By STEFAN MODRICH | Staff Writer
Brownsville Veterans Memorial girls basketball coach Arnold Torres understood the opportunity in front of him when he became the head coach after a brief stint working alongside decorated boys coach Larry Gibson.
After picking up his first win at the helm of the Lady Chargers (1-0), a 45-16 rout of Weslaco East, Torres, who was previously the coach at Pace, expressed a great deal of confidence in Brownsville Veterans’ infrastructure as he embarks on his first season with the program.
“The girls have already had great tradition in the past years,” Torres said. “The coaches before me have done a good job building that foundation. I’m trying not to mess it up. I’m trying to add a few things that might benefit us.”
Indications of what the Torres era might portend came in bunches against the Lady Wildcats (0-1). The Lady Chargers’ coach said he was pleased with his team’s speed in advancing the ball up the court to make up for a relative lack of height. He was also impressed by the defensive pressure his players applied.
Cati Esquivel’s hustle was one such element of an identity that Torres hopes the rest of his team will emulate.
Torres said Esquivel’s role for Brownsville Veterans is often similar to the one Dennis Rodman for several teams as a tough and scrappy enforcer and rebounder.
“She has a good nose for the ball,” Torres said. “She does a really good job rebounding. She always knows where the ball is going, and she gives us a presence inside. She gets a lot of her boards off of offensive rebounds. Having her down there allows our girls to be a little more aggressive attacking the basket.”
Esquivel and Elizabeth Garza led all scorers with 11 points. Alyssa Esquivel had nine points, and Alexandra Parchmont had six points for the Lady Chargers (1-0).
After a low-scoring first quarter in which the home team got out to a 10-6 lead following a 7-2 run, Brownsville Veterans began to pull away as early as the 2:29 mark of the second quarter when Alexa Torres found Garza in transition for a layup that gave the Lady Chargers a 16-6 lead.
Garza swished a three in the corner off of an inbounds pass with less than three seconds to play in the second quarter to give Brownsville Veterans a 25-8 advantage heading into the locker room at halftime.
Torres stole an inbounds pass and finished with a reverse layup to stretch the Lady Chargers’ lead to 35-9 with two minutes to go in the third quarter.
The play prompted a Weslaco East timeout, and shortly thereafter Lady Wildcats coach Jesse Plecker substituted his entire starting five in favor of the second unit.
Brownsville Veterans led 39-9 after three quarters, and limited Weslaco East to three points in the second and third quarters combined. The Lady Chargers outscored the Lady Wildcats 20-8 in the second half. Brownsville Veterans made four of its eight free throw attempts and Weslaco East was 2 of 6 from the charity stripe.
“Another thing that I liked today is that we made the extra pass when we had to,” Torres said. “That’s a good sign and we’re playing team ball right now.”
Garza and Esquivel’s stifling defense obstructed passing lanes and created turnovers which led to several easy buckets in transition.
“I think we did a good job defensively,” Torres said. “We have several girls who are athletic and focused on the defensive side, and I think that’s going to be good for us in the long run.”
The Lady Chargers were equally fearsome in the halfcourt, as centers Annah Trevino and Valentina Mar locked down the Lady Wildcats in the paint and allowed few easy looks from close range.
Amber Saucedo led the way for Weslaco East with seven points. Janelle Tanguma had three points and Sammantha Jasso chipped in two points for the Lady Wildcats.