Jerry Carrillo wins 200th game as Cochise's Head Men's Basketball Coach

DOUGLAS, Ariz. - Cochise College Apaches Head Coach Jerry Carrillo hit a milestone Jan. 19 as the Apaches (13-4, 6-3) defeated Mesa Community College 91-87.

Carrillo, in his 10th season as head coach at Cochise, won game No. 200 in dramatic fashion as the Apaches defeated Mesa in overtime. The win also was the teams' sixth consecutive.

Mesa led 40-36 at the half and 51-50 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Cochise took the lead and, with just eight seconds left, Mesa tied the score at 76. The Apaches won in overtime with key plays by freshmen Jason Hopkins of Edmonds, Wash.; Brett Sortal of Wilmette, Ill.; and Jude Roybal of Albuquerque, N.M.

Roybal and freshman Orlando Griego of Durango, Colo., led the team with 19 points each. Hopkins and Sortal scored 15 each, and sophomore Angel Encinas of Bisbee, Ariz., finished the game with 10 points.

Carrillo's 200th comes with a young team that is eager to top a challenging conference and prove themselves in the playoffs. Only four players returned from last season.

Carrillo has established a winning tradition at Cochise, whose record since he began coaching there in 1995 is 200-103. In nine years, five of his teams have won 20 or more games in a season, and his 2000 and 2001 teams won the Region I title.

Carrillo's players often transfer to four-year institutions, and he is viewed by parents, players and fellow coaches alike as a role model. Prior to his tenure at Cochise, Carrillo coached the Buena High School boys basketball team, guiding the Colts to a state top 10 ranking his last two seasons. Previously, he served as assistant coach at Jamestown Community College and California State University-Northridge. He played high school basketball at Salpointe Catholic High School in Tucson, where he is a member of the hall of fame.