Dual-coaching basketball duties for Dulce’s Clyde Sanchez ended Friday when he resigned as the boys coach.

A veteran coach who is in his first year with Dulce as the Hawks girls coach, Sanchez was replaced by his assistant boys coach, Enrique Talamante.

Talamante has been hired for the remainder of the season, according to a text message from the Dulce sports administration.

“We are confident that Mr. Talamante’s experience, leadership and commitment to our students will continue to support the team’s development and success,” the text read in part.

The school’s sports administrators did not respond to interview requests.

The Hawks boys program has been in disarray for most of the season, with first-year coach Anthony Salazar and his staff resigning in December. The Dulce administration nearly shut the program down for the season at that point before Sanchez volunteered to fill the void beginning Jan. 5.

With the boys season in jeopardy, Sanchez stepped into the dual role, something he did previously while coaching in Clayton.

Sanchez declined to discuss the situation further until the season comes to an end.

But, bringing in Talamante means Sanchez can focus on getting the girls team back on track for this final week of the regular season and playing at their best for the upcoming District 1-2A tournament in an effort to make a late surge to the state tournament.

The Lady Hawks, who were off to a 6-1 start at the time Sanchez added the boys team to his responsibilities, have struggled since, going 6-9, including 3-5 in District 1-2A play.

The boys, meanwhile, have gone 10-6, including a 6-2 district mark, since Sanchez took them on after starting out 5-3. The Hawks are lined up for a possible run at the state tournament, Talamante said.

“We have all the talent in the world to do that,” he said. “It’s been a very strange year for them. This group of kids is very talented. I definitely didn’t want for them to suffer in any way.”

Talamante is a 2002 Dulce graduate and during his senior year, he helped lead the Hawks to the 2A state tournament semifinals. He has been coaching since he was 19, serving as the head coach for various squads at the middle school and elementary school levels.

Upon taking over the team in January, Sanchez brought Talamante on to help with the boys team.

This is my hometown, my community and it’s an opportunity give back to what I love to do and I didn’t want to pass it up,” he said.

And this is the break Talamante has been seeking in his own coaching career.

“I’ve been trying to get my foot in the high school basketball door for a couple of years now,” he said. “I’ve seen doors shut at every opportunity. But everything happens for a reason.”

While Talamante has high hopes for what the Hawks can accomplish the rest of this season, he’s also seeing it as a chance to make a case for taking on the program in the future.

“Without a doubt,” he said.

For now, however, the goal is push the Hawks into finding the best version of themselves.

“At this moment, we put a game plan together one game at a time,” he said. “We’ll continue to move forward as each opponent changes. The basics have already been set down by previous coaches. All I have to do is get these athletes pointed in the right direction to execute game plans.”

And with that, there’s no telling what Dulce can accomplish, Talamante said.

“I think it will be fine,” he said. “Part of coaching is to get the kids to buy into the ideas, to get them to buy what you’re selling.”