NNMC NEWS RELEASE
Northern New Mexico College is thrilled to announce the hiring of two new homegrown coaches to lead its Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams and the addition of two senior advisors. Alcalde native Michael Dominguez is the new head coach of Men’s Basketball and Mandy Montoya, who calls Española home, joins as Women’s Basketball head coach. Guy Meyer, who heralds from Santa Fe, has also signed on as advisor to the president. Samantha Stukes, former Women’s Basketball coach and assistant athletic director, will continue to serve as senior athletic advisor to the president and Athletic Department.
“We’re assembling an incredible dream team of coaches dedicated to empowering our student athletes and building strong connections within our community,” said President Hector Balderas.
Michael Dominguez/Courtesy photo
Michael Dominguez joins Northern from New Mexico Highlands University, a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II school, where he served as associate head coach from 2017 – 2019 before being named head coach from 2019 – 2025. His overall record at NMHU was 103-97 and 66-74 as head coach. In 2019 he was part of the first team in the school’s history to win the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Championship.
“I’m thankful to President Balderas and his team for the opportunity to lead the Men’s Basketball program at Northern New Mexico College. Growing up in Alcalde, New Mexico, and the valley has shaped me into who I am today and has taken me places with basketball that I could only dream of,” Dominguez said. “I owe it to the community to give back what was given to me and it is something I will take great pride in. I look forward to soaring to new heights with NNMC’s Athletic Department, Española and the surrounding communities.”
At NMHU, Dominguez recruited and developed 16 All-Conference RMAC players. Six of those players were First Team All-Conference selections and TJ Sanchez was named Co-Freshman of the Year in the 2022 – 2023 season. Dominguez also had the highest scoring duo in the country from Divisions I, II and III in the 2019 – 2020 season. Seven of his former players are playing at the pro level. Dominguez’s NMHU roster included 83 of 147 from the State of New Mexico and his retention rate was 75 percent.
Dominguez began his coaching career in 2011 as assistant at Colorado Mesa University (CMU) for six years. He was made head assistant/recruiting coordinator at CMU in 2013. Dominguez helped the Mavericks win the Rocky Division Championship in 2016 with a record of 21-9. The Mavericks made the RMAC playoffs five of the six years Dominguez was on the staff. Dominguez also made significant contributions on the recruiting side of the Mavericks program. In his four years as head assistant/recruiting coordinator he helped sign seven All-RMAC players and in 2016 Dominguez recruited and helped develop Ryan Stephan, who was both the RMAC Player of the Year and CCA D2 National Player of the Year.
During his playing career, Dominguez helped lead Colorado Mesa University to the most wins ever (23-6) and a berth in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, leading the Mavericks to the first NCAA Tournament victory in program history. His performance that season earned Dominguez All-American status – the first All-American at CMU since the school joined NCAA Div. II. He was also named the RMAC Player of the Year after averaging 21.6 points and 4.6 rebounds during that historic senior season.
In 2010 – 2011, Dominguez played professional basketball in Mexico’s top league, the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP), for the Toros De Nuevo Laredo, with his team winning the LNBP Championship title his rookie season.
Early in his career, Dominguez played at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado, where he started every game for the Plainsman. During his two years at NJC they had a record of 64-6 and were ranked as high as second in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). His team qualified for the national tournament in 2007, placing seventh. After NJC, Dominguez played one year at D1 Florida International University in Miami, Florida, where he started 30 of 33 games and led the team in minutes, steals and 3-pointers made while averaging 10.0 points per game.
Dominguez attended Española Valley High School and Capital High School in Santa Fe. He was a three-time, first-team all-state selection and helped Capital win its only 4A Basketball State Championship in 2004.
Dominguez earned his bachelor of arts degree in Kinesiology from CMU and has a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University.
Mandy Montoya/Courtesy photo
Mandy Montoya rejoins Northern as women’s basketball Head Coach after serving as associate head coach from 2015 – 2019. As the associate head coach, Montoya helped guide the team to two Association of Independent Institutions Conference tournament appearances, led player development, was the head coach of the development team and the head recruiter.
“Returning to Northern New Mexico College is a full-circle moment for me. I am excited to pour my passion into a program and a community that means so much to me and to help develop young women who are not only fierce competitors but strong leaders for the future,” Montoya said.
In her tenure as head coach for the Peñasco Independent School District Girls Basketball team, Montoya guided her teams to a Final Four appearance, state runner-up and a state championship. She made history when she led the Peñasco Lady Panthers to their first girls’ basketball state championship in 2024. She also achieved 100 varsity career wins during the 2024 – 2025 basketball season. Montoya stands in a rare but elite group of individuals who have captured a state title on the court as a player and on the sidelines as the head coach, after helping to lead the Coronado High School Lady Leopards to their only girls’ state championship in 2003. She has served as an Athletic Director and was elected to represent the small area A on the New Mexico Activities Associates commission.
Montoya has been featured in several New Mexico Activities Association (NMAA) highlights. She is well respected and well known across the State of New Mexico, which has earned her the honor of being the guest speaker at University of New Mexico’s Mike Bradbury coach’s clinic in 2017 and 2018 and the NMAA Coaches clinic in 2023.
Montoya is a graduate of Coronado High School. She received her bachelor’s degree in History from New Mexico Highlands University and recently graduated from Eastern New Mexico University with a Master’s in Arts in Educational Administration. Montoya has 13 years of educational experience and has dedicated her career to shaping the minds of students in the classroom and on the court. She firmly believes in the power of education and instills the importance of being a student athlete.
Samantha Stukes, who is entering her third year at Northern, elevates her role by incorporating 15-years of coaching experience across multiple levels, 12 years in program strategic planning, development and management and her unique leadership skills. As head coach, Stukes led the women’s basketball program to back-to-back winning seasons with an overall record of 38-10, making Stukes the winningest coach in NNMC program history. This past season, the Lady Eagles became the 2025 Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) Regular Season Champions and reached the CAC Finals, where Stukes was named Coach of the Year.
Simultaneously, Stukes nurtures a Community Youth Development project as the Program Director in her hometown of Northeast El Paso, Texas, where she manages preventative programs aimed at at-risk youth. Throughout her tenure, she has created numerous exposure opportunities for aspiring student-athletes and budding sports professionals, fostering their advancement through both academic and athletic pathways.
In 2010, Coach Stukes founded Bonafide Basketball, a youth basketball organization. Under her leadership, Bonafide Basketball has earned 12 NCAA-Certified National Championships at the High School Open-Elite Divisions and she guided nearly 100 student-athletes towards college scholarships.
After being honored as the recipient of People Magazine’s “Thank You Coach” Campaign in 2019, Stukes launched Southwest Desert Hoops. This venture marked El Paso’s first Men’s and Women’s Minor League Basketball Organization. Her guidance led the franchise to its first Women’s Basketball National Championship in the Women’s Basketball Development Association (WBDA), which subsequently garnered her the Coach of the Year accolade in 2021 along with the Community Impact Award.
Parallel to this, the Men’s Program also achieved significant success, securing two Sweet 16’s, a Final Four appearance, and recognition as the American Basketball Association (ABA) Expansion Team of the Year.
Stukes made history in 2022 when she became the first woman to coach in the Liga de Básquetbol Estatal (LBE), the premier professional men’s league in Chihuahua, Mexico, serving as an assistant coach with the Indomables de Ciudad Juarez.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Sciences from the University of Phoenix and an associate’s degree in Applied Sciences from Allen County CC in Kansas, where she was also an Academic All-American.
“Although I am sad to leave my role as Women’s Basketball Head Coach and Assistant Athletic Director, it is exciting to step into a new leadership role where our impact with this unit can be even greater. Go Eagles!” Stukes said.
As Guy Meyer takes on his new role as the advisor to the president, he will continue to serve as athletic director for Los Alamos Public Schools (LAPS).
Meyer grew up in Santa Fe, graduating from St. Michael’s High School in 2003. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Fort Lewis College, where he played four years of NCAA DII basketball. He also holds a master’s degree in Athletic Administration from New Mexico Highlands University.
Meyer has held several college coaching positions in men’s basketball since 2011, including at New Mexico State University. He was the athletic director and assistant athletic director at Cochise College in Southern Arizona. Prior to his position at LAPS, he served one year as associate athletic director at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.
Meyer taught elementary P.E. at Cesar Chavez Elementary in Santa Fe from 2008 – 2010.
“I’m excited to serve as an advisor to President Balderas as he looks to build more opportunities for student athletes, and it will be great to offer any support to Coach Dominguez, as I have known him for many years,” Meyer said.
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About Northern:
Northern New Mexico College has served the rural communities of Northern New Mexico for over a century. Since opening in 1909 as the Spanish American Normal School in El Rito, NM, the College has provided affordable access to quality academic programs that meet the changing educational, economic and cultural needs of the region.
Northern is an open-admissions institution offering the most affordable bachelor’s programs in the Southwest. Now one of the state’s four regional comprehensive institutions, with its main campus in Española, Northern offers more than 50 bachelor’s, associate, and certificate programs in arts & human sciences, film & digital media, STEM programs, business, education, liberal arts, and nursing. The College has reintroduced technical trades in partnership with two local unions and five public school districts through its new co-located Branch Community College, the first of its kind in the state’s history. Northern is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) and has earned prestigious program specific accreditations for its engineering, nursing, education, and business programs.Learn more at https://nnmc.edu/.