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Sandia Prep physical education teacher and middle school basketball coach Paul Huitt was recently inducted into the New Mexico High School Baseball Hall of Fame. 

Huitt coached baseball at Prep for 21 years and retired from coaching baseball in 2020.

“This is an award for all of the players and coaches that have played or coached with me,” Huitt said. “It was an honor and privilege to coach these young men and to work with great coaches.”

Huitt led Prep to six State Baseball Championships -- in 2001, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2015, and 2016. Under his tenure, Prep won 13 District Baseball Championships; was a 14-time State Qualifier, including 10 in a row; took three State Third-Place finishes; and one State Runner-Up finish. His career stats included 378 wins, 178 losses, and one tie.

A former University of New Mexico baseball player, Huitt also was a 2017 National High School Athletic Coaches Association National Coach of the Year Finalist.

While Huitt’s stats are impressive, New Mexico Baseball Coaches Association board president and longtime Rio Rancho High School baseball coach Ron Murphy said his legacy extends deeper than that: Huitt has always been known as a friend and mentor to his players.

“Paul was chosen for the impact he had with his high school players on and off the field,” Murphy said. “Coach Huitt cared about kids more than he cared about winning. He will be a lifetime mentor for the players who had the honor to call him coach.”

Huitt said he was humbled by the accolade. “This is an amazing award for a lot of years of service,” he said. “It’s a special honor to be chosen by my peers in the state of New Mexico.”