By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

PORT ISABEL — Patience paid off for the Rio Hondo Lady Bobcats on Friday night.

Trailing by three runs in the final inning, Rio Hondo (8-2, 2-0 in District 32-4A) tallied five runs during the top of the seventh to defeat the Port Isabel Lady Tarpons 7-5.

After a single and a strikeout led off the seventh, the Lady Tarpons (7-4, 1-1) held a 5-2 lead and were two outs away from victory. But Katherine Nieto — Rio Hondo’s No. 9 hitter — stepped to the plate and blasted an RBI triple to start the comeback.

The next three Lady Bobcats batters recorded hits. First, Jenny Flores singled to score Nieto, thenAnnie Alvarez reached on a double. With two on and still one out, Alexa Castellanos drove in Flores and Alvarez with a single to give Rio Hondo the lead.

Two batters later, Tianna Sandoval added one more run on a single, and upon the completion of the inning, P.I. was down to its final three outs.

“They just found our pitcher’s rhythm and started putting the ball in play, and we made a few errors to help out a bit,” Port Isabel coach Jesus Garza said.

The Lady Tarpons began their half of the seventh quickly, giving up two outs when Gillian Garza stepped to the dish.

Garza proceeded to reach base unconventionally via a strikeout. The Lady Bobcats began celebrating after the initial swing and miss, but the ball was not caught and Rio Hondo failed to complete the play.

Marina Wise-Herring was next up and attempted to capitalize on her team’s good fortune with a single. But with the tying runner on, Natasha Ramirez grounded out to the pitcher to solidify the Lady Bobcats’ comeback.

“We knew we were due. We had to prove that we’re the best team in the district,” Rio Hondo coach Brett Esparza said. “This is a great opponent early on, and we knew this was going to have big implications down the road. We want to stay ahead of the logjam that’s about to happen in our district.

“It’s a great win for our kids, a great program win. For us to come out and go down by as many as four and to keep having to fight to battle back, it says a lot about the character of our kids.”

The Lady Tarpons wasted no time establishing an early lead. Alex Martinez reached base on a walk to lead off their half of first and scored after Victoria Cantu drove her in following a triple to right field.

Cantu then scored when Cecily Niles hit a sacrifice ground ball to shortstop to give the Lady Tarpons an early 2-0 lead.

Port Isabel continued to pile on offense when it added three more runs, including a home run by Amy Colunga in the fourth that prompted a pitching change by Esparza.

Flores, who had pitched 4 1/3 innings, was replaced by Miranda Martinez. Martinezheld Port Isabel scoreless for the remainder of the game, allowing four baserunners.

“(Jenny) just wasn’t hitting her spots,” Esparza said. “She does a great job, she’s battle tested and carried us in the playoffs last year. Both girls have a chance to come out and be our ace, and I thought it would the best matchup for us to throw Jenny. But she was having trouble hitting her spots and they got some big hits early.

“We had Miranda warming up the whole time, and she said, ‘I’m ready, coach,’ and we put her in and she stepped up to the plate.”

Meanwhile, Rio Hondo’s bats, which had been silent during the first half of the contest, awoke in the fifth when they recorded their first runs as Amanda Torres and Nieto scored.

Despite allowing late runs and ultimately surrendering the lead and the game, Garza was pleased with the way his team performed. He would like to see more of a complete body of work in the future.

“We played well,” he said. “We’ve just got to work on finishing as a team and keeping the energy up. And that’s what I told them, we need to keep the energy up throughout and don’t give them a second chance.”

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Hanna Lady Golden Eagles opened district play with a 5-0 loss to the San Benito Lady Greyhounds at home at the hands of pitcher Crystal Castillo, who threw a 17-strikeout no-hitter.

The loss comes as a reminder to Hanna coach Rey Lerma that if he’s going to coach his team to a playoff position, he’s going to have to do so against stern competition.

“We’ve got some tough teams in our district with a lot of tradition and loyalty,” Hanna coach Rey Lerma said. “You’ve got the San Benitos who’ve been to the state tournament, Los Fresnos and Harlingen South. Those are the games that we need to go out and play at the top level, because those are the teams that we need to really focus on.”

The Lady Golden Eagles, along with the rest of District 32-6A, will take one week off and next play Tuesday.

“Our district is tough and we have to go out and dominate, and that’s what we have to work on,” Lerma said. “Hopefully we can put this one behind us and look forward to next Tuesday against Harlingen.”

DISTRICT OPENERS

Another team expected to finish near the top of the district made its mark in its district-opener.

The Los Fresnos Lady Falcons — who lost to the Lady Greyhounds in the 2014 postseason — routed the Lopez Lady Lobos 17-0 in four innings.

“We did a good job, we made a couple errors, but nothing that really cost us,” Los Fresnos coach Traci Blackman said about the win. “Our pitcher did a good job. We had bases loaded, one out, and she struck out the next two batters. We hit the ball well, and we ran the bases well. Overall, we played a good game.”

The Lady Falcons will face a tough challenge early in the district season when they travel to San Benito to face the Lady Greyhounds at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“They have a very tough pitcher, but if we can wait for the pitches we need to we should be OK,” Blackman said. “They beat us in the third round of the playoffs last year and that was our problem, but I think we’ve learned since then.”

COMING UP

Elsewhere in softball, all District 32-5A teams begin their march to the postseason Friday.

The Pace Lady Vikings begin their district campaign by traveling to Mercedes to take on the Tigers, and the Porter Cowgirls play host to Donna North. Both games begin at 7 p.m.

DISTRICT BASEBALL

The District 32-6A baseball season starts Tuesday, with all games beginning at 7 p.m.

The Hanna Golden Eagles again will look to earn a postseason berth, and they’ll start by playing host to the San Benito Greyhounds. The Los Fresnos Falcons will try to make it back to the playoffs, opening district by playing host to the Lopez Lobos.

The Rivera Raiders will attempt to best last season’s campaign, starting off with a home game against the Harlingen High Cardinals, and Brownsville Veterans Memorial kicks off the district season on the road when the Chargers face the Harlingen South Hawks.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Lady Greyhounds kicked off the District 32-6A season in style.

San Benito’s Crystal Castillo pitched a no-hitter, striking out 17 of the 22 batters she faced as she aided in a 5-0 shutout of the Hanna Lady Golden Eagles on Tuesday at Hanna.

“Crystal’s our stud. It’s automatic,” San Benitocoach Elias Rodriguez said. “We know she’s going to pitch a great game, it’s just a matter of helping her out offensively.”

The first nine Lady Eagles to step to the plate were strikeout victims, which allowed San Benito to gain and secure an early lead.

“Who I sent up to the plate were my 10 best hitters, because I know (Castillo is) a real tough pitcher,” Hanna coach Rey Lerma said. “We’ve faced her in the past, and she’s just blessed with a lot of ability. I knew it was going to be a hard contest.”

The winning run was scored by DD Padilla during the top of the second. Padilla reached on a walk, stole second base and made it home on a single by Mel Gonzalez.

The Lady Greyhounds added to their lead during the third when Alexxis Cavazos drove in Kimberly Harper with a single.

It was during the fourth inning, though, that San Benito distanced itself. Back-to-back singles by Ali Huerta and Audrey Huerta preceded a fielding error by Hanna, which allowed two runners to score.

Later that inning, Gonzalez tallied the Lady Greyhounds’ fifth and final run of the game after a team error in which a trio of Lady Eagles watched a ball fall between them.

“We’re a young ballclub, but I feel like we’ve got talented people on the ballclub,” Lerma said. “Our pitcher pitched well enough where we could have been in the ballgame a little better. We let too many leadoff hitters get on base. That’s something we need to curb, and not many of their runs were earned runs.”

Offensively, Hanna’s struggles lasted the entirety of the contest.

Of the first 19 batters who faced Castillo, three put the ball in play but none made it beyond the infield.

With one out during the bottom of the seventh, Hanna’s first and only baserunner reached on an error. But Castillo forced a popup to second base and capped the game with yet another strikeout.

“I’m pleased with the way we played opportunistic ball,” Rodriguez said. “I was pleased with the way we took advantage of some situations.

“Overall, this being a district ballgame, I was pleased with the way we played offensively and defensively. We’re back in 32-6A this year, so we’re glad we’re getting to renew our old opponents and our old friendships.”

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Port Isabel Tarpons again play host to the Tarpon Relays today.

The event has been held at the school since 2008.

Along with host Port Isabel, schools competing on the girlsside include Hanna, Rivera, Los Fresnos, St. JosephAcademy, Progreso, Raymondville, Rio Hondo, Valley View, Harlingen High, Grulla, La Feria, Harlingen South, Porter, Donna North, Lyford and Hidalgo.

The field events for all competitors are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m., and the 3,200-meter run starts at 9:30 a.m. The remaining running events will start at 1 p.m.

The Lady Tarpons are coming off a win at the Sams Relays on Feb. 21 and will look to win again. They also are the defending champions of the Tarpon Relays and will attempt to defend their title.

“We’re going to have to come out and compete and put a lot of points out there,” Lady Tarpons coach Julie Breedlove said. “If they come out and do their thing the way they did last weekend and the week before last, we’ll have a shot.”

Gabby Torres and Daniela Murchison won multiple events last week and likely will be key factors in today’s competition. Torres won the high jump and the long jump, and Murchison won the discus throw and the shot put.

Breedlove did say, though, that Simone Harry is someone else who could have an impact.

Harry will be running in the 200, the 200 relay and the 1,600 relay, which will consist of teammates Torres, Natalie Garza and Alex Martinez.

The Tarpons’ boysteam competed last week at La Feria and will look to improve on its showing under second-year coach Ryan Stanage.

“We’re young, and we’re still looking for a lot of pieces to put in place,” Stanage said. “We’re a long way from being where we need to be.

“I’d like to see some season bests in our field events. I’d like to see the throwers get to where they need to be.”

Competing for the boys will be Hanna, Porter, St. Joseph, Progreso, Raymondville, Rio Hondo, Valley View, Harlingen High, Harlingen South, Grulla, La Feria, Hidalgo, Donna North, Santa Rosaand Lyford.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Hanna Golden Eagles are headed to the area round, where they’ll face the McAllen High Bulldogs at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Hanna.

The Eagles earned a trip to the second round after defeating the Edinburg North Cougars on Monday. They were in jeopardy of losing their bi-district game ̶ trailing with just more than five minutes to go ̶ when they took control and won by double digits.

If Hanna is going to advance one round further, coach Todd Barckholtz wants to see a better overall showing from his team.

“We’re still trying to get our best 32 minutes,” he said after the game Tuesday. “In spurts we looked good in the first quarter, we struggled in the second and we found it at the end. As long as we find enough at the end, we’ll keep moving on.”

The Bulldogs, out of District 30-6A, defeated Del Rio 56-43 in their opening-round game.

FALCONS FLYING HIGH

The Los Fresnos Falcons are slated to face the Laredo United Longhorns in the area round at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Corpus Christi Carroll.

The Falcons rallied late to defeat the PSJA North Raiders 54-47 on Tuesday night. It wasn’t until the majority of the game had passed before Los Fresnos pulled ahead.

Similarly to the Eagles’ coach, Falcons coach Marco Hinojosa realizes that if his team doesn’t iron out some problems, it won’t be moving on.

“If we play like this, we will not win an area-round game,” Hinojosa said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do. It’s our first playoff win in a very long time so they had a big monkey on their back. I think that pressure’s off of them now, and they know that they can go and do it. They’ll play better come area round.”

The Falcons’ upcoming opponent is from District 29-6A and defeated McAllen Rowe in the bi-district round.

BOWING OUT

Three Metro-area teams lost in the opening round of the playoffs.

The Brownsville Veterans Memorial Chargers, who finished in fourth place in District 32-6A, were beaten 57-52 on Tuesday by the Weslaco High Panthers.

The Pace Vikings, who finished in second place in District 32-5A, were defeated 65-32 on Tuesday by Mission Veterans Memorial.

In District 32-3A, the Brownsville IDEA Frontier Chargers lost their bi-district game 68-39 on Monday to Santa Gertrudis.

’HOUNDS IN ACTION

The St. Joseph Academy Bloodhounds begin their TAPPS playoff run at 4:30 p.m. Friday against Addison Trinity Christian at A&M Consolidated in College Station.

The Bloodhounds finished in third place in their district with a 17-11 overall record and 1-5 record in district.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Los Fresnos Falcons pounced on their opportunity late in their bi-district game against the PSJA North Raiders on Tuesday night in Los Fresnos.

When the Raiders’ top threat down low and leading scorer Romeo Williams fouled out with 7:05 remaining in the final quarter, the Falcons surged to a 54-47 win.

After having started their comeback late in the third, the Falcons trailed 40-37 at the time of Williams’ fifth foul.

“The difference in the ball game was Romeo Williams coming out,” Los Fresnos coach Marco Hinojosa said. “He was a monster inside,we had no answer for him. When he fouled out I told the kids, ‘This is our chance to do what we do.’

“It was a very good game by two very good teams that could’ve gone either way.”

The Falcons took their first lead since the first quarter just minutes later on a Jose Mansilla bucket with 4:03 remaining in the game, and Los Fresnos outscored PSJA North 10-4 the remainder of the contest.

The Raiders’ Danny Torres hit a pair of free throws to pull his team to within one at 48-47, but the Falcons’ Jordan Urbina and Andrew Carrizales went a perfect 6 of 6 from the charity stripe to seal the victory.

“When (Williams) fouled out, it took us out of everything we could do set-wise,” PSJA North coach Jaime Gongora said. “We were running our sets, we were getting the shots we wanted, but once we got out of our set we forced a couple of shots.”

Williams acquired his fourth foul with 1:12 remaining in the third, and Gongora considered benching him to save him until late but decided to try to put the game away.

“We were going to try to break the game open,” Gongora said. “If we would’ve gone up 14 or 16, I would’ve pulled him out. It’s unfortunate but we were going to play to win, we weren’t going to be conservative.”

The Raiders were in control most of the game, doing a heavy amount of damage during the latter stages of the second quarter.

After neither team had scored until the 5:50 mark of the second, PSJA North went on a 10-4 run to extend its lead to 10 points at 24-14, its largest lead of the game.

Los Fresnos fought to stay in contention until late in the third when it started to pour on the points. Carrizales hit a 3 and Alex Garcia scored his seventh point of the quarter to begin the Falcons’ comeback.

“I’m not too sure we belong on the court with a lot of teams, but our kids’ heart, their effort is unmatched,” Gongora said. “I can’t be prouder than any group that I’ve coached. They gave us every ounce of energy,and what more can you ask for?”

Garcia led the Falcons with 14 points, and Hugo De La Cruz added 12. Williams and Torres combined for the Raiders’ lead in points with 11 apiece.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Hanna Golden Eagles and Edinburg North Cougars were locked in a tumultuous game during which each team was in charge at times.

It was the Eagles who found their groove during the final minutes, outpacing the Cougars 53-43 during a bi-district game Monday night at Weslaco East.

After having not yet scored during the final quarter, Hanna trailed 34-33 and Eagles coach Todd Barckholtz called a timeout with 5:45 remaining. The Eagles responded as Alex Herrera hit a floater to give his team the lead out of the timeout, and they didn’t look back.

Herrera led the Eagles’ final run with seven points. Gabe Martinez added a pair of 3-pointers, Ed Messbarger scored four points, Andy Lopez made two free throws, and Adrian Barron capped the run with a breakaway layup.

“We made a bucket to get the lead, thenour defense forced them into about three or four 16- or 17-foot shots with a hand in their face,” Barckholtz said. “If they knock those down, we shake their hands, but that’s the shot we want them to take. We boxed out and didn’t give them the second and third chances like we’ve kind of done the last few weeks. Our leaders led, and the other guys followed the leaders and did their job.”

Hanna proceeded to score 21 points — opposed to the Cougars’ nine — during the final quarter by shooting 7 of 7 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line.

The Eagles led last, but each side had a turbulent trip throughout the contest.

When the game started, the Eagles scored 13 points during a five-minute stretch and finished the opening quarter with a 15-7 lead.

However, Edinburg North answered in the second when Hanna hit a scoring drought. The Cougars took advantage by scoring 14 points during the final 4:29 of the half to take a 24-21 lead.

“We were up and down,” Edinburg North coach Rudy Garcia said. “Our point guard was in foul trouble and that set us back a little bit. We found a group that got us back into the game, but then we just made too many mental mistakes and unforced errors.

“We’re very proud of our guys. We told them, no matter what the outcome was today, we’ve battled though a lot of injuries and a lot of things. We ended up winning six out of the last seven games to put us in the position we were in today.”

Neither team gained a significant edge during the third, and after the Eagles carried a one-point advantage into the fourth, they broke out during the final minutes.

Herrera led all scorers with 22 points, and Martinez added 11. The Cougars were led by Rodrigo Romero, who had 10 points and Tito Salazar, who had nine.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

Five Metro-area teams are slated to tip off bi-district games this week, beginning today with the Hanna Golden Eagles.

The Eagles (21-6, 10-4 in District 32-6A) will start their playoff run against the Edinburg North Cougars (18-14, 8-4 in District 31-6A) at 7 p.m. tonight in Weslaco.

Hanna finished tied for first in its district with Los Fresnos and Harlingen South after winning its final two games. Following a coin flip, the Eagles were seeded third and will face a Cougars team that finished in second place in its district.

“I’m feeling pretty good,” Hanna coach Todd Barckholtz said. “We responded to three tough losses in a row and took care of business against San Benito to lock up a playoff spot.

“I expect a very competitive game, both sides have some competitive players. We want our captains and leaders to continue leading our team, and hopefully whoever comes off the bench can provide a spark.”

The trio of Alex Herrera, Andy Lopez and Ed Messbarger will lead a balanced Eagles attack. Herrera averages 12.3 points, 7.2 assists and 5.6 steals per game, Lopez averages 12.6 points per game, and Messbarger contributes 12.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.

The Brownsville IDEA Frontier Chargers (11-8, 3-5), the third-place team out of District 32-3A, will play their opening-round playoff game against Santa Gertrudis Academy at 7 tonight in Raymondville. The Kingsville squad placed second in 31-3A.

“I feel confident about our team, we’ve competed all year,” IDEA Frontier coach Jerry de la Garza said. “We’ll have to play strong defense. (Santa Gertrudis) is traditionally a very good shooting team.”

The remaining three Metro-area teams — Los Fresnos, Brownsville Veterans Memorial and Pace — will play Tuesday.

The top-seeded Falcons (21-11, 10-4 in District 32-6A) will play host to District 31-6A’s fourth-place team, PSJA North (20-10, 8-4), at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“Overall, I like the way our team’s been playing,” Los Fresnos coach Marco Hinojosa said. “I like the way San Benito played us, and I think they got us ready for the playoffs.

“We’re going to need good ball control and minimize turnovers. (PSJA North) is a well-coached, scrappy team.”

Los Fresnos will rely on scoring leader Hugo De La Cruz, who averages 16.2 points per game. Other notable Falcons include Jose Mansilla, who leads the team in rebounds with 7.7 per game, and Alex Garcia, who has made a team-high 35 three-pointers.

Brownsville Veterans (18-12, 9-5), the No. 4 seed, will also represent District 32-6A and will face District 31-6A’s first-place team, the Weslaco High Panthers (22-11, 10-2), at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Weslaco.

“We’re two similar teams,” Brownsville Veterans coach Larry Gibson said. “I think that whoever controls the tempo will have the best chance.”

The Chargers’ Aaron Villarreal, who averages 9.3 point per game, is nursing a sprained ankle that sidelined him for their regular-season finale against the Rivera Raiders. Gibson has his fingers crossed Villarreal will be able to play as he’s been making gradual improvements during the team’s last three practice sessions.

Leading scorer Isaiah Torres averages 10.7 points per game and also paces the team with 4.1 rebounds per game, 2.6 assists per game and 2.3 steals per game.

“I feel like we’ve been on a roll. We’ve won our last four games, and the kids have been playing well together,” Gibson said.

Representing District 32-5A in the postseason will be the Pace Vikings (19-12, 11-3), who finished the district season in second place and will face the Mission Veterans Memorial Patriots (27-7, 7-5 in District 31-5A) at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Mission.

The Vikings completed their regular season after spoiling Donna High’s previously perfect district record of 13-0 with a 56-50 overtime win.

“We needed that win to catch some momentum and get some wind under our wings heading into the playoffs,” Pace coach Jose Luis Ramirez said. “We know our team’s potential, and when we perform at our best we’re as good as anybody. Going into our last game we knew we couldn’t be satisfied doing what was expected. We told our team ‘Let’s do the unexpected. Let’s beat Donna and let’s go win a bi-district title.’”

Pace is led by Andres Salgado, who averages 14.4 points per game, but the Vikings have received contributions from a number of players of late.

“We need to play (Mission Veterans) tough,” Ramirez said. “They play man-to-man, they’re well-coached, well-disciplined and they can shoot. They play in a tough district. Even the teams that didn’t make the playoffs are really good, and that says a lot about their team. I expect a high-energy game.”

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The Hanna Golden Eagles amassed 134 points to emerge victorious in the Los Fresnos tennis tournament, which concluded Saturday.

The Eagles were represented in six of the 10 finals matches and won two of them. Miranda Garzoria defeated Sabrina Lopez of Harlingen High in the girls singles A final 6-4, 7-6, and Paulina DeLeon bested Natalia Garcia of St. Joseph Academy 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in the girls singles B final.

“We set ourselves up real well (Friday),” Hanna coach Terry Hoover said. “I thought we let a couple matches get away from us (Saturday), but with the conditions that we played under it’s really difficult, and the teams that we played are very well coached. Overall I thought we did a really good job. We did really well throughout the whole thing.”

The Eagles narrowly missed a victory in the boys singles A final when Chris Castillo faced off against St. Joseph ’s Fernando Alvarez.

Alvarez, who has appeared in the boyssingles A final match in the past three Metro-area tournaments, defeated Castillo 7-6, 7-6.

“I think it helped when he started playing more aggressively,” SJA coach Sophia Bonas said.

Castillo was behind in each set but battled back to force a tiebreaker each time.

“We just missed some really key shots,” Hooversaid. “We played it right, I thought Chris had a good plan but we just made a couple mistakes here and there, and that was the difference. When you lose two tiebreakers, it’s pretty tight. (Alvarez) is one of the top players in the Valley, so we’re pretty excited we played him that close. We’d like to finish it up, though.”

Finishing tied for second place with 110 points were the Harlingen High Cardinals and La Feria Lions.

Harlingen High also had a presence in six finals matches, winning three. The Cardinals’ effort was led by Kylie Leach and Nikki Fleuriet, who won the girls doubles B draw 6-1, 6-0 over Hanna’s Astrid Garcia and Arriana Gutierrez. And David Gracia won the boys singles B final over teammate Trey Werley 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Matt Alvarado and Thomas Cabriales won the boys doubles Achampionship Friday to assist in the Cardinals’ success.

“The kids did a great job, it was great experience for them,” Harlingen High coach James Tanamachi said. “I was impressed with the level of play they were able to maintain with the (weather) conditions. My kids that made the finals and even the ones that didn’t, I’m happy with the whole outcome. Hanna’s got a great team, so we’re happy to get good practice against teams in our district.”

Host school Los Fresnos finished in fourth place, one point behind the top three with a score of 109. The Falcons’ lone winner in a final came from Ricky Garcia and Maria Garcia in the mixed doubles B bracket. The duo beat Sam Reyna and Kris Rodriguez of La Feria 6-0, 6-1.

Rivera’s sole championship came from the girls doubles A team of Julissa Rostro and Ashley Cruz, who defeated Hanna’s Marcela Castillo and Sandra Zuniga 6-4, 6-3.

St. Joseph won one additional final along with the boys singles A. They also won the boys doubles B draw when Eduardo Alvarez and Mauricio Hage defeated Harlingen High’s Charlie de la Rosa and Homer Lopez 6-2, 6-1.

In the mixed doubles A final, La Feria’s Carlos Gamboa and Abby Pecina beat Weslaco High’s Alberta Cabrera and Hanna Diaz 6-2, 6-1.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.

By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer

The first day of the Los Fresnos tennis tournament concluded Friday with the boys doubles A final match at the Brownsville tennis center.

The match pitted Hanna’s Saul Treviño and Jesse Gomez against Harlingen High’s Matt Alvarado and Thomas Cabriales in the final contest of the day.

The match was supposed to be played today, but due to a scheduling conflict, the boys doubles A bracket champion was decided Friday. Alvarado and Cabriales defeated the duo from Hanna 7-6, 6-2.

“I think (Alvarado and Cabriales) played great,” Harlingen High coach James Tanamachi said. “I can’t say enough. They worked hard all week, they put a good week in, so I’m really happy for these guys. It’s their first tournament win on varsity, so they’re really excited.”

Elsewhere in the tournament, the remaining brackets were completed through the semifinals with nine final matches to be played today.

Hanna and Harlingen High each are competing for championships in five additional brackets.

“Overall, we’re in six finals so we’ve got to be happy with that, especially under the conditions we played,” Hanna coach Terry Hoover said.

In the boys singles A draw, Hanna’s Chris Castillo will compete against St. Joseph’s Fernando Alvarez, who has played in the final during each of his last two tournament appearances with a win coming at the Pace open tournament Jan. 31.

Harlingen High is sending two boys to the boyssingles B final, David Gracia and Trey Werley.

“It was so windy today, I’m glad the kids didn’t let it get to them,” Tanamachi said. “They all have a chance. You go out and play, you never know.”

Hanna will compete for championships in both girls singles brackets as well. It will have Miranda Garzoria in the A final against Sabrina Lopez of Harlingen High as well as Paulina DeLeon in the B final against St. Joseph’s Natalia Garcia.

“We’ve got a shot in everything we’re going at (today),” Hooversaid.

St. Joseph’s boysdoubles B team of Eduardo Alvarez and Mauricio Hage will compete against Charlie de la Rosa and Homer Lopez of Harlingen High.

Rivera’s lone championship contender is the girls doubles Ateam of Julissa Rostro and Ashley Cruz. They will be facing off against Hanna’s Marcela Castillo and Sandra Zuniga.

“I expect (Rostro and Cruz) to play well (today),” Rivera coach Danny Espinosa said. “I expect them to be mentally tough and overcome this wind.”

Hanna and Harlingen High will again meet one in the girlsdoubles B competition. The Cardinals’ team of Nikki Fleuriet and Kylie Leach will take on the Eagles’ Astrid Gutierrez and Arriana Garcia.

Alberta Cabrera and Hanna Diaz of Weslaco will play against Carlos Gamboa and Abby Pecina of La Feria in the mixed doubles Abracket.

Finally, host school Los Fresnos will send Ricky Garcia and Maria Garcia of the mixed doubles B draw to compete against Samantha Reyna and Kris Rodriguez of La Feria.

Today, the remaining matches of the boys doubles B draw and both mixed doubles draws will be played at Los Fresnos, and the rest of the matches will be played at the Brownsville Tennis Center.

Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.