By EDWARD SEVERN, Special to RGVSports.com
LA FERIA — The La Feria Lions played host to the Hidalgo Pirates with an undefeated district season and championship on the line, and prevailed 34-28 in the Lions’ dramatic regular-season finale Friday night.
Both teams love to run the ball and churned out big runs all night.
La Feria got the ball first as Hidalgo deferred. Big runs from Zion Dickerson and Aaron Trevino helped set up a 12-yard touchdown run by Trevino on third down. La Feria earned the 2-point conversion and took an 8-0 lead inside the first three minutes.
Enrique Trevino was the answer for Hidalgo, and they fed him often. His big runs set up a 10-yard touchdown pass by Steven Martinez, who found Daniel Carbajal in the end zone. Carbajal went up and got it over the La Feria defender, cutting the lead to 8-7.
Trevino threw an interception on the next drive, as Tadeo Lara was in the right place at the right time. The Lions looked to be setting up a screen, but the receiver never looked back and Lara was there for the pick.
With the good field position, the Pirates pounced. A 17-yard touchdown run by Hernandez gave the Pirates a 14-8 lead with a few seconds left in the first quarter.
Dickerson and Trevino provided more big runs as the Lions ran plays at a fast pace. The offensive line was working hard to get set after every play, as at times La Feria got two plays off in 15 seconds. Dickerson punched in a touchdown from 2 yards out. Less than two minutes after trailing the Pirates, the Lions regained a 15-14 lead.
“Day in day out. All four days of practice, we are ready to go to work, and it all comes out to show here at the end,” center and four-year letterwinner Orlando Morales Jr. said.
Said offensive line coach Daryl Gonzales, “It has been one of those things since Day 1, even towards the summer. It is something we instill into them, the tempo. It has to be at a certain pace, They know that they got to put in the work, and they answer the call. I am truly blessed to have this group of men. They perform every single day for me.”
The Lions forced the Pirates to punt and received a big fourth-down conversion by Trevino through the air. Trevino extended the Lions lead to 21-14 with an 8-yard run.
An interception by Elijah Vela stopped the Pirates from responding, and the Lions took that scoreline into halftime.
Hidalgo got the second half underway by feeding its workhorse, Hernandez. He was goven 10 carries on their opening drive of the second half. After a few quarterback sneak attempts, Martinez found the end zone and tied the game at 21. Hidalgo chewed eight minutes off the clock on the long drive.
A big return gave the Lions good field position at the Pirates’ 30-yard line, but the Lions turned it over on downs.
It was odd when Hidalgo opted to replace Martinez and Hernandez the next drive for Anthony Nava and A’dhron Zepeda, but it paid off. Zepeda capped off another great Hidalgo drive with a 7-yard touchdown to lead 28-21 lead with 7 minutes left in the game.
Trevino responded a minute and a half later, this time through the air. Trevino found Julian Torres for a 57-yard touchdown, fitting the ball perfectly in the window after Torres beat his man.
La Feria finally got a stop in the second half defensively. Safety EJ Serna lit up Hernandez on third down, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Hidalgo punted and pinned the Lions deep at their own 6-yard-line.
“They ran on us and we knew that they were gonna,” Lions coach Oscar Salinas said. “They have a great offensive system and we had to make some stops, and they made a great stop at the end.”
There was a whole lot of field in front of the Lions, and they had only about three minutes to do it. They did not need much time because Trevino made something happen again, this time going 92 yards. After dodging a couple of defenders early in the play, Trevino sprang free and took it to the house.
“Offensively, obviously Aaron (Trevino) is the heart and soul of this team, and he made a big play for us and we were able to come out with the victory,” Salinas said.
Said Trevino, “I have been a part of this squad for four years, I know what it is about. I am a playmaker, In times that we are down and tied, I believe that I can make a big play, and that is what I do for my team.”
The crowd, the players and the coaches went nuts, and the defense came out and stopped the Pirates to give La Feria the district championship.
“I feel really good tonight, it was a great game,” Salinas said. “A great high school Friday night football game. Hidalgo has a great team, and we just made one more play than them.”
La Feria will have the next week off. The bye comes at a great time before the Lions get ready for the playoffs.
“We need it, we have been a little banged up,” Salinas said. “We are going to get some rest, get healthy and hopefully get them all back for the playoffs.”