By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer
Once tonight rolls around, either the Brownsville Veterans Memorial Chargers or the San Benito Greyhounds will be the only remaining unbeaten team in District 32-6A after they battle at 7 p.m. at Sams Memorial Stadium.
The meeting of the two heavyweights is possible because of last week’s thrilling rivalry game between the Greyhounds and the Harlingen High Cardinals.
San Benito clipped the Cardinals in the final minute of the annual “Battle of the Arroyo” despite being behind 21-3 with less than nine minutes remaining. San Benito coach Dan Gomez said his team isn’t even thinking about last week’s matchup, though, and is strictly focused on the next game.
The Chargers’ quest to remain perfect in district play was similarly nerve-racking when the Hanna Golden Eagles provided Brownsville Veterans a scare.
The 51-42 shootout victory over the Eagles was ultimately the result Chargers coach David Cantu wanted. Despite allowing that many points, Cantu remains encouraged by how his team, and particularly his defense, performed.
“I’m happy with how hard our team played,” Cantu said. “We gave up points, but that doesn’t mean (the team) didn’t try hard.”
The defensive woes of late will be even more difficult to overcome as the Chargers have been bitten by the injury bug. Cantu said junior strong safety Victor Aguilar will be sidelined for three weeks with a toe injury, senior cornerback Felipe Flores will miss the game with an ankle injury and senior defensive tackle Jesus Guzman will miss the remainder of the season with a leg injury. These three injuries come weeks after senior defensive tackle Daniel Espinosa was declared out for the season as well.
Brownsville Veterans will need to continue piling on its already impressive rushing numbers to keep its battered defense off the field. A team that averages 306 yards on the ground likely will continue to apply similar pressure against San Benito this week.
The Greyhounds, on the other hand, have a more balanced attack, one that is capable of striking via the run or the pass. San Benito is the only team in the district to have surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in each category.
San Benito’s Gabriel Vasquez is the district’s leading rusher, and Christian Sierra ranks second in passing.
Stopping a two-pronged attack is something the Chargers haven’t had to do much of this year.
“We have to try to find what we do best,” Cantu said. “We feel like we’re a good team, too. It’s a game that might come down to a turnover. We hope it’s close in the fourth quarter.”
Whichever team wins will have the lone grip on first place in the district with only three games remaining.
Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.