The Los Alamos High School Hilltoppers burst onto Mack Chase Field for their quarterfinal round contest against the Bulldogs Saturday at Artesia. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Hilltopper receiver Seth Cowan pulls down a pass from Kyle Evenhus at the goal line in the second quarter for Los Alamos’ first score of the game. Cowan had a huge showing in the playoffs for Los Alamos on both offense and defense. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Hilltopper Melaki Gutierrez goes up high to catch a pass in between a pair of Artesia defensive backs. Gutierrez ran 47 yards to score the second of the Hilltoppers’ two touchdowns of the game. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

SPORTS News:

Los Alamos, the No. 7 seed in the Class 5A playoffs, fell 57-14 to the No. 2 seed Artesia Bulldogs.

Artesia, led by quarterback Nye Estrada, showed why it has one of the best offenses in the state of New Mexico, rolling up nearly 500 yards against the Hilltopper defense, which has been solid all season.

Los Alamos got some good performances from defensive players Seth Cowan and Nathaniel Larson, but the Bulldogs’ offense was too much for Los Alamos to slow down.

Saturday’s loss closed out the Hilltoppers’ season. They finished 2023 with a 9-3 record overall.

Los Alamos’ Jesus Diaz battles for a pass with Artesia’s Nye Estrada during the first half Saturday. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Hilltopper quarterback Kyle Evenhus hands the ball off to running back Niko Garcia in the first quarter of Saturday’s game. The Hilltoppers had trouble establishing their running game against the Bulldogs’ defense, which gave up very few big plays on the day. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Melaki Gutierrez of Los Alamos breaks up a pass intended for Artesia’s Juan Diego Duran Saturday afternoon at the Bulldog Bowl. Los Alamos made some big plays on the defensive end, but the powerful Bulldog offense proved to be too much to stop. Artesia scored six offensive touchdowns to win 57-14. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com