The bi-district volleyball match between District 31-5A’s No. 3 seed, Sharyland Pioneer, and District 32-5A’s No. 2 seed, Edcouch-Elsa, was postponed and pushed back to 6 p.m. Saturday. The game was originally scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday but then delayed until 7:30 p.m. before it was rescheduled.
“We had a possible COVID issue,” Pioneer head coach Laura Cavazos said in a text to The Monitor. “For the safety of all players and coaches we wanted to make sure we thoroughly looked into the situation. We simply ran out of time as we worked through it today to make any decisions. We notified EE and they were kind enough to move the game to Saturday.”
Edcouch-Elsa head coach Gloria Treviño said her team was at their school since 1 p.m. Thursday, a tradition Treviño said the team has before traveling for a playoff match, as coaches hand out t-shirts and they go through other traditional preparations. They were planning to stop at a chapel on the way to the match, where a deacon would share a blessing upon the team, another longstanding tradition.
“They called us about (COVID-19) testing and the safety precautions,” Treviño said. “The girls were ready to play. They really wanted to play and just ended up waiting.
“There was no way to play Friday, or Saturday morning, because of my mom’s funeral and arrangements,” said Treviño, whose mom died earlier in the week. “So we said Saturday at 6 p.m. That’s where we are at right now.”
McALLEN MEMORIAL SWEEPS
The Mustangs remained unbeaten on the season with a three-set sweep over Donna High, 25-11, 25-8, 25-16.
Senior Jocelyn Fernandez registered 12 kills and three aces to lead the District 31-5A champions. Freshman Amare Hernandez added 10 kills, while Jacky Treviño had 19 assists and senior libero Cori Talamantez collected a pair of aces and 19 digs.
“I worry about playoffs because the playoffs are what is expected here in McAllen, so I worry that it may not be as special and we talked about that today,” Memorial head coach Ashley Doffing said. “I pray that every win and opportunity is appreciated and with Thanksgiving week it’s fitting to be thankful for the season and everything.”
Memorial will play Gregory Portland at 2 p.m. Tuesday at McAllen Memorial. Gregory Portland defeated La Joya Palmview on Thursday.
“Not having the opportunity to have a preseason, we weren’t able to see these postseason opponents,” Doffing said. “But we will start working to get ready for them.”
In other bi-district matches Thursday, Victoria West defeated Mission Veterans, 25-19, 25-23, 25-15, Gregory Portland spoiled La Joya Palmview’s first trip to the playoffs, 25-10, 25-11, 25-9.
and Harlingen High overcame a two-set deficit to down Edinburg North, 22-25, 17-25, 25-23, 25-23, 15-5.