By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
HARLINGEN — The Harlingen High Lady Cardinals picked up their biggest win of the year Thursday night, defeating rival Edinburg High to advance to their first Sweet 16 in eight years.
Senior Callie Cervantes scored the game-winning shot just before the buzzer. Cervantes said the Lady Cardinals are going to use the momentum and confidence they got from the victory to help them chase their third playoff win this week. Harlingen High will be battling perennial power Converse Judson at noon today in Alice in a Class 6A regional semifinal.
“It meant a lot that they trusted me to take that shot, that they wanted the ball in my hands,” Cervantes said. “I just saw everybody rushing toward me, they tackled me, it was crazy. It felt like a dream. To get this win and be able to go to the Sweet 16, especially for our coach since it’s her first time, it’s a big deal.”
As great as Thursday’s win was, the Lady Cardinals didn’t dwell on it too long. They got right back to work in preparation for the challenge ahead. Converse Judson is ranked No. 7 by the TABC and No. 4 by the TGCA. Harlingen High is No. 15 in the TABC poll and No. 7 in TGCA.
Judson is a bigger team than Harlingen High, so the Lady Cardinals are going to rely on their speed to get by defenders. Senior Sydney Portillo said the team isn’t worried about the limited prep time before the big game because it has been battling through that all week with the busy schedule. She credited the depth of the Lady Cardinals’ roster for being beneficial to keeping the team fresh throughout the week and season.
“We got to celebrate a bit, but we obviously had to get right back here and get to work because we’re not done yet,” Portillo said. “Judson’s a really good team, so we’re just going to have to fight on the court and see how everything works out. It’s been stressful, but we’re a good team and we have a deep bench so we have people to help us out. That’s what’s really helping us move further.”
Harlingen High coach Ashley Moncivaiz said developing a deep bench has been a key focus in the program for a couple of years. And while there are plenty of Lady Cardinals who come off the bench and put in crucial minutes, one of the consistent pieces each game is sophomore point guard Rosa Zapata. Moncivaiz also credited Cervantes and Portillo for evolving from role players to essential members of the squad.
“Rosa is our point guard, and I always tell her she’s an extension of me. She has to be the general, and she does a great job,” Moncivaiz said. “Callie has stepped up a lot being a senior, and she just leads in a different way. Sometimes she has to do the dirty work and get the matchups where it seems like (she’s at) a disadvantage, but she doesn’t see it like that. Sydney, she’s elevated her game. If she’s controlled, she can do anything offensively or defensively. She’s pesky on defense, and we need that.”
Tough matchups will be present when the Lady Cardinals face Judson’s size, but they’re not scared of what’s to come. Cervantes said the team is well aware of Judson’s reputation, but the Lady Cardinals “have a lot of pride in our team and our own tradition,” and the senior thinks that pride will help Harlingen High in today’s game.
The Lady Cardinals are going into Round 4 confident after showing what they can do on the big stage against Edinburg High. Moncivaiz said her team hasn’t come across an obstacle it can’t overcome yet, and it is going to compete as hard as ever when it takes the court against Judson.
“Everybody might’ve said, ‘Harlingen can’t do it,’ but we were able to do it. Why? Because we do it as a team and we keep competing,” Moncivaiz said. “It’s like I told the girls, I wanted them to understand that when I’m always pushing them at practice, it’s so they can see that all that hard work pays off. They were able to get that feeling, and they don’t want it to be over yet.
“I know our girls are ready for the challenge, because any challenge that they’ve faced they’ve always taken it head-on and we do it as a team,” she added. “They’re very competitive, they’ve got a lot of heart and they have the will to do anything if they put their mind to it. Each round, all season, they’ve never given up or looked at anything like a challenge. They look at it as, ‘Hey, we have to do this, so let’s go for it.’”