By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
The Porter Cowboys’ season of redemption has finally arrived.
For boys soccer teams at Porter, making the playoffs and frequently going deep into the postseason is regarded as an annual event. The Cowboys have advanced to the UIL state tournament three times, including 2006 when they won it all. They also went to state in 1984 and 2011.
Postseason play was pretty much a yearly tradition until 2014, when the Cowboys missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 1999. It was a feeling of frustration for everyone involved, particularly the players and coaches.
The disappointment of one year ago has become a strong motivation for the team as another season begins. The Cowboys are eager to kick off their new campaign and blot out the bad memories of 2014.
“Last year we got left behind (from the playoffs), and it was kind of a sour taste in our mouths,” said Porter coach Jose Espitia, now entering his eighth season guiding the Cowboys. “We felt what it is like (to not make the postseason), and we’re determined not to go through something like that again.
“The players want to come back strong,” Espitia added. “Our slogan this season is ‘Unfinished Business’ because we have unfinished business from last year. We’re just hoping that everything we went through last season pays off in some sort of way.”
There were too many injuries and a number of lineup changes, and with last season’s uncharacteristic 7-9 district finish, the Cowboys wound up outside the playoffs. Not only was it Porter, but the Hanna Golden Eagles (8-8) didn’t qualify for the postseason, either. In their places, Brownsville Veterans Memorial and Los Fresnos joined regular qualifiers Lopez and Rivera in the playoffs.
As a testament to the strength and competitiveness of District 32-5A, Lopez and Rivera met in the Region IV-5A final last season.
Things have changed, however, and for the Cowboys it would seem to be a change that enhances their chances of doing well this season. Lopez, Rivera, Hanna and Brownsville Veterans have moved up to District 32-6A, while Porter and Pace remain in 32-5A to face a new set of district opponents in Donna High, Donna North, PSJA High, PSJA Southwest, Mercedes and Edcouch-Elsa.
“We understand that 32-5A is not going to be easy,” said Espitia, who is assisted by Eduardo Buentello. “There’s going to be more traveling than we’ve done before. We’re going to be facing teams that have a lot of pride in their schools and can be really strong when they play at home. Donna (High) and Edcouch-Elsa are two schools like that. There are teams in our district that are very strong physically, so we’re getting ready for that challenge and coming up with ways to counter it.
“It’s just a matter of us taking care of business and focusing on each opponent and not taking anyone lightly, even if it’s a new school like Donna North,” the Porter coach added. “In our district, everybody has a 50-50 chance (to make the playoffs). Even though Porter has a long tradition of success in soccer, that doesn’t guarantee anything.”
Another factor in the Cowboys’ favor is the return of 10 starters, including senior center midfielder/defender Reyes Saldivar and junior forward Alexis Anzures. Saldivar is a four-year starter with All-Valley honors to his credit, and Anzures led 32-5A in scoring last season with 15 goals. He had 17 on the season.
“This season I think we have a strong team,” Saldivar said. “We’ve been working hard. What I like the most is we have a unity on this team. We’re comrades and good friends. I think that’s reflected on the field when we play. What happened last season is a motivation for us. We realize the potential we had last season (and didn’t take advantage of it). It’s a motivation to return (to the field) and triumph.”
Other starters back, including some who received all-district honors last season, are Roberto Briseño, Anthony Cuellar, Brandon Flores and Gabriel Trejo from the defense, David Pacheco, Enrique Soto and Marco Don Juan from the midfield and Uriel Sepulveda at forward. Sepulveda and Saldivar are team captains.
Other lettermen back are goalkeepers Miguel de la Cruz and Jaime Gomez, defenders Angel Silva, Gerardo Perez and Julio Chavez, forwards Jose Pardillo and Luis Lara, and midfielder Santana Reyna. Newcomers include forwards Ricardo Vidal and Omar Estrada along with midfielder Alexis Armendariz.
The Cowboys were open this weekend after having scrimmaged Lopez (0-0), Los Fresnos (1-0 win) and Sharyland High (1-0 win). They open the regular season Tuesday at San Benito and then defend their title in the Brownsville ISD Tournament later in the week.
“We didn’t do what we wanted to do last year,” Anzures said. “It was a difficult season. We were the first team (in quite a while) to not make the playoffs. That was history we didn’t want to make. We’ve been working hard since the offseason. We’re working hard, and we hope the (winning) results will come.”