BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
On the surface, all is going well for PSJA North.
The Lady Raiders are 18-1 behind their usual space-and-pace offense and are joined by Harlingen High as the only Valley teams with one loss.
But the core of the Lady Raiders’ talent has played alongside each other in just three games.
While Belle Palacios missed a game with a neck injury and guard Arianna Medrano missed some time with a bum knee, point guard Sarah Serrano has been sidelined for 16 games with a nagging knee injury.
Though Serrano saw extended minutes in district games against Weslaco High and Edinbug North, she’s still working her way back.
“Her knee isn’t 100 percent,” PSJA North coach Randy Bocanegra said. “I don’t know if it ever will be. It’s a long season with a lot of games, but she has to get back in shape. Not only that, but she has to get back in the groove of the team and find that chemistry as well.”
Despite Serrano’s absence, the Lady Raiders have seen success thanks in part to Palacios.The senior forward leads Valley-girls in scoring with 22.1 points per game in addition to 8.6 rebounds, 5.6 steals and 2.8 assists.
“She’s really been in an attack-first mentality,” Bocanegra said. “She’s looking to score and we’re looking to get her the ball. We want to make sure she touches the ball and is aggressive.”
The Lady Raiders return to the court 10:45 a.m. Tuesday when they open the McAllen Memorial Tournament against La Joya Palmview.
“We should be O.K. when we get back,” Bocanegra said. “It’s going to take some time for Sarah, but we need her out there.”
FRESHMAN FORM
Though Renee Flores is a freshman and the lone new face on La Joya Palmview’s starting five, she’s already making an impact.
In 17 games, Flores is averaging 13.6 points, 2.6 steals and 2.1 assists for a Lady Lobos team out to prove last year’s success was no fluke.
“She brings so much to the table for us,” coach Anisa Reyna said. “She’s really blossoming for us and is taking the heat off of some of our other players.”
One of those other players is senior Samantha Gutierrez. The lefty guard is leading the team in scoring for a second straight year, but is being asked to do less on the offensive end with the emergence of Flores and teammate Brittany Cano.
“It’s a new dynamic for us,” Reyna said. “But Samantha isn’t very selfish. That selflessness has carried onto the rest of the team and onto our bigs as well.
“Brittany controls the offense, but Renee takes the heat to free up what Sam can do for us, too. She has that much to her game.”