PHARR — Ocirema Leal transferred to Pharr Vanguard because of its esteemed academics.

“I asked my mom if they had sports,” Leal said. “She told me yes, but not the one I wanted the most — volleyball.”

A self-described competitor since she “was young,” Leal was excited when she learned the school was starting that program during her first year there and would compete in the UIL’s District 31-3A.

Now she’s part of a senior-heavy squad that has claimed the school’s first varsity sports district championship, finishing the regular season with an 8-1 district record and earning the top seed for the bi-district round of the playoffs. The Spartans will play Brownsville Riverview at 1 p.m. Saturday at home, their second straight trip to the playoffs.

“We had a goal coming into the season and we met that goal,” Vanguard head coach David Guzman said. “But we’re all in agreement that the job is not done yet.”

Following the Spartans into the postseason from District 31-3A are Lyford (7-2), North Mission IDEA and Weslaco Pike IDEA. Vanguard grabbed the fourth seed last year during their final regular-season match.

Leal, a senior setter, said the team has many of the same players as the past two years but brings a completely different mentality.

“Throughout these years at Vanguard, the girls’ perspectives have changed,” Leal said. “Yes, education is first and will always be, but we’re also student-athletes, so there are two things to balance — pass our classes and come and win a game. Everyone’s point of view has changed and students want to join sports.

“I’m beyond excited. We went through a tough situation last year but it didn’t make us stop trying — we’ve given our all and it has paid off.”

Saturday’s winner advances to the second round and plays Tuesday against the winner of Santa Gertrudis and Skidmore.

First, however, comes Riverview, which finished fourth in its district. Brownsville Jubilee captured first and was followed by Frontera in second, Santa Rosa in third and Riverview.”

“They have a couple of very good hitters and they are a good team,” said Guzman, who also led the school’s basketball team to the playoffs two seasons ago. “They started at the same time and same way we started and now they are junior or senior-heavy. It’s a matter of who wants it more Saturday afternoon.

“There has been excitement in the air since we got the district championship trophy. I told the girls to enjoy this moment. Be a sponge and soak it up and share it with their sisters because we are a family. But we’re still not done yet.”

Leal and Dalilah Hernandez are the team’s two setters and they have a variety of hitters, including Fatima Vasquez, Mia Cantu and Chloe De La Rosa. Leal, Vasquez and Hernandez are three of the team’s five seniors while Cantu is one of three juniors and De La Rosa is one of two sophomores on the 10-person roster.

“If you want something, you have to work for it,” said Leal, the team’s captain. “You have to keep moving, keep going and never slow down. We have a strong team that’s good in all areas and for many of us this is our last year. So, do you want it or not?

“Everything changed this year. Last year we wanted to have fun but now we’re striving for more and you can tell all the girls want more, and having fun. We are making history. No matter what, this is the first district title for this school. We’re all going home now with the mentality of, ‘We want this.’”

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EDINBURG — Edinburg High head volleyball coach Deanna Dominguez describes middle hitter/blocker Jazmin Cuellar as “a major presence.”

She was more of an explosive force Tuesday against city rival Edinburg Vela. With a jaw-dropping dominant performance, Cuellar, a 5-foot-10 junior, powered the Bobcats to a sweep over the Sabercats 25-23, 25-18, 25-12 at the Edinburg High gymnasium. The win improved Edinburg to 5-2 in District 31-6A, while Vela dropped to 4-3.

The front-row duo of Cuellar and Natalie Hernandez, The Monitor’s 2019 All-Area Volleyball Newcomer of the Year, turned an error-filled and slowly-played first set into a show of sheer power in the second and third sets. With that duo in the front row and libero Hannah Vega serving, the Bobcats compiled 21 of the team’s 50 points over the final two sets. That included a third set run of 12 straight Edinburg High points to turn a 5-1 deficit into a 13-5 advantage, a lead that was never threatened as Edinburg finished out the sweep.

“We’re a constant work in progress because of our situation,” Dominguez said, referring to a COVID-shortened season where teams played no tournaments and at most two non-district matches before jumping in head first with district play. “We’ve flipped around things and they work very well together. It’s finally coming around. It hasn’t been like that all the time.”

During the massive third-set run, Cuellar contributed three explosive kills and a solo stuff block. Vela sent free balls over the net and Edinburg was regularly on the attack. In the second set, that same rotation had runs of 7-0 and 4-0 and the Hernandez-Cuellar duo combined for four kills and a block during that span. It could have been more if not for the sprawling saves of Edinburg Vela libero Maria Sanchez who, at one point, dug three straight attacks to give Vela an opportunity to attack, something the Sabercats couldn’t do enough of to keep them in the match.

“Jazmin is a force to be reckoned with, and I keep telling her that she has a major presence,” Dominguez said. “She’s strong both offensively and defensively and has great hands. We actually tried her out to use her as a setter at one point even.”

Cuellar finished with a game-high 17 kills and five blocks while Hernandez contributed seven kills and a pair of blocks. Emily Carranco also had a strong game at the net with five kills and eight blocks.

“In the beginning we had a little bit of nerves because this is a big rival game, but we got more confident after the first game because we beat them and it never stopped,” Cuellar said. “I was just trying to see what I could do with the ball and where I could put it, just trying to be smart.

“My perspective is to just swing, swing, swing — don’t stop. Never stop swinging even if you make a mistake. Just try to learn from it and keep swinging.”

The first set was tied at 12 when Vela’s middle hitter/blocker Fey Vasquez, who was off to a strong start offensively and was also a presence defensively, injured what looked to be her right ankle and came out of the match. She didn’t return.

Edinburg High opens the second round of district play Friday against Edinburg North. The Cougars defeated the Bobcats in the first round and are tied with Mission High atop the District 32-6A standings. Vela is scheduled to host PSJA High on Friday.

The SaberCats were supposed to play Tuesday’s game at home but they switched it to Edinburg amid COVID-19 concerns at Edinburg Vela.

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MCALLEN — When freshman Amare Hernandez drilled the match-winning kill against Sharyland Pioneer on Saturday, it was one glimpse into the future of McAllen Memorial’s volleyball program.

But at the end of the day, an experienced group of seniors gave glimpses into Memorial’s here and now.

Both glimpses look promising after the Mustangs claimed a 25-19, 19-25, 25-13, 23-25, 15-12 marathon win to improve to 4-1 in a tight District 31-5A match. The loss dropped Sharyland Pioneer to 6-2 and in fourth place in the district based on losses with two. McAllen High, McAllen Rowe and McAllen Memorial all just one loss and all four teams still play each other at least one more time.

Saturday morning’s matches across the district were scheduled as the final matches of the first round as District 31-5A agreed to play doubleheaders on Saturday with a morning match and an afternoon match. Memorial and Rowe, however, still have two matches remaining. Those teams were scheduled to play Tuesday but Rowe had to postpone the match due to COVID quarantine. McAllen High and PSJA Memorial are also under quarantine from that district and Sharyland High just returned from quarantine. Valley View has yet to play this season and is expected to make an announcement on the rest of its season Monday.

Senior hitters/blockers Jocelyn Fernandez, Eliane Silberman and Natalie Silva provided big kills and bigger blocks while senior libero Cori Talamantez returned attack after attack in a match that started out filled with errors – serving, setting and attack — but ended with long rallies and huge hits — or blocks — from both sides.

“I’m very lucky and blessed to have a front row that is so intimidating and a back row that is just as good,” Memorial second-year head coach Ashley Doffing said. “This, though, is what COVID has done. It has given me no preseason and no time to fix these sloppy mistakes. But we are all on level playing fields and the kids are adjusting and in that third set it showed they adjust quickly.

“I said before they have resilience and they are showing it every game.”

Tied at 8 in the third set, Mercedes Lara served up 10 straight points including a pair of aces. Pioneer took two timeouts during that run, which also saw Fernandez tally a pair of blocks and a kill, and freshman Leah Garcia added two kills and a block assist as Memorial ran to a 19-9 lead in the third-set victory.

The fourth set was the most competitive to that point with eight ties along the way, the final coming at 16 before Pioneer went on an 8-2 run behind pressure serves from Natalie Reyes and Jorieless Caraballo. Andrea Chapa registered a kill in between Memorial’s two back row defenders and middle hitter/blocker Jordan Bravo electrified her team with a stuff block for a 24-18 lead.

Memorial, however, made it close with a 5-0 run as Garcia and Fernandez – freshman and senior worked a block together and Silva tipped a long return straight down before Pioneer closed it out 25-23 to force the final set.

Like the fourth set, the teams battled back and forth with six ties along the way, the final at 12. Memorial trailed 12-10 in that set before Fernandez rotated back and closed it out for Memorial with the final five service points. During that run Silva, who was injured earlier in the match but returned, had two big kills as did Hernandez, including the final one to end the match.

“We definitely have a wide range of kids on this team and these freshmen are stepping up, Doffing said of her fabulous four freshmen of Hernandez, Garcia, Madisyn Sosa and Gabby Torres. I’m glad we have these seniors who are here to help and mentor them along the way in this short season.

“We all knew we were coming into a tough district and it was no longer just the McAllens. If you don’t respect the other teams a loss can happen. I thought today our defense was great and we put up some pretty big blocks. Our defense played, our serve receive was working a lot better and it shows we are growing as a team. Give us a few more weeks and I think we’ll be unstoppable in the playoffs.”

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PHARR — PSJA North got a taste of what the rest of District 31-6A has been getting in the early part of the 2020 high school volleyball season — a dose of Evana Ramos and the first-place Edinburg North Cougars.

Ramos, a senior, had yet another monster game both offensively and defensively and Edinburg North swept PSJA North 25-11, 25-17, 25-17 to remain undefeated Tuesday at PSJA North High School.

The Cougars improved to 4-0 on the year with wins over Edinburg High, Edinburg Vela, PSJA High and PSJA North. The Cougars sit alone atop the district nearly halfway through, while the other teams continue to beat one another as they scramble for postseason position.

Ramos led the nation in digs last year, according to MaxPreps.com. The Monitor’s 2019 All-Area Libero of the Year was once again a human backboard Tuesday in the back row, saving nearly everything hit at, near and around her. She, at times, also had some impressive defensive help from Shayla Gaytan and Stephany Kotzur. Ramos, however, just didn’t save balls, she also attacked — and often — from the back row. The verbal commit to UTRGV had a game-high 13 kills to go with her 31 digs, five assists and four aces.

Edinburg North head coach Raul McCallum said as impressive as Ramos has been this season with her dominant play, it’s been her leadership that has risen to new levels.

“The way the kids are responding to her has been important for our team,” McCallum said. “She’s our quarterback and she will tell them to move to different spots or whatever and they are listening. It’s important they don’t just watch her play. I tell them she’s not going to get to every ball, which she pretty much does, but if she doesn’t they have to be there.”

Tuesday, she was at nearly every ball, rarely missing an opportunity to keep a play alive. She received nearly every PSJA North serve, as well, while in the game.

“We tell our girls to serve the ball to the player in the wrong colored jersey,” McCallum said, referring to the libero, considered the best defensive player on each team and who wears a different color jersey than the rest of the team. “When they serve to us they know that Evans is going to get the dig and pick up that serve.

PSJA North had a few solid attacks led by outside hitters Angel Lozano and Emily Lucio. However, the Cougars’ back row rarely let a ball land and more often than not returned the attack with one of their own.

“Our height is very different this year from the past years and that makes my job easier,” Ramos said. “I was a litter nervous at the beginning of the year knowing we were taking in a lot of new girls, but it was really easy because they were super nice.

“Our goal is just to get closer as team. We don’t have goals like to win every game. As a captain I want us to try to have as much fun because, well, you don’t know with corona(virus). Sure, everybody would love to win all their games and we’re going to try of course but if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen.”

Edinburg North led for the most part throughout the entire first two sets, falling behind by two early in the first set. In the third, however, the Raiders led by as many as five, 9-4, propelled by an ace and a pair of kills from Lucio. Trailing 11-7, however, Alexis Espinoza collected a kill and Edinburg North went on a 7-0 run to lead 16-11 en route to the sweep.

Kayla O’Bryan added five kills, six digs and three blocks for Edinburg North while Kotzur contributed 12 assists, three aces and 10 digs.

Edinburg North (4-0) plays at home Friday against Mission High, which is coming off a win over Edinburg Vela on Tuesday night. PSJA North (2-2 in district) travels to Edinburg High.

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McALLEN — Haidee Moore winced just a bit after her first attack Saturday at the net, not exactly swinging at 100% power. She then stretched her arm to make sure her shoulder was OK. The next time she got a set, she tipped it just over of the outstretched arms of a blocker, still a little unsure and testing that shoulder.

On the next ball to her, the McAllen High senior middle hitter let a shot rip through a pair of blockers and down the middle of the court for her first kill of the match against McAllen Memorial.

That wince turned into a smile of satisfaction throughout the day as Moore and Ollie Tite paced McHi’s offense, while Audrey Zamora was a human highlight reel defensively in the back row, as the Bulldogs claimed a 25-21, 23-25, 25-18, 25-20 win over a taller and arguably more powerful Mustangs team.

Combined with McAllen Rowe’s five-set win over previously unbeaten Sharyland Pioneer, the McHi victory throws the top of District 31-5A into what looks like a rush-hour traffic jam with McHi, Memorial, Pioneer and Rowe all with one loss. Memorial plays Rowe on Tuesday and Pioneer on Saturday to end the first time through the schedule for that district.

Moore had played the first week with a sore shoulder, limiting her effectiveness and strength at the net. That concern was cleared early in the match. It was especially critical for the Bulldogs, playing without leading hitter Celina Saenz.

“After I pounded that one, I felt a lot better,” said Moore, who ended the day with nine kills, three blocks and was a fixture in several key plays. “After that I had the confidence in my hitting. We knew they (Memorial) were a great team and with plenty of power and we would have to play together, communicate and step up.”

Ollie Tite had a team-high 14 kills and seven aces to go with two blocks.

“The seniors really played hard today, they wanted this,” McHi head coach Paula Dodge said. “We knew they were big and powerful and we needed to play great defense. Defense is the key, it wins game.”

Leading that defense when the Mustangs’ barrage of attacks got past the blockers was senior libero Audrey Zamora, who time after time saved balls with fully extended dives all across the back row. She ended the match with a game-high 20 digs.

“I just tried to read their hitters and how blockers were set up,” Zamora said. “They did a great job at the next. Memorial has great hitters but we played together and we worked hard all game.”

McHi won the first set but Memorial came back in the second behind an artillery of kills from JoJo Fernandez, freshman Amare Hernandez and Eliane Silberman. Fernandez and Hernandez each had 10 kills to pace Memorial, and Fernandez added a game-leading four blocks.

The third set was tied at 17 when McHi went on a 5-0 run behind a pair of aces from Tite and kills from Aleah Saenz and Moore. Memorial broke the run with a powerful kill from Leah Garcia. And closed to within 22-18. Madison Helmcamp served out the set on a 3-0 run during which Zamora made a sprawling save, Moore placed a perfect tip over two blockers and followed that with a block to end the set.

“These girls just know each other so well from both teams, playing with them so much. They know where the holes are and what to do,” Dodge said. “Today they came out, led by our seniors, had fun and worked hard the entire match against a very, very good Memorial team.”

The Bulldogs led early and throughout the entire fourth set, leading by as much as nine at 15-6. Title added her final kill of the day then made a diving save of a ball that took Memorial by surprise, flying over the net and landing just inside the line to end that match.

McHi improved to 3-1 overall (4-1 following the afternoon win over PSJA Southwest), while Memorial dropped to 2-1 (3-1 including the forfeit win over Valley View, which begins play when the district’s second time through the schedule begins). District 31-5A is playing doubleheaders Saturday to maximize the number of matches before playoffs and due to a COVID-related shortened season.

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McALLEN – Sharyland Pioneer, like many schools, hasn’t had the best of luck against McAllen High in recent years on the volleyball court. In fact, it hasn’t had any.

That changed Saturday as the highly energetic Diamondbacks defeated the Bulldogs 27-25, 16-25, 25-22, 25-23 at McAllen High School behind a well-rounded offensive attack. It was the second match of the day for both schools as District 31-5A has agreed to play doubleheaders Saturdays and single matches Tuesdays.

It was the second win of the day for Pioneer, defeating PSJA Southwest in straight sets during its morning match. McHi defeated city rival McAllen Rowe in its earlier match of the day in four sets. After one full Saturday of matches, Pioneer leads the district at 2-0. McAllen Memorial is 1-0 and had its second match of the day, against Sharyland High, rescheduled.

“This means a lot,” Pioneer head coach Laura Cavazos said. “We knew coming into this district that playing some of these teams in the past has been tough and they have given us a very hard time. The girls want to prove themselves and tonight they kept fighting and pushing themselves. We had some fuel tonight for this game.”

The two teams split the first two sets and McHi looked like it not only found a rhythm but also a weak spot in the defense, attacking Pioneer with softer attacks and tips. The strategy worked in the second set but Pioneer made adjustments and those attacks weren’t as effective in the final two sets.

“We had to change our mentality on that, they are power hitters but they were going more toward some finesse shots and I told the girls they needed to be ready,” Cavazos said. “They were reading it a little better and were more successful after that.”

Pioneer led 19-13 in the third set behind strong attacks from Daisy Monie, Mariana Trevino and Thalia Ochoa. McHi pulled to within 23-22 but a kill from Lorelai Hill and an error on McHi gave the Diamondbacks a two set to one lead. Three Diamondbacks registered double-digit kills led by Trevino with 12 and Ochoa and Monie with 10 apiece. Hill added eight kills while Jordan Bravo had four kills and five blocks. Ochoa also had five blocks

Senior Ollie Tite and junior Celina Saenz led the offensive charge for the Bulldogs in both matches. Saenz finished with 19 kills in the four-set win over Rowe while adding 16 in the loss to Pioneer. Tite came away with 16 kills in the first, 15 in the second and added five aces between the two matches.

Of course, with it being the year, nothing went 100% as planned. With McHi up two sets to one but down 3-2 in set four, players were slipping on the floor more frequently as the match progressed. An official timeout led to a decision to move the game to Rowe’s back gym. The limited number of fans were not allowed in that gym and were asked to watch the game online.

The game, however, couldn’t be live streamed because of lack of Wi-fi in that particular gym.

Tite and Saenz came up with big kills time and again during crucial periods in the match against Rowe, senior Madi Helmcamp registering many of her 43 assists to her two outside hitters.

“Rowe did great and they were great competition and it was close but I am glad we got the victory to start off the district season,” Tite said. “We took charge of the whole floor thing. We communicated very well and am really proud with the girls. We have a wide variety of players, everyone on the team can do so many things. I’m proud of myself and the way my teammates helped me and each other succeed.”

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PSJA High’s Faith Cruz and PSJA Memorial’s Williams Macias showed that the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t slow them as they captured the individual girls and boys titles at the Edcouch-Elsa Yellow Jacket Cross-Country Invitational on Saturday, the first cross-country meet in the Valley this season.

Neither runner is a stranger to breaking the tape at the finish line. Cruz, a junior, won the 5k girls event in 20 minutes, 6.01 seconds. She finished 39.24 seconds ahead of second-place Vanessa Cerda of Edcouch-Elsa. The Yellow Jackets’ girls won the team portion of the event with three top-five finishers including Cerda, Terresa Gallegos (third) and Rebecca Davila (fifth).

“I’m just glad we had the opportunity to compete and we are going to make the best of the opportunities we have,” Edcouch-Elsa girls head coach Juan Perez said. “First and foremost is the safety of our athletes and our coaches and staff and we did everything we could think of to keep everyone safe.

Edcouch-Elsa finished with 71 points to beat Weslaco East by one. The Wildcats placed five runners in the top 20, led by Jennica Paz in ninth place. Mission High finished in third with 74 points, two behind Weslaco East and three in back of E-E. Jordan Hernandez led Mission High in fourth place.

Perez said there are only three meets remaining before the district meet, then regionals and state.

“I tell the girls we will do the best we can do and there will be no excuse. I’m glad we did well,” said Perez, in his 10th year at the E-E helm. “Sure, it’s tough for all the teams across the Valley due to COVID, but we’re all working and hoping we can have some runners advance this year. There are a lot of great teams in the Valley and we cheer for them all.”

Macias, a senior and The Monitor’s All-Valley Male Cross-Country Athlete of the Year last season as a junior, outpaced Solis by about 10 seconds to win the boys title in 15:51.48. Solis was second in 16:01.08.

McHi finished with five runners in the top 10 for a dominant start to the season. Ismael Hernandez and Hunter Herrera completed the course in 16:12.84 and 16:12.89 to capture third and fourth, respectively. Rene Tamez, Julio Alanis and Matt Gonzalez captured eighth, ninth and 10th, respectively, for the Bulldogs. Gonzalez is a junior, while the other top McHi finishers are seniors.

McHi scored a field-best 29 points to outdistance the opposition. McAllen Memorial was second with 80 and Mission High was third with 83 points.

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PHARR — For Clarissa “Francis” Sanchez, some closure may have been realized Friday.

Playing with her PSJA Southwest volleyball teammates during an all-PSJA schools “private” scrimmage, Sanchez dedicated her senior season to her grandfather, who recently died after contracting COVID-19.

“We were really close,” the senior setter said. “This season is for him.”

PSJA High, Memorial, North and Southwest all competed in a season kickoff round-robin event that didn’t keep track of scoring, but was meant to help bring coaches, players and officials up to speed after an extended period away from the court due to the coronavirus pandemic that has overcome the Valley, the nation and the world.

A little more than 30 minutes before warmups, it was clear that the 2020 Rio Grande Valley volleyball season will carry a unique set of sights and sounds. Chairs were set at a distanced and occupied by players wearing masks and talking very little, most peering into their phones. It looked more like preparation for an ACT or SAT rather than for a high school volleyball match. The stands were bare and everything seemed new.

Many teams across the Rio Grande Valley began practicing Monday or Tuesday; some worked out via video conference calls during the weeks prior to be prepared as much as possible for the “real” practices to begin. For some, returning to practice was a bit nerve-wracking,

“It was kind of scary for me at first, coming back,” PSJA High’s Murielle Murillo said. “I didn’t know how it was going to work. Coach, though, made it clear and easy for us to understand and help make us comfortable.”

While girls from all four teams wore masks throughout the entire round-robin timed matchups, both on and off the court, veteran referee Miriam Sanchez said it was up to their discretion whether to wear them while on the court.

“They will need to walk onto the court for the beginning or when their substituting with them on, but after that it’s up to them. Some girls are wearing gaiters on the court because it can get a little uncomfortable and tough wearing them while playing,” said Sanchez, who has 25 years of refereeing experience. “The biggest difference, however, will be at the beginning end of the games. There will be no switching sides in between games and no handshakes before or after.”

As warmups began, the non-stop chatter and cheers that normally accompany a great hit or a nice dig from teammates were absent. Then, PSJA High head coach Caroline Cuellar provided a rallying call. “Come on girls, let’s go.” That’s all it took and the first steps toward truly returning began.

“These girls have been texting me since June wanting to come back. Their parents were saying, ‘If you start tomorrow, we’ll be there,’” Cuellar said. “I told the girls that this is a time to be selfless and think of your teammates and others and what you can cause if you’re not responsible.

“We have so many rules and now with COVID there’s so much more, but it’s there for a reason. It’s there to keep us safe. We’ve been following all the protocols, no girls are complaining and they all want to play.”

Not only were masks one sign of the adjusted normal, but sanitizer was used regularly and often — during substitutions, timeouts and even in between serves. The habitual, quick mini-team celebration that occurrs in between points had some awkward moments at first, but teams quickly adjusted and found other ways to celebrate a job well done.

“We can’t really talk face to face and it’s hard but we still come together as one team,” said the Javelinas’ Sanchez. “We’re all trying to get through this together. We appreciate being all together and working with and for one another. We still have a close bond and we all work at bringing each other up. This is a group of dedicated and talented girls who give up everything in practice every day.

“That’s what I love about this team and being able to play with them again.”

While most Valley teams begin their regular season schedule this week, Hidalgo and Grulla played their season opener Saturday in Hidalgo. Hidalgo defeated Grulla 3-1 after falling in the first set. The home Pirates opted not to wear their masks while on the playing court, while Grulla chose to wear theirs. All players on the sidelines must wear masks.

“We were a little rusty since we hadn’t scrimmaged or played since last year,” Hidalgo head coach Kaydee Benavidez said. “It was awesome to see the girls back in action.”

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It was just two weeks into the track season four years ago when Tessie Garcia opened everybody’s eyes.

“It was then that I knew we had a special runner,” Weslaco East track coach Joshua Davis said. “In her first cross country meet of her freshman year she was the school’s top runner. She was an immediate impact from the moment she began competing.”

Garcia, considered by Davis to be “the best distance runner in Weslaco East history,” ended her four-year career with school and area records, enough medals and victories to fill a large wall, and as one of the top 10 3,200-meter runners in the state.

In that track meet at Harlingen High, Garcia broke the school’s 800- and 1,600-meter records.

Garcia also remembered that track meet, just a couple weeks into what was the beginning of her competitive track and field career.

“She smashed those records and won those events in Harlingen,” Davis recalled.

Garcia, however, remembers it for another reason.

“Coach was shocked,” she said. “He came up to me and told me, ‘With more work, you can accomplish bigger things.’ So I trusted him and the process and it brought me good things. He did so much to help me become the athlete I became today.”

Garcia earned four straight MVP awards in cross country for Weslaco East. She was a two-time MVP in track and was the school’s athlete of the year twice.

Her dedication to the sport, every aspect of it, and her drive, are two areas that aided her in becoming a top distance runner, even overcoming injuries.

“Coach said, ‘Sacrifice,’ meaning to be committed, no days off and no excuses. I did everything he told me to do.”

Garcia would wake up at 5 a.m. to get her five-mile run in. Even on days when running at school took placee a little later, she said she still enjoyed waking up at 5, before most high school students know a new morning has arrived.

“Others would ask me why I would run so early and run five miles so early,” she said. “It’s just the passion I have for something. I always wanted to get up to be more mentally prepared too, especially for a meet.

“After a meet, especially if we ran after (a Saturday morning meet), I would be exhausted. So we would meet at the park to run the next morning, but it was more like 7 or 8 a.m. ‘Let’s sleep in for one more hour.’”

Today, things are a little different. Now that her high school days are over and it’s summer time, she admits she enjoys sleeping in a little, while she can. Of course, she’s also staying up later, saying that during quarantine her sleeping schedule has been “horrible.”

Mike Burget, Weslaco East’s head football coach and athletic coordinator, identified Garcia early as a star athlete. And by the time she graduated, he knew the school had benefited from her time there.

“An amazing student-athlete and a wonderful person,” Burget said about Garcia. “We were fortunate to have her here at Weslaco East. You don’t get too many (people) who are that special come through your program. She was definitely one of them.”

From a competitive standpoint, even opposing coaches knew there was something special early on about the young Garcia.

“Tessie is such a hard-working competitor,” said Edinburg Economedes cross country and track coach Brenda Lozano, who competed in the same district with Weslaco East and was facing Garcia on a regular basis. “Each year she made such great lengths in her running career. I can speak from the sideline that she was one to watch.”

She continued running with the best there was to offer. As a sophomore she qualified for the regional championships in all three long-distance events, the 800-, 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs.

“Her junior year ended up being one of the lowest points of her career,” Davis said. “It ended with her developing a stress reaction in her foot before the 2019 district meet. With that injury, her season was done. It upset her and left her disappointed.

“It would turn out to be the fuel she needed to step up and not just be one of the better runners, but to become the best runner in the RGV.”

Garcia, frustrated over the injury, did something she hadn’t done in her high school career: she took a month off.

“That was not fun for me. It was horrible,” she said. “I wanted to run so badly. It made me come back stronger my senior year.”

Gaining motivation from something her coach would say — “Our sport is your sport’s punishment” — Garcia began to train again. Admittedly, she over-trained, but with a purpose.

“I wanted to be stronger. I had to push,” she said. “Sure, I’d be dying when we were done but I wanted to make things easier for race day.”

Garcia won three of her first four cross country meets for the Wildcats en route to second place in district, 10th in region and 51st in the state, becoming the first girl from Weslaco East to qualify for the cross country state meet.

During the following track season, Garcia was stronger, faster and more impressive. She broke all three of her school records in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. She claimed double gold at the Border Olympics in the 3,200 and 1,600, setting the top Valley times in both events and remained unbeaten until COVID-19 put a halt to runners, jumpers and throwers alike.

“It was a year when she was the best in the Valley, she was on track to compete for a medal at regionals and a possible trip to the state meet,” Davis said. “We will never know just how fast she would have gotten. She was improving each week. She was unstoppable.”

Garcia is now enjoying her summer at home. She spends time with friends, as allowed by today’s current virus situation, and, like many teens, on her phone. She looks back, thankful for her coach and her family and all they did to help her obtain the accomplishments over her career. She plans to study sports medicine and become a physical therapist, wanting to help other athletes overcome injuries and succeed.

Whether or not she runs competitively remains to be seen. If the right door opens up, however, one might see her running through it — maybe as early as 5 a.m.

Dilan Cazares didn’t expect to see too much playing time on the Edinburg High Bobcats soccer team this past season.

As a freshman, he figured he would have to wait to gain some experience and it might take a while for his coaches to have the confidence in him.

Edinburg High head coach Luis Cardenas wasn’t too sure at first either as practices began. Once, he put Cazares in a game, though, there was absolutely no doubt — the freshman played did not play like a rookie.

“It’s hard to tell sometimes in practice how they will respond in a game, playing against the top players in the Valley,” said Cardenas, who finished his 10th year as the boys head coach. “Coming up from junior high he had more speed and more technique compared to any regular freshman. His technique and dribbling skills were like someone with more experience. He wasn’t scared at all, you wouldn’t see him nervous, he was ready for any occasion.”

His impact on the Bobcats team immediately felt by his team, and by opponents. Because of his performance, Cazares is The Monitor All-Area Boys Soccer Newcomer of the Year.

Cazares said despite not thinking he would see much playing time, he still felt a lot of pressure — externally and self-induced — to perform. A heralded player in junior high, he also has an older brother who starred for Edinburg and graduated in 2016.

It didn’t take long for the rest of District 31-6A to recognize that Cazares could be a game-changer and opponents did what they could to neutralize the young forward.

“Sometimes I would have two or three players around me, marking me,” he said. “I thought it was kind of crazy as a freshman getting that much attention.”

Cardenas remembers one game where some of the players were attending a different school function but Cazares decided to play.

“He scored the winning goal for us in that game,” Cardenas said. “If he wouldn’t have been there we may not have had a chance. He was the difference.”

Cazares said he feels that his strength and ability to shoot, with both his left and right feet, are among his strong points. He admitted that he needs to work more on his defense.

“Yeah, I’m not too great there,” he said.

But, he quickly added that he’s working to improve on all areas over the summer. The Bobcats finished in third place in District 31-6A, behind perennial power Donna North and Edinburg Economedes. Cazares said the goal is to come out next season and be a contender for that district crown.

“I want to be fit and more ready for the season next year,” he said. “We want to win district and go far in the playoffs.”

Cardenas said that Cazares has a lot of potential, especially if he keeps his work ethic on pace, and remains humble.

“The difference between freshman and sophomore year is a lot of growth,” Cardenas said. “But you have to remain humble and not start thinking you know everything. Dilan is very humble and I expect him to follow the process and keep growing. If you saw him play this year, you wouldn’t think he was a freshman. It looked like he had all this experience at that level. He was ready.”