BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
After dropping its first two games in Pool J of Division I, Sharyland Pioneer needed a win in its final pool game, against Dickinson, to have a chance to advance to Saturday’s 7-on-7 championship bracket. The Diamondbacks came through with a 33-27 victory over the Gators on Friday evening, but they still needed some help.
Abilene closed out Pool J competition with a win over The Colony, bumping the team’s record to a perfect 3-0 and leaving one spot in the championship bracket remaining for Pool J. Pioneer sat in a three-way tie for second place in pool play with Dickinson and The Colony at 1-2. The tiebreaker for second place was points scored. As fate would have it, Pioneer’s 92 points was the difference over Dickinson (86 points) and The Colony (82 points).
Now, with their first-ever state 7-on-7 victory in their back pocket, the Diamondbacks will compete in the championship bracket for the first time in school history today.
“It was a great feeling for our kids,” Sharyland Pioneer 7-on-7 coach Jordan Lee said. “Our kids can build on knowing that we came up here (to College Station), competed with the best, advanced to the championship and did something that no other Valley team was able to in our division.”
The Diamondbacks lost their first two games of pool play by a combined 9 points to The Colony and Abilene.
“We have a habit of starting slow in our first game, but once we start getting in a groove, we play much better in our second and third games,” Lee said. “Our second game against Abilene (34-33 loss in overtime) was a confidence booster going into our third game. And we were able to pull it off.”
Next up for Pioneer is Katy Cinco Ranch in the championship bracket at 9 a.m. today. All games will be held at the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station.
“In all the years of 7-on-7 dating back to 1999, a Valley team has made it to the second round of the championship bracket three different times,” Lee said. “We want to be that team that pushes the barrier further into that third or fourth game, so we can show the other teams up here what the Valley’s really about.”
Elsewhere in Division I, Mercedes began its day with a bang against Del Valle. The Ledesma twin combo proved to be too much for the opposing defense as Marc Ledesma hit his go-to target Matt Ledesma in stride for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. The Tigers routed the Cardinals 39-15.
In Game 2, Mercedes was tested against a quick and physical Timberview team. Mercedes jumped out to a 26-13 lead, but the Wolves managed to cut into the lead and eventually took a 27-25 advantage.
After that, the fireworks began, with both offenses answering each other in what ended up being an old-fashioned shootout. Marc Ledesma hit Ryan Reyes in the back of the end zone in the final minute to secure a 43-41 Tigers win.
Mercedes narrowly missed the championship bracket after falling to Montgomery on points, 62-61. The Bears ended up taking the second seed in Pool D, while the Tigers had to settle for the third spot. The Tigers will now play at 8 this morning against El Paso Coronado.
McAllen Rowe finished Pool A competition 0-3 with losses to Lake Travis, Coppell and Clear Brook. The Warriors will face off against Lubbock Coronado in the consolation bracket at 8 a.m. today.
Weslaco High dropped all three Pool M games by a combined 139-51. The Panthers will contend with Hutto in the consolation bracket at 8 this morning.
Edinburg North faced a similar 0-3 fate in Pool P play and will match up with Marshall in the consolation bracket at 8 a.m. today.
In Division II 7-on-7 action, Hidalgo finished 0-3 in Pool B and dropped its first and only consolation bracket game to Brock 40-28 on Friday.
Staff writer Kevin Narro contributed to this story.