By FREDDY GONZALEZ
Staff Writer
RAYMONDVILLE — It was like a scene directly from a Hollywood blockbuster.
A freshman star player calmly struts to the corner flag, with minutes left in the game, and directly boots in the game-winning Olimpico goal, sending her team on to the next round of the playoffs.
Well, at least that’s how it would have happened in Hollywood.
Unfortunately for the Lady Bearkats, a freshman did indeed score a game-winning Olimpico on a corner kick, but it was Port Isabel’s Celia Garza who empathetically sent the Lady Tarpons into the area round of the playoffs with a 2-1 victory over Raymondville Thursday afternoon at Burnett Stadium.
The win gave Port Isabel its first ever girls soccer playoff victory.
“The win boosts up everybody’s confidence and I am so proud of the team and what they did and I’m happy for all of us, “said the freshman midfielder Garza. “During practice I would practice corner kicks and sometimes practice shooting them in myself and I tried it today and it worked.
“Throughout the game, we did not give up, we kept on going and going and we gave our heart out on the field and that’s what really matters.”
With the score tied 1-1 and 24 minutes remaining in the contest, Garza curved in shot that caught the Lady Bearkats goalkeeper off guard, as it hit the top corner of the net.
However, as phenomenal as the winning goal was, it was Jenni Martinez who opened the scoring for the Lady Tarpons. Martinez ran past the Raymondville defensive backline and slotted the score past the keeper with 21 minutes left before the half.
But with eight seconds remaining in the first half, Raymondville’s Destiny Delgado netted the equalizer for the Lady Bearkats, tying up the contest at 1-1.
The Lady Tarpons could have scored another goal in the first after a hand ball led to penalty shot. However the ball sailed over the crossbar, keeping the teams scoreless at the time.
“I believe my girls gave it all they had because PI is a pretty strong team,” said Raymondville head coach Juan Rodriguez. “I know they had been beating everybody 4-0 and 5-0, but we were just unlucky with that goal.
“I told the girls, ‘when they beat you like that they earned it, don’t feel bad for yourselves you played a heck of a game’ and I am extremely proud of them.”
Next, Port Isabel will play La Vernia on April 1 in Tarpon Stadium at 5 p.m.
PI BOYS WIN
MONTE ALTO – The Port Isabel Tarpons scored a pair of goals during each half to capture their first postseason victory in school history Friday with a 4-1 road triumph against the Monte Alto Blue Devils in the Class 4A bi-district playoffs.
”This (playoff) win means everything to us,” said Leonardo Bravo, a senior center midfielder for the Tarpons. “It’s something we’ve been working hard for every single year.”
With 15 minutes left in the opening half, Nathan Berman put the Tarpons ahead 1-0. He lobbed a shot over the Monte Alto goalkeeper and it bounced into the net.
Just two minutes later, the Tarpons increased their lead to 2-0 when Kevin Ortiz headed the ball into the goal on a corner kick taken from the right side.
It could have been 3-0 at halftime, but the Tarpons had a goal waved off due to an offsides call.
Felipe Cacho and Fernando Pardo added second-half goals for the Tarpons during the 45th and 49th minutes, respectively.
Roy Hess contributed to this article