BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
HIDALGO — PSJA High freshman Kaylah Hernandez may have a sense of humor, but she is all business on the basketball court.
“Coach (Nelly Treviño) has helped us out a lot, getting mad at me especially,” Hernandez said sarcastically. “She pushes me to my limit and has guided me all the way.”
“We’ve got a good mix of players,” Treviño said. “We’ve got four seniors and freshmen like Kaylah (Hernandez), who we’re trying to work in. She’s a strong girl, super athletic and fast. We’re trying to mold her into what we need her to be. She listens and gives 100 percent all the time and you can’t coach or teach that. It’s something that comes from within her. The girls have really taken to her. She’s definitely going to be big for us.”
Hernandez was PSJA High’s top scorer with 13 points. Eight other Bear players scored at least one field goal in PSJA’s 56-40 win Saturday at Valley View.
The Bears won the game on the offensive glass, creating second, third and sometimes fourth shot opportunities against the Tigers.
“That was a big positive for us,” Treviño said. “We work on rebounding all the time. We had a good gameplan coming in and the girls did a really good job adjusting to their game. They’re executing everything that we go over in practice. They haven’t even hit their stride yet.”
Hernandez had a scoreless first quarter, but she scored seven in the second period. Her last bucket came on a successful old-fashioned 3-point play. Senior Dee Galvan scored nine points while another underclassman, sophomore Talia Gomez, chipped in with eight points for PSJA.
As the Bears continued to box out, the Tigers’ deficit ballooned to 15 at the half and eventually topped out at 21 halfway through the fourth quarter.
“We’ve dealt with a ton of injuries and players out,” Valley View coach Arnold Martinez said. “Our starting point guard (Lexi Ortegon) and two of our defensive specialists are out. We’re throwing two starters and some inexperienced players out there. Hopefully we’ll have some of those girls back on Dec. 8 when district play starts. We’re trying to weather the storm right now.”
PSJA High competed in the NCAA Platinum Bracket of the 2018 Border Brawl/Border Bash Challenge hosted at McAllen High and Valley View. The Bears got by San Benito to set up the Platinum Bracket championship game against rival PSJA North, which would have coincidentally been Nov. 17 inside Valley View’s main gymnasium.
“It’s a big rivalry with them and they’re always a strong team,” Treviño said. “My girls are up and coming. Our team’s hashtag is #rise. Our seniors have had two different coaches before me, so last year was about what we were going to try and do. They’re an amazing group of girls. I’m very proud of where we are right now. I’m sure there’s a lot more positive that’ll come out from this season.”