MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer
The Rio Grande Valley 6A bi-distirct playoff pairings come with some interesting and familiar matchups to open postseason play.
One of the more anticipated games will be when the Harlingen Cardinals (6-4, 5-2) once again host the Weslaco Panthers (6-4, 5-1).
It’s a rematch from their first meeting back in late September when the Cardinals escaped with a 30-29 win following a bad snap by the Panthers on a punt.
Harlingen won the game a play later on a Rene Medina 16-yard touchdown run.
Much like that meeting, the two teams are on similar paths.
Both Weslaco and Harlingen were on early skids iwhen they met in September, but since then both have come alive and have at least a share of their respective district titles.
Weslaco went 5-1 in district after a 1-3 start to the year.
The Panthers wrapped up the 31-6A title after dismissing Weslaco East last Friday.
Harlingen, meanwhile, won three straight games to end the year, including their seventh straight Bird Bowl victory as they dropped Harlingen South 21-3 this past Friday.
Harlingen head coach Manny Gomez sees the value in ending the season on a high note and is throwing past games out the window.
“We wanted to end the district season on a good note, but it’s a whole new season,” Gomez said. “It’s all 0-0 now.”
WHO SAYS FOOTBALL COACHES WON’T SHARE? After a wild weekend of regular season finales, Rivera, Los Fresnos, San Benito and Harlingen High all earned a share of the District 32-6A title, after each finished 5-2 in district play.
The Falcons (7-3 overall, 5-2 in district), the Greyhounds (6-4, 5-2) and the Cardinals (6-4, 5-2) all had earned a postseason berth the week prior, only the Raiders had to win out to share the feat.
Rivera (5-5, 5-2) did just that, defeating San Benito 42-35 on the road to claim a piece of the crown and in the process eliminating Brownsville Veterans Memorial (6-4, 4-3) from playoff contention.
Despite the defeat to the Raiders, San Benito coach Dan Gomez said his team proved the doubters wrong.
“They didn’t exceed expectations of what we had,” he said. “But they did exceed expectations of what everybody else had of them.”
Harlingen High finished the season with a defeat of crosstown rival Harlingen South and Los Fresnos had little problem with Hanna to finish the season strong.
With the victory, the Raiders won their fifth straight game and plenty of momentum after opening the season winless in the first five games.
Staff writer Andrew Crum contributed to this report