BY NATE KOTISSO | THE MONITOR
McALLEN — After dropping the first game 16-25 to McAllen Memorial, McAllen Rowe rallied to take the next three games 25-22, 25-23, 25-21 to stun the Mustangs faithful and claim the District 30-6A championship outright on Tuesday night.
The stakes were as high as they could be for a regular season match. Rowe and Memorial entered Tuesday with identical 10-1 district records, and the teams would decide the champion in the most serendipitous way possible.
“The girls came out here to play ball,” McAllen Rowe coach Magda Canales said. “We worked so hard in several different aspects of our game. We did everything in our power to throw them (Memorial) off their game. They’re a tremendous team, but our Warriors came out to fight. We fought through every point.”
The Mustangs (28-7, 10-2) had the home-court advantage, and its players fed off the crowd’s energy to lift them in game one. Tied at 14, Memorial went on an 11-2 run to take the game. Memorial had active feet on defense, and Rowe’s returns often went long.
Rowe junior outside hitter Jackelyn Alanis (35 kills, 24 digs, two assists, one block) recounted the discussion her coaches had with the team before the start of game two.
“We weren’t trusting each other, and we weren’t communicating well, either,” Alanis said. “Then we realized that we worked so hard to not come out here and lose. So we came back together even stronger than we ever have been to get this win.”
Not lost on Rowe was the first meeting between the two programs on Sept. 30. Memorial came into Rowe’s gym and emerged victorious in an emotional five-game slugfest, which then tied them with Rowe for first place in District 30-6A. That tie lasted until Tuesday night.
“There was talk about that game,” Canales said. “That game helped us to come together and work through adversity. We knew we were going to be down. We knew they were going to pound the ball and make plays. But what we had in our favor was the decision to stick together. Everybody had something to contribute tonight.”
The win for Rowe (32-7, 11-1) improved the team’s record to an impressive 4-1 combined against McAllen Memorial and McAllen High during the regular season.
“We’ve had some tri-city championship years or co-city championship years,” Canales said. “But every once in a while, one of us will pull away from the group. This rarely happens.”
Tuesday night’s win clinched the sixth district championship in school history. Not bad for a program that finished third a season ago.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Alanis said. “Everything we ever dreamed to accomplish came true tonight. We did this for our seniors, because we know they’re going to be leaving soon, and that’s going to be super sad. But we wanted to give them best year they could possibly have.”