BY GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — As the third game of Tuesday’s match was nearing its conclusion, Mission Veterans was on cruise control. The once raucous Sharyland Pioneer cheering section had thinned considerably, and the vocal Mission Veterans student section was the one making most of the noise in the opponent’s gym.
For the first dozen or so points, the Lady Rattlers held tight with the Lady Patriots. And then Mission Veterans did what it’s done so often the past four seasons, taking control of the match and cruising to a dominant 25-18, 25-10, 25-17 win.
“I don’t want to say it was easy, but district has always come easy to us, I think,” senior Gabby Lerma said. “Playoffs is when we finally get to taller competition and harder hitting. I think we’re preparing for that.”
At 3-0 in the early stages of District 31-5A play, Mission Veterans is already the lone unbeaten. Pioneer was the only other team to start 2-0.
The Lady Patriots haven’t lost a district match since 2012. That season, they lost just one.
“Everything was just smooth,” senior Daisy Reyna said. “I thought we’d be slow and stuff, because it’s the beginning of the season, but I’m proud of my team. We played good.”
With district wins so commonplace, the Lady Patriots set different goals and targets for themselves. The aim is not just to win the match, but to keep the opponent below a specific number on the scoreboard.
No matter how big the lead, Mission Veterans stresses finishing points with as much authority as possible.
“Every time someone gets set up, our mentality is to put the ball away,” Reyna said. “We need to keep them under 15. We have to win as fast as we can. We have to rack up as many points as we can.”
Lerma said she keeps her focus by thinking about her numbers. She has her eye on other players around the Valley, like defending All-Valley Player of the Year Mayda Garcia at McAllen Rowe, and she’s usually competing with Reyna to have the most kills on the Lady Patriots.
“We’re always trying to beat each other’s stats,” Lerma said. “We pump each other up.”
Lerma got the better of the battle on Tuesday, notching 12 kills to Reyna’s 11. She consistently went to softer, arching shots for easy points, finding openings just behind Pioneer’s block.
Lerma said she used those shots because Pioneer knew her strengths and tried to block her as often as possible. But she and coach Diana Lerma added that the skill will be useful in the playoffs, when Mission Veterans needs to run a quicker offense to topple taller teams with better verticals.
That type of attitude is typical for the Lady Patriots, who often operate with an eye towards the postseason.
“Our team’s expectations are to go undefeated the whole season, and maybe make it to the final four of state,” Reyna said.
Mission Veterans is also using the district schedule to find other players who can step up and complement the big three of Lerma, Reyna and D.D. Ibarra.
Alex Jimenez was the standout on Tuesday, notching nine kills and a pair of blocks.
“Alex did a fantastic job off the middle,” coach Lerma said. “They are stepping it up in practice, and it shows when they come and play.”