By ROY HESS The Brownsville Herald
PROGRESO — There are soccer memories that last a lifetime.
The Progreso Red Ants experienced one Saturday after going from the edge of defeat to winning their fifth annual tournament by prevailing against the Boerne High Greyhounds in the title match on an otherwise dreary day.
Nevermind the rain, wind, cool temperatures and muddy playing conditions on a natural grass field. The Red Ants were the ones celebrating in spite of the weather at the end.
It was an unlikely finish that followed a scenario rivaling anything Hollywood could ever produce.
Boerne High led 1-0 virtually the entire way until a goal by Progreso with 28 seconds left in regulation enabled the Red Ants to force a 1-1 tie and eventually win 5-4 in penalty kicks. The official result was a 2-1 victory for Progreso.
“It was a hard-fought game,” said Progreso coach Margarito Jimenez, whose team is trying to return to the UIL state tournament in Class 4A for the fourth straight year. “We just gave it everything we had. We were lucky enough to tie the game with less than a minute to go (in regulation), so we’re very happy about this result.
“Boerne is a very respectable team,” Jimenez added. “We’re just very honored to play against them.”
Boerne High won last year’s Progreso Tournament with a 1-0 victory against Brownsville St. Joseph, which won it the previous season in 2017. The last time the Red Ants won their tournament was 2016.
Tournament games Saturday were played with 30-minute halves instead of the usual 40 minutes. No overtime was played. Matches with the score tied after regulation went directly to penalties.
The Greyhounds, the only out-of-the-Valley participant in the three-day, 12-team event, scored barely six minutes into the championship match for a 1-0 lead on a shot from the right side about 20 yards away.
Boerne High was up to the task for the next 53 and a half minutes as the Greyhounds protected their 1-0 advantage with some strong defensive play.
But soccer is a game played until the final second expires, and just when the Red Ants needed him, sophomore midfielder/winger Ryan Garcia stepped up to become a hero for his team. When the ball came to him near the left post with a mass of players packed into the goalmouth during the final minute, Garcia somehow managed to nudge it past the goalkeeper and into the right corner of the net with 28 seconds remaining in regulation.
“I saw the ball was coming toward me, so I had to find a way to put it in,” Garcia said. “It was amazing (to score that goal). It feels great right now.”
As regulation play ended, the Red Ants knew there was still more work to be done.
The Greyhounds went first in the PKs, and the first four players for both teams made their attempts. The penalty try of the fifth player for the Greyhounds was knocked away by Progreso goalkeeper Arturo Gallegos.
“I was trying my best to stop everything, and that one felt great (after I blocked it out),” the senior goalkeeper said.
That meant the Red Ants would win if their next player in the PK order converted his attempt. The next one up was Marco Gallegos, the twin brother of Arturo who is a senior forward.
Although the Boerne High goalkeeper got a piece of Marco Gallegos’ PK try, it still went in and set off a wild, emotional celebration among the Progreso players, coaches and fans.
“I was kind of nervous when I was getting ready to kick it because I was getting some (bad) memories (of previous PK tries that didn’t go well),” Marco Gallegos said. “But I was (still) feeling confident that I was going to make it because I had just seen my brother stop the shot (on the previous attempt). I was thinking ‘Yeah, I’m going to make it. I can’t let my team down.’”
Also making their PK attempts for Progreso were Omar Gomez, Hugo Hinojosa, Miguel Puentes and Matthew Perez.
Earlier Saturday, Progreso qualified for the title match by edging Rio Grande City 8-7 in PKs during the semifinals. Boerne High advanced to the final by edging Zapata 5-4 in PKs during its semifinal.
Also Saturday, RGC won the third-place match 2-1 against Zapata.