FREDDY GONZALEZ | Staff Writer
HARLINGEN — There were smiles all around Friday evening at the Harlingen gymnasium as Mike Arellano and Reece Ortega helped the Harlingen Cardinals secure their first district win of the season.
Arellano scored 25 points and Ortega added another 12, and the duo helped the Cardinals beat San Benito 61-53 in District 32-6A action and snap a four-game losing skid in the process.
“The kids came out in the second half and played a lot better after playing the first half a little sloppy,” said Harlingen head coach Greg Yates. “It’s a rival game and you always want to win these.
“It’s like (Aaron) Rodgers said over at Green Bay, ‘We just have to win one to get on a roll.’”
Yates was referring to the fourth week of the NFL season, when Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers said, “You just feel like it just takes one. We get one (win) under our belts, things might start rolling for us and we can run the table.”
Harlingen will be hoping to get on a Packers-like run over the next few weeks. However, the schedule for the Cardinals doesn’t get much easier. The Cardinals’ next five games include crosstown rivals Harlingen South, Brownsville Rivera, Weslaco, Weslaco East and Los Fresnos.
Nevertheless, Yates is hoping the second half momentum from this win carries over to the next game.
After a tight first half that saw Harlingen lead 28-27, the Cardinals used a 14-8 third-quarter scoring run to put some distance between them and the ’Hounds, and take a 42-35 lead heading into the final period.
In the fourth, Harlingen’s Arellano netted 10 of his game-high 25 points, going 8 of 8 from the free-throw line. Both teams repeatedly spent time at the line as a total of 32 free throws were taken in the period.
Despite the win, the biggest victory of the night for the Cards came when longtime head coach Yates returned to the court after having surgery at the beginning of the season.
“It feels nice being back,” said a smiling Yates. “I still feel a little sore from having two brand-new knees, but I’m still getting use to it and my knees are kind of soar, but it is fun to be back.”
For the Greyhounds, Nick Lucio led the team with 18 points, Ryan Reza added 16 points and Jacob Sauceda contributed 12.
The loss dropped San Benito to 1-4 in league play with much of the district schedule still ahead. And much like Harlingen’s schedule, San Benito’s is far from easy.
The Greyhounds will host Los Fresnos on Tuesday before playing Weslaco East, Brownsville Rivera, Harlingen South and Brownsville Hanna.