So you’ve made the long distance move to Las Cruces and you’re ready to enmesh yourself in the local sports scene. Who should you root for?
College sports
Developing allegiances to local teams is a great way to feel like part of the community after moving across the country. There are no major-league sports in this city of 111,000 but there are plenty or potential rooting interests. Let’s start at the college level.
Las Cruces is home to New Mexico State University, so the first team you should adopt is the Aggies. NMSU plays at the Division 1 level in 15 sports. Its teams compete as members of the Western Athletic Conference, except the football program, which is independent.
Did you know the Aggies made the Final Four of the NCAA basketball tournament in 1970? And that it was won the WAC four years running and made it to the Big Dance five of the past six years? These are important facts to have at hand when you’re talking trash to fans of New Mexico and the University of Texas-El Paso, which by the way are the Aggies’ main rivals. Remind them that there’s no finer mascot in these parts than Pistol Pete, NMSU’s double-barreled cowboy avatar.
Professional sports
Las Cruces doesn’t have major-league franchises, but there are professional teams in New Mexico. Some 225 miles up Interstate 25 you’ll find the Albuquerque Isotopes, the top minor-league affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. Like their parent club, the Isotopes play in a stadium that sits a mile above sea level. About 150 miles northeast of Las Cruces you’ll find the Roswell Invaders of the independent Pecos League.
You have to travel long-distance to find big-league teams. Those closest lie 390 miles away in Phoenix, home of baseball’s Diamondbacks, football’s Cardinals, hockey’s Coyotes and basketball’s Suns.
Despite existing less than 25 years, the D-Backs already have a World Series title to their credit. The Suns have advanced to the NBA Finals three times— including last season— and hold the fifth-highest winning percentage in league history.
Unfortunately the Coyotes have not distinguished themselves since arriving in 1996, and the other import—the NFL’s Cardinals—holds the longest championship drought in all of North American major league sports. (Like you, Phoenix’s pro sports teams made long-distance moves to the desert.) The Cards did play in the Super Bowl once. Perhaps now that you’ve moved across the country, you’ll prove to be the good luck charm they’ve awaited, and Cardinals fans will finally get to party like it’s 1947.
The best thing you can do when planning an interstate move – along with picking the right teams to cheer—is hire professional, reputable long distance movers, preferably agents of National Van Lines, like us. Las Cruces Moving and Storage is ready to help: ask for your free moving quote online or give them a call at 800-527-6821! Moving to California? Check out the guide to getting rid of mosquitoes from our friends at Southern Cal & Storage!