By MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer
The Lopez Lady Lobos knew they would have to be the aggressors if they were to survive and advance past the Sharyland High Lady Rattlers.
The Lady Lobos rose to the occasion behind goals from Zayra Esquivel during the first half and Myrka Garcia in the second to dismiss the Lady Rattlers 2-0 in bi-district play Friday night at Lopez.
Lopez coach Alejandro Macias said he knew his team needed to keep the heat on the Sharyland High defense and felt his team showed that it was built to do just that.
“I was really impressed with the girls,” Macias said. “We knew it was going to be really intense and that Sharyland has a really good team. We knew that we had to have high pressure, which is what the girls did; we have good shooters.
“I just want to thank the school district for having these events and exposing our kids this way,” Macias added. “They keep succeeding, pushing up, and it’s just great to have the school district provide this for them.”
Lopez will move on to the area playoffs and face Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial. Sharyland High sees its season end early after finishing second in District 31-5A, but loses just three seniors in the process.
Lady Rattlers coach Mario Ribera said his team’s youth just couldn’t match Lopez’s strength in the end.
“We only had three seniors, and most of our squad are freshmen and sophomores,” he said. “That’s a part of the game. Sometimes you want to win, and it’s just not possible. I think the girls gave everything they had, but unfortunately, we weren’t able to move the ball the way we do. Lopez pressured us all over the field, and they were the better team tonight.”
While the Lady Lobos threatened the Lady Rattlers’ side of the field, they misfired on a couple of clean shots as Sharyland High goalkeeper Ana De La Torre made three first-half saves.
It wasn’t until the 5:55 mark of the first half that Esquivel chased down the ball off a right corner kick and booted the ball into the back of the net from a couple of yards out on her way to the ground.
That gave Lopez a 1-0 lead and a sense of relief.
“That really changed the game because we weren’t necessarily relaxed, but we were able to move players around with our starting team,” Macias said. “We were able to start pushing more players. It gives you a little bit of relief, but it wasn’t really until the end that we could relax.”
After the half, Lopez’s Samantha Valdez took a pair of open shots on goal, only to see the first miss and the next one get stopped by De La Torre 20 seconds later on a diving save.
Garcia put the game on ice at the 20:54 mark, as she followed the ball and got behind the defense for a clear shot about 20 yards out for the 2-0 lead.