By MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
WESLACO — There was a sense of relief that came after Edinburg High squeaked by Weslaco High on Friday.
Lady Bobcats coach Jesse Banda did little to hide it, wearing a smile after his team pulled through with the deciding runs in the final inning to beat the Lady Panthers 2-0.
“We got a break this time,” Banda said.
Things haven’t always gone smoothly this year for the Lady Bobcats, who improved to 11-5 overall and 1-0 in District 31-6A. There’ve been close-margin losses, like a 3-2 decision in extra-innings to Dripping Springs in the Seguin Tournament last week, and another slim loss to Brownsville Veterans Memorial that dented an otherwise stellar performance from pitcher Dezi Marmolejo.
On Friday, Edinburg came away without disappointment. Marmolejo allowed only four hits, and the Lady Bobcats stranded nine runners, including two on third base, as they won their District 31-6A opener.
“It’s a lot of pressure (playing in these close games), but I know I have my sisters behind me, picking me up,” Marmolejo said.
The junior pitcher came up big at the plate, as well. She went 1-for-3, but her final appearance helped Edinburg pull through. She opened the seventh inning with a double off Weslaco ace Alyssa Escamilla, and then Natalie Rodriguez and Kristee Salas helped drive in the go-ahead run.
After Kayla Contreras singled, Banda brought in Valerie De Leon as a pinch runner. De Leon went on to steal second, before scoring from there following an infield error. It was one of two miscues that inning for Weslaco (13-3, 1-1), which struggled with its fielding late in the game.
“It’s a learning experience,” said Panthers coach Mario Rodriguez, who has no seniors on the team this year. “We’ll move on from it.”
Through six innings, Edinburg struggled to get much of anything going offensively. It got on base twice during that stretch, though it never advanced beyond second.
The Lady Bobcats had four innings in which its first three batters were retired.
But Edinburg did its part on defense, with Marmolejo striking out two and walking none.
“As long as we have her on the mound, she’s like a fifth infielder out there,” Banda said. “We said, ‘We’ll let her play, everybody go back,’ and it fell our way.
“Yeah, we’re a little bit lucky, but that’s part of the game. You have to be a little lucky to win.”
Banda acknowledged the gamble he took in the top of the seventh inning, when he instructed De Leon to score from second base with two outs and their team up 1-0, saying, “You’ve got to take advantage of those opportunities or you’re going to lose the game.”
For once in the early season, things went right for Edinburg.
“We made the plays, they didn’t. Next time we might not make it and they will. It’s just part of the game,” Banda said.
“Bottom line is, we got it when we needed it.”