FALFURRIAS — With the game hanging in the balance and the clock winding down, Edinburg Vela senior Emma Lucio drove to the basket hard, forcing three Corpus Christi Flour Bluff defenders to follow.
Lucio then wrapped a pass around the defenders to find an open Karsyn Hackerott.
“I knew I had to find one of my open teammates,” Lucio said. “I looked, I saw her, I gave it to her and I hoped for the best. She pulled through for us, she pulled through.”
Hackerott had time to line up her shot and she banked it in to give the SaberCats a 42-39 lead with less than one minute left to help seal a Class 5A area-round victory for the SaberCats, the first in program history.
“That is something you dream about as a basketball player,” Hackerott said. “I have always been here to help my team. I have been a big role player all my years, and to hit a shot like that — to show people I can do something big, too — is huge for me. I am just happy we won.”
The SaberCats still had some defending to do. Flour Bluff had two possessions to sink either a 3-pointer or drive to the basket for two and hope Edinburg Vela missed its free throws. But the Hornets’ inability to pull the trigger from deep and tight defense saw out the win.
“It feels tremendous, but we are not done yet,” Edinburg Vela head coach Lottie Zarate said. “Our girls busted their butts out there, and they played tough defense.”
Both teams went on runs in the third quarter. Edinburg Vela struck first with an 8-0 run started by Janai Coleman’s quick five points. Flour Bluff answered with a 12-0 run that finished with a buzzer-beater to give the Hornets a 32-30 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Lucio gave Edinburg Vela its first lead of the game with a beautiful, step-back 3-pointer. Flour Bluff answered to tie with a bucket down low — a common theme for the Hornets during the first half. Flour Bluff passed on many easy looks around the perimeter, opting for sophomore Maggie Croft in the low block.
“We understood that their go-to player was (Croft), she is a heck of a player,” Zarate said. “Hats off to Flour Bluff, they came tonight wanting it just as much as we did. I am just so happy for my kids for pulling it through and staying composed.”
The SaberCats overcame an early 7-2 deficit with their UTSA commit on the bench in foul trouble. Back-to-back layups by sophomore Ava Tovar and Coleman quick reduced the Flour Bluff lead.
“I do it to myself,” Lucio said. “I start getting a little out of hand on my defense and I suffer the consequences by sitting on the bench, but I knew I had to calm down and fight for my team because we needed this win.”
The Edinburg Vela win assures at least one team from the Valley is headed to the fourth round. Brownsville Veterans Memorial knocked out Victoria East 55-50 in overtime to set up a third-round meeting between the Chargers and SaberCats.
“It is good for the Valley,” Zarate said. “Brownsville Vets does a great job, (coach Arnold Torres) does a great job with his kids. It is good for the Valley that we are still standing.”