By DAVE FAVILA
Staff Writer
SAN BENITO – The San Benito Greyhounds and Weslaco East Wildcats couldn’t be more different when it comes to their offenses.
The Greyhounds run a fast-paced, well-balanced offense that can score quickly and often while the Wildcats are all about running the ball in a methodic fashion that chews up the clock and wears out opposing defenses.
But as different as these teams are offensively, their defenses are both rock solid and both enter tonight’s Valley Morning Star Game of the Week 1-0 in District 32-6A play with their eyes set on distancing themselves from the competition.
Defensively, East is ranked second in the league behind Harlingen South with San Benito right behind in third place. East is giving up 269 yards per game while the ‘Hounds are allowing 290 per contest. The Wildcats are particularly good at guarding against the pass as they’ve given up just 275 passing yards through four games. This should make for an interesting contest as San Benito is leading the league in passing with 974 yards.
Meanwhile, the ‘Hounds have allowed just 712 yards of rushing offense this season while the Cats lead the league in rushing with 1,021 yards.
QUARTERBACKS: San Benito QB Erick Retta leads District 32-6A with 896 yards with 12 passing touchdowns and a 69.5 completion percentage. Weslaco East’s Richard LeFevre, meanwhile, is ranked fifth in the league with 306 yards, one TD and a 57.1 completion percentage.
RUNNING BACKS: The Greyhounds’ running game is led by Tyrone Harper, who is averaging 6.7 yards per carry and has three TDs on the season, and Retta, who is an outstanding rushing quarterback. He is averaging 6.3 yards per carry and has four TDs. As for the Cats, their stable of running backs is led by J.C. Vargas, who is averaging a whopping 9.4 yards per carry with one score, Fabian Castro, who is averaging 5.3 yards per carry with three touchdowns, and Joshua Pedraza, who is averaging 6.3 yards and has five TDs.
RECEIVERS: San Benito’s Isaiah Trevino leads the ‘Hounds’ air attack. So far this season he’s hauled in 19 receptions for 369 yards, eight TDs and is averaging 19.4 yards per catch. Dante Zuniga is also an able receiver as he has caught 14 passes for 169 yards and a score, and Jesse Pena is also solid as he has 97 yards in four games on just 10 receptions. As for the Cats, they may not pass a lot but J.C. Vargas is a very capable wideout in addition to being a great running back. Vargas has hauled in six passes for 170 yards and a score.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. today at Bobby Morrow Stadium in San Benito.