BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
LAREDO — The Edinburg Vela SaberCats had already lost their game on Saturday before they even made a shot.
As much as the SaberCats tried, they couldn’t quite close the gap that the Del Rio Rams opened early. The Rams won 74-57 in a Class 6A area round game at Texas A&M International. Senior guard Julian Lomas led the Rams with 30 points.
“(Del Rio) shot well in the first half. That’s one thing,” Vela coach David Keith said. “We were able to kind of catch up a little bit when they didn’t hit their shots. I think our defense picked up a little bit, and we were able to cut it to eight. I guess we came out a little flat. Shots weren’t falling. We missed some free throws, missed some layups early on. That put us in a hole, and once you have to climb out of a hole in a playoff game, it’s going to be tough. Credit to that team. They get after it, they hustle, and they play hard.”
Del Rio caught Vela off guard to start the game, and the Rams had a 10-0 lead before the SaberCats knew what hit them.
“I think we just weren’t ready for the speed and physicality of their game,” senior guard Trey Chavana said. “They were very tough defensively, and they got on you very fast.”
Vela needed time to recover, and at the end of the first quarter, the SaberCats still trailed 19-5.
“We were the better team, they just wanted it more,” junior center Noah Sekinger said. “Especially in that first quarter. That was the difference in the game.”
Vela started a run with a Chavana layup at 5:43 of the second quarter. By halftime, Del Rio’s lead was down to 10.
The second half, though, wasn’t as forgiving for Vela.
Vela trimmed the lead to eight points with just less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Rams answered with three straight 3-pointers, and by the time Vela scored again, the SaberCats were down by 14 points with two minutes left in the quarter.
In a lot of ways, Saturday’s game mirrored the SaberCats’ season.
Vela entered the year without a lot of hype or momentum.
“We had, like, a shaky start,” junior guard Josh Diaz said. “We were just getting to know coach’s system and getting to know how to play with each other. At first, we didn’t trust in the system. It wasn’t working. We weren’t clicking. And then, we started to trust him. The chemistry started to grow. We started to get on a roll.”
And just as with Saturday’s game, the SaberCats ultimately came up short at the end.
They had the talent and skill to win the District 31-6A title, but a home loss to Edinburg High put them in a tough spot. Vela went from favorites, to outside the playoff picture, to one of the Valley’s best chances to put together a good playoff run, but Del Rio put an end to that.
“From last year, when we got disqualified, we have come a long way,” junior guard Aziel Garcia said. “With players coming in from different sports, it has been a struggle. We had some problems internally that we had to overcome. But with the young guys that we have and the players coming back, you will just have to wait and see how good we can be.”
When Keith began his first season at Vela this year, he had a team that was divided and still getting comfortable playing together. More than the wins or losses, Keith is excited about what his team learned and how the group developed.
“We might get fired up, start saying things loudly, hoping that shots go in or this or that, but in all honesty, this is a game,” Keith said. “These kids get to grow up through an awesome game. That’s a lot of fun to watch. It’s hard for kids to grow up, period. It’s hard for you and I to grow up, so to watch them have to go through it and be a part of it, I am proud of them.”
Despite all of the growing pains, the SaberCats have a lot to be excited about. The excitement starts with sophomore Austin Garza, the younger brother of former Edinburg Vela standout and The Monitor’s 2017 All-Area Player of the Year Ryan Garza.
“He’s the heart and soul. He played tough,” Keith said. “That’s what he has given us all year long, is 100 percent of what he’s got, in practice, film sessions, everything we do. He is a wonderful, coachable kid who loves to play hard. He’s got a lot of room to grow. Which is a good problem to have.”
“Austin is a very smart player,” Sekinger added. “He does a lot of the little things. Some people are afraid to dive on the ball, box out, get in the post and be really tough. That’s one of the things we like about him. That’s why we have him start, too, because he’s smart, hustles on defense, he listens, and he knows what to do in a lot of tough situations.”
The SaberCats also boast a talented junior crop consisting of Diaz, Sekinger, Garcia and guard Nathan Gomez.
“Sky is the limit for them,” Keith said. “They are an amazing group of kids. Tough season, and I’ll tell you what, they certainly turned it around in the second half and did some things to be proud of.”
“Next year, we will be a lot better,” Sekinger added. “We have a lot of guys returning — a lot of younger guys who will be juniors and seniors. We will all be bigger stronger, smarter, better players. I think you should expect a lot of good things from us over the next few years.”