By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
MERCEDES — A year ago, Mission Veterans Memorial went 42-1 en route to the fourth round of the postseason.
Naturally, the Lady Patriots intend to go even further this year, which is why they had trouble getting excited over their opening-round match win Tuesday.
Mission Veterans breezed by Mercedes in a ho-hum 25-13, 25-12, 25-13 Class 5A bi-district victory.
“It was our confidence,” Lady Patriots coach Diana Lerma said, explaining the lack of intensity. “We didn’t play to the level that we’re used to. They were playing to finish. That’s why I said there wasn’t any excitement within them.
“The good thing is, the scouts didn’t get to see the level of play that we’re capable of.”
Mission Veterans will take on Corpus Christi Flour Bluff at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Alice High School.
The Lady Patriots (32-6), the District 31-5A champions, can expect a more lively battle later this week than the one that took place Tuesday. Mission Vets left enough of an opening at times for Mercedes (21-18), the fourth seed in 32-5A, to keep things close.
The Lady Patriots fell behind 3-0 in Game 1 before going on a 6-0 run. When they played more interested in Game 2, D.D. Ibarra served four aces to help build a 9-0 lead.
“Today, we could’ve done a lot better than we did. That’s just me, personally,” Ibarra said. “But other than that, I think we came together.
“At first, it takes a couple of points to get into it. But after that, we’re solid.”
Of all the Mission Vets players, middle blocker Daisy Reyna seemed most animated, challenging shots at the net. She had three blocks and served up an ace and two digs.
“Daisy has really improved,” Ibarra said. “As one of my teammates and best friends, I’m proud of her. She’s amazing.”
The Lady Patriots closed out the match on a 12-3 run, keyed by Ibarra’s kill and two assists. Ibarra finished with 11 kills, 16 assists, six aces and 15 digs.
Gabby Lerma contributed 15 kills, seven assists, two aces, 15 digs and one block. Adela Parras added six aces and eight digs. And Karina Garcia contributed eight assists, two aces and seven digs.
“I think we were a little bit intimidated,” Mercedes coach Judy Gutierrez said. “Our blocking game wasn’t on. We normally play better at the front. We struggled with that and serve-receive.”
It also didn’t help that setter Alexa Peña (flu) was limited on the court while battling the flu, forcing Mercedes to shuffle its lineup.
Because of it, the Lady Tigers didn’t rotate as well as they normally do.
It benefitted players like Ibarra and Reyna, who found the right openings at the right time.
“I told the players, ‘This is a playoff game. We have to step it up,’” Lerma said. “We needed to find that motivation.”
A couple of hitting errors by Mission Veterans, followed by an ace from Mercedes’ Kristen Gutierrez, made things interesting in Game 3, as the Lady Tigers cut the deficit to 13-9. That’s as close as Mercedes came to narrowing the gap, as Ibarra scored up for a kill to make it 15-11. Then, Gabby Lerma gently lobbed it over the net to make it 18-11.
On the next play, Ibarra set up two back-row kills as the Lady Patriots pulled away and Mercedes fans filed for the exits.
“A win’s a win and I’m excited about that,” coach Lerma said. “I’ll take it anytime, as ugly as it looked.”
Mercedes was led by Summer Vento, who posted nine kills and one block. Kassidy Arguelles added six points, three aces and seven digs. And Kristen Gutierrez chipped in with 13 digs and two aces.