day comes, the pols will try to fleece one and all for the showcase athletic field they will build in Albuquerque.
In the meantime, the focus should be on non-professional athletics and how best to recognize them.
The NMAA should scrap their current methods of playoff choices and seeding, find a format that is fair for one and all, and stick to it.