JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
LAREDO — Blood, sweat and tears. An otherwise hackneyed sports phrase was all too real for McAllen Memorial running back Trevor Speights.
Speights’ upper-right arm was bleeding from a small cut, his navy blue uniform was marred with chalk from the field, his face was wet with the mixture of perspiration and emotion. Speights didn’t want to believe the scoreboard. Del Rio 35, Memorial 20.
After the Mustangs were upset by the Rams in Friday night’s Class 6A bi-district contest at Shirley Field in Laredo, Speights, the face of the team, quietly hid away in the rear of postgame huddles.
“I don’t think they were the better team,” Speights said. “But they wanted it more than we did. They whooped our butts, basically.” The junior running back politely declined further comment.
A simple glance at the box score would indicate a great game from Speights, the Valley’s leading rusher. He led all running backs with 188 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries, in the process setting a new school record with 2,655 yards for the season. He broke the mark of 2,633 yards, set by Bradley Stephens in 2005. But Speights’ trouble was also his team’s trouble – the big play never came when it mattered most.
The loss marks the end of an otherwise terrific year for the Mustangs, who finish with an overall record of 9-2, including perfect 6-0 mark in District 30-6A.
“We have to remember the good times,” coach Bill Littleton said. “We have to remember the good games and not dwell on this one.”
The Mustangs jumped out to an early 6-0 lead midway through the first quarter after quarterback Fabian Pedraza connected with receiver DJ Johnson for a 21-yard score immediately following a Del Rio fumble.
The Rams, however, responded with a clock-eating 10-play drive that resulted in a seven-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Walt Ashley to wideout Aldo Chapa to take a 7-6 lead.
For every Memorial score, Del Rio matched. After a six-yard Speights touchdown run late in the first quarter made it 12-7 in favor of the Mustangs, the Rams answered again with a seven-yard score from fullback Cesar Escajeda. It was a one-point contest at halftime as Del Rio led 13-12.
The Mustangs looked determined to put the game away at the beginning of the second half, taking a 20-13 lead on a 4-yard run from Aaron Villarreal capped by a successful two-point conversion from Speights.
The Rams (6-4-1, 3-2 District 29-6A) took the lead for good in rapid-fire fashion. Within 11 seconds, Del Rio scored 15 points. First came a one-yard rushing score from Ashley followed by a two-point conversion from Escajeda. The Rams followed with a 40-yard touchdown pass from Ashley to receiver Gus Rodriguez after a successful onside kick with 2:35 left in the third to take a 28-20 lead.
“I knew we were in trouble after that,” Littleton said. “We got the ball back, but we just couldn’t get into a rhythm offensively.”
Memorial never recovered. Though the offense moved the ball well in the game’s final period, a pair of drives stalled at midfield. The Mustangs failed to convert on a key fourth down play and Speights committed a costly fumble.
Del Rio’s Ashely scored a final touchdown on a 31-yard run with 2:35 left in the game to seal the victory.