DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

PSJA High baseball coach Marco Guajardo is pretty satisfied at the moment.

“We’re rolling,” Guajardo said. “We’re battling.”

PSJA High is 14-3-2 overall, 10-1 in District 32-5A, and in contention for a district title. The reason? Defense.

“Our pitching has been really solid,” Guajardo said of a three-man rotation that has a 1.76 ERA and 96 strikeouts to 56 walks in 103.2 innings. “That’s what’s helped us. We really haven’t let anybody score any runs. We’re hitting OK, but our pitching has carried us.”

The Bears go with Troy Flores, Marc Castillo and Kike Rubio on the bump. He also has Andrew Castaneda ready in relief if needed.

PSJA High had some questions about its pitching entering the season. Who would be the No. 1? How much depth is there?

Consider those answered. Flores (6-0 record) has six appearances, Rubio (2-2) 5 and Castillo (1-0) 3. Castaneda has made four appearances.

“They’re hitting their spots better,” Guajardo said “Their secondary pitches, they’re locating well and getting strikes early on. They’re getting stronger and the location has been the key.”

Offensively, the Bears are not as efficient. The top of the order, 1 through 5, is fine, led by the prowess of Christian Sanchez (.500 average, 2 home runs, 13 walks, .850 slugging percentage) and Rubio (.426 average, 25 RBIs, three homers). But the bottom of the lineup has stranded runners consistently.

“It’s a matter of trying to use all fields, hit the ball the other way,” Guajardo said. “That’s the key.”

The Bears are hoping to put it all together by Tuesday.

Guajardo said he is not overlooking today’s tilt against Mercedes, but next week’s bout against Brownsville Porter will determine the district title if the Bears take care of business tonight.

Porter is 10-1 in district and beat PSJA High once this season, a 5-2 result in which the Bears left the bases loaded twice.

“It’s a big game, a game we’d like to be involved in,” Guajardo said. “It’s exciting. Every game, the kids talk about how Porter did. It’s going to be a playoff atmosphere, and we’re really looking forward to it.”

YOUNG AND GOOD

Don’t call Valley View young.

The Tigers are, starting five freshmen and one sophomore, but they don’t want that used as an excuse.

Valley View is in contention for a District 31-5A playoff spot despite graduating seven seniors from last season. The Tigers expected to be here.

“We saw it more as we were going to fight for a playoff spot, not rebuild,” fourth-year assistant coach Rick Hernandez said. “We’re young, but these kids have played together since they were little — travel ball, select ball. It was just a matter of putting it together.”

Mission accomplished. The Tigers earned a huge 4-3 upset win against Sharyland High on Tuesday in what was a must-win affair to keep their playoff hopes alive.

“Things just went our way,” Hernandez said. “They had bases loaded, one out and we get a double play. To get out of two other innings, we threw out a guy at home each time.”

It’s been a process. The Tigers struggled at the start of this season, notorious for swinging at pitches out of the zone. They have since cut down the strikeouts, and that’s been a boon for a pitching staff that has “come alive,” Hernandez said.

“We have such a young team that the speed of the game was a bit too fast,” Hernandez said. “Now they’re throwing strikes and they have confidence in themselves.”

Guys like freshman Ediberto Reyes (the team’s leading hitter at .461) and junior Aaron Rodriguez (who pitched 1 2/3 innings and struck out five to close out the Rattlers) have starred.

Tonight provides another opportunity for growth. The Tigers visit Roma to face a Gladiators team they are chasing for the final playoff spot.

Valley View is 4-6 in district, Roma 5-5. The Tigers fell to Roma 6-0 earlier this season, but, as they will attest, they are far from the same team.

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RGVSPORTS.COM H.S. BASEBALL TOP 10 POLL

Rank, Team Record Previous

1, Brownsville Veterans Memorial 17-1-2 2

2, Edinburg High 15-2-1 3

3, La Joya Palmview 15-2-1 5

4, Sharyland High 17-3 1

5, Brownsville Porter 14-5 8

6, Edinburg North 13-4-2 7

7, Hidalgo 15-5-1 6

8, Harlingen South 15-4 4

9, Mission Veterans Memorial 17-6 9

10, PSJA High 14-3-2 10

DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

Edinburg Vela made history and Sharyland High persevered at the Region IV-5A tennis tournament Wednesday at Blossom Athletic Center in San Antonio.

SaberCats senior Andre Mercado won his true second boys singles match against Seguin’s Kevin Clack to earn a trip to the state tournament May 12-13 in College Station.

The top two seeds in each category advance to state. Mercado is the first Edinburg Vela tennis player to advance to state.

“My serve was pretty good,” Mercado said. “I was just more focused. I knew what was at stake, so I was playing to win. I went point by point and played well.”

Last year, Mercado lost in the regional semifinals. His sophomore year, he played a true second match and lost in three sets.

“I knew that the next time I had a chance to play for state, I wasn’t going to let it go,” Mercado said. “I was more prepared this time, more focused. I learned from my sophomore year and I didn’t want that to happen again.”

Vela coach Monica Gonzalez said Mercado talked about that true second match every year. It’s why, she said, he is mentally tougher.

“He played outstanding today,” Gonzalez said. “Everything was on. Mentally, he was in the game. I couldn’t be more proud. He’s set the bar extremely high for this program.”

Mercado will be joined at state by Sharyland High’s boys doubles team of senior Carlos Ramones and junior Sebastian Arizola.

The pair beat Dripping Springs’ Sam Brodsky and Andy Varnell in the semifinals before falling to Flour Bluff’s Noah Ortiz and Jeff Orchard in the final.

“That wasn’t our best match, but we tried hard,” Arizola said of the final. “We wanted to win pretty badly, but we just couldn’t get it.”

A big reason behind the duo’s success was a tweak defensively. Instead of playing back, Ramones and Arizola played closer to the net.

“Our communication, putting away points … all that was big,” Ramones said. “But the biggest thing was we put more pressure on our opponents, cut off angles. That was huge.”

Added Arizola: “Instead of having to work harder for points, we would pin the ball and get the point quicker. We’d been practicing that all season, and it worked for us.”

The duo lost in the regional quarterfinals last year. This year’s experience, Ramones said, will be big for getting prepared for state.

“We’ll start conditioning and preparation,” he said. “The talent we saw at regionals, these guys have heavy ground strokes and were all over the net. We need to be prepared for that.”

Arizola and Ramones are the first Rattlers boys doubles team to qualify for state since 2007.

“You can have all the strokes, but how well can you handle the pressure? One unforced error can be the difference,” Sharyland High boys coach Mike Salinas said. “They felt that pressure today, the competition was tough, and they pulled through. They’re going to state.”

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KEVIN LU | SPECIAL TO THE MONITOR

ELSA — Edcouch-Elsa’s baseball team needed eight innings to beat rival Mercedes in a 6-5 home win Tuesday night.

The win puts the Yellowjackets a game ahead of Mercedes with three games left in District 32-5A play. They had identical 6-4 records entering the night.

Edcouch-Elsa now sits in third in district, with Mercedes falling to fourth. The Yellowjackets swept the season series.

Edcouch-Elsa walked off with the win on a Raul Quintero flare to right field in the bottom of the eighth inning that scored pitcher Jacob Martinez. Martinez led off the inning reaching base on an error, the eighth error committed by the Tigers’ defense.

The other five Yellowjacket runs were all unearned after they came off Tigers’ defensive miscues during the first three innings.

“We just want to make the playoffs. Of course, this is a rivalry. You saw what it takes to win,” Edcouch-Elsa coach Xavier Acosta said.

Mercedes added a pair of runs during the fourth inning, and pulled to within 5-3 in the fifth on an Oliver Closner single to right field that scored Joel Torres. Three batters later, pitcher Henry Luna drove a double over the leftfielder’s head to score two and tie the game at 5.

The Tigers had a chance to add more runs during the fifth inning if it weren’t for a spectacular defensive play by Edcouch-Elsa’s Eddie Lopez. Mercedes had runners at second and third base with two outs. Jaime Rodriguez ripped a liner to third base that Lopez dove to his right to stop before throwing across the diamond from his knees to end the inning.

“It’s just a great rivalry and these kids are so hungry and thirsty for a playoff game that they’ll do whatever it takes. It showed today,” Acosta said.

When the Tigers weren’t giving away outs defensively, they gave some away on offense as well. The first two Mercedes batters during the second inning reached base, but the seventh and eighth spot hitters batted out of place and the team was assessed an additional out, effectively killing the rally.

Luna pitched seven innings, allowed six hits for six unearned runs, and struck out eight Yellowjacket batters. His counterpart Martinez went eight innings, allowed four earned runs on eight hits and tallied eight strikeouts.

“He’s beaten Mercedes twice and it’s a great win for him,” Acosta said of Martinez. “Sometimes we just don’t get him enough runs and he pitches great all the time.”

DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

Edinburg Vela’s Andre Mercado, and Sharyland High’s Carlos Ramones, Sebastian Arizola, Stephanie Falcon and Hector Ronquillo advanced Tuesday to the Region IV-5A tennis semifinals today in San Antonio.

Mercado defeated Uvalde’s Backor McLaughlin and Vandegrift’s Zachrey Delmonico to earn a boys singles match with Alamo Heights’ Liam Crawley today.

The top two seeds in each category advance to the state tournament next month.

“He placed the ball well, moved the ball well, served the ball well,” Vela coach Monica Gonzalez said. “He was patient. We came in hoping to get him to the semifinals.”

Mercado faced Crawley during a USGA tournament in January, a match Mercado lost.

“He knows he’s in for a tough match, and he knows what to expect,” Gonzalez said.

Sharyland High was expected to do well at regionals, and the Rattlers didn’t let down. The Rattlers’ boys doubles team of Ramones and Arizola and mixed doubles team of Falcon and Ronquillo starred to play another day.

Falcon and Ronquillo took down teams from Gregory-Portland and East View to set up a match today with Alamo Heights’ Ethan Carlson and Sara Thompson.

“They played very well,” Sharyland girls coach Yvette Vela said. “They played aggressive and together. They communicated very well to work together on points.”

Ramones and Arizola beat teams from Flour Bluff and LBJ. They will meet up against Dripping Springs’ Sam Brodsky and Andy Varnell today.

Dripping Springs ousted Mercedes’ Michael Gomez and Payton White in the second round to earn a trip to the semifinals.

“It was their teamwork,” Sharyland boys coach Mike Salinas said of Ramones and Arizola. “They never got flustered out there and they stayed in control of the points. They never got down on themselves and grinded out wins.”

While the Rattlers are facing different competition in a new class of play this season, Salinas said the experience of being in Class 5A, previously the biggest class, last year is a big help.

“We knew what kind of competition was going to be up here,” Salinas said. “The talent is nothing we hadn’t seen before. Our guys picked up their level, and they had to. Every point is crucial.”

At the Region IV-6A tournament, McAllen Memorial’s Alvaro Rocha and Jack Wang advanced to the boys doubles semifinals with wins over San Antonio Clark and Eagle Pass.

“They practice a lot together and they understand each other,” McAllen Memorial coach Rhodora Elizondo said of her star duo. “They just connect and really know each other’s moves. At this point, communication will win you matches, and they have that. The secret to doubles is when your partner and you work well together, it becomes a dance.”

Rocha and Wang will face New Braunfels’ Austin Moninger and Josh Van Winkle today.

“They’re beatable,” Elizondo said. “We have a chance. They’re feisty and move very well, but our boys are pretty good too. I think we’ll have an edge.”

McAllen Memorial was the lone upper or Mid-Valley representative, including individuals, to move on to the semis. Harlingen South will be represented in boys singles and girls doubles, and Harlingen High will have a mixed doubles team still in contention for state today.

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DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — Sharyland High’s girls tennis program has won 11 consecutive district titles. But the tough got tougher in February when junior transfer Emilia Ramos joined the team from Mexico.

“I wanted to study here. I want to play college tennis,” said Ramos, who left some family behind while joining others in the States.

Ramos wanted opportunity. She’s gotten it, and so far she’s done the most with it.

In one of her first tournaments last week, Ramos won the District 31-5A girls singles championship, joining a plethora of other Rattlers who will be attending the Region-IV tournament in San Antonio on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“When I saw her, I didn’t know what to think,” Sharyland girls coach Yvette Vela said of her initial meeting with Ramos. “It was so late in the year, there’s a lot of paperwork involved, so I thought she better be really good. She had a try-out, I saw her hit two balls and I said, ‘Stop! You need to run over to the counselor’s and you need to get in my class right now!’”

Ramos played tennis tournaments in Mexico since she was 8, competing in state and national meets. Her strength is her winners — “I always look for the lines,” she said — and Vela said her footwork is extraordinary.

Ramos is quick and has good anticipation. That’s not by accident.

“I like to move a lot,” Ramos said. “It’s a big deal in tennis. How you move, and how fast, is what makes the difference. I want to reach the ball faster than the other girl.”

Ramos also has good ball placement, a skill Vela said can play mind games with opponents.

“She puts the ball wherever she wants so easily that it can make an opponent feel like they’re not playing well,” Vela said. “Where she places the ball challenges people. She can take people out of their game.”

Though she is new to the States’ way of tennis, Ramos said she is comfortable. The biggest difference between tennis in Mexico and here is the wind and weather.

It’s windy and hot in the Valley, Ramos said. Not so much in Mexico.

“But it’s just about making the adjustments,” she said. “I’m having a great time.”

Off the court, however, the transition has been harder, but not unexpected.

“You miss home, you miss family, you miss a lot of things,” she said. “But I’m not a girl that gets too attached to things. So it’s hard, but not that hard, you know? You have to get over it.

“I want to play in college for a good team and build a future for myself.”

As talented as she is, Ramos is just a piece to the Rattlers’ puzzle.

At the district meet in Roma last week, Sharyland High won first (Carlos Ramones/Sebastian Arizola) and second (Gester Madhere/Leonardo Armendariz) in boys doubles, first (Fernanda Garcia/Fernanda Armendariz) and second (Araceli Salinas/Carolina Falcon) in girls doubles, and first (Hector Ronquillo/Stephanie Falcon) and second (Jose Ronquillo/Ana Hernandez) in mixed doubles.

Domination, per usual for Rattlers tennis, as the boys and girls claimed district titles.

But what Ramos has done, Vela said, is add some life to the program as a player who goes “above and beyond the tennis court.”

“She’s been a joy. On and off the court,” Vela said. “She’s been a very good refresher for our team, the way she’s fit in and the way she’s played.

“She’s been great.”

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DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

EDINBURG — Edinburg North made John Gonzalez work on Friday night.

Edinburg High’s junior right-hander and Texas Tech commit threw 134 pitches and surrendered his first run in nine appearances this season.

But it wasn’t enough. Gonzalez still played spectacularly, and the Bobcats were clean in all phases of the game in a critical 4-1 win at Edinburg High.

“John has been on travel teams, exposed to the big games, and it was his time,” Bobcats coach Robert Valdez said. “There’s a reason he was able to commit early to where he’s going, and this was an opportunity to prove himself.

“It went his way tonight.”

Gonzalez — whose approach was to work the middle of the lineup with off-speed pitches before finishing with fastballs high and in — threw a complete game, struck out 13, walked five and allowed four hits. His lone blemish was a one-out RBI double by Cougars pitcher Carlo Servin in the seventh inning.

It is Gonzalez’s only run given up in 32 innings pitched this year.

“Most definitely, this was one of the most important games of the season,” said Gonzalez, who improved to 5-0. “Now we just have to bear down and control the rest of our way.

“I did OK tonight, but I relied on my defense. I didn’t worry about what I was throwing or if I was tired. I know my guys are going to make plays.”

Edinburg High’s offense, meanwhile, generated nine hits, stole two bases and struck out five times. The effort pushed the Bobcats further into the driver’s seat for the District 31-6A title with a 7-1 record, ahead of Weslaco High (6-2) and Edinburg North (6-3).

The Bobcats have swept the season series against the Panthers and split against the Cougars.

“All year, we’ve pondered on the thought that we’ve taken our lumps the last few years as far as being in the big games, being in the playoffs,” Valdez said. “But we needed the experience to get over that hump. Tonight says a lot about the character of these young men. They were determined and they got the job done.”

Edinburg High scored its four runs in the second and third innings. Jaime Caisano had an RBI double in the second. Matt Treviño had a two-run single in the third and Daniel Solis followed with an RBI triple.

The Cougars had their opportunities, but nothing came to fruition until late. Edinburg North put its first two hitters on base in the second inning before Gonzalez tallied a strikeout, a line-out (on a fabulous catch by third baseman Solis) and another strikeout.

Later, in the third inning, the Cougars loaded the bases with one out before another letdown, highlighted by a terrific snare for an out by Bobcats leftfielder Luis Ortega.

“They made two great plays,” Cougars coach Damian Gonzalez said. “A catch at third and a catch in left centerfield over there. I think those two plays made the difference in a well-played game.

“I’m not disappointed with the way we played. We did a tremendous job tonight.”

Coach Gonzalez said he got everything he wanted offensively. The Cougars made Edinburg High’s Gonzalez, in his first year as a starter after spending the last two years as a closer, work by being patient at the plate and forcing him to throw a lot of pitches.

Servin, the Cougars’ No. 2 pitcher as a sophomore, was solid on the mound. Senior ace Alex Canul pitched Wednesday’s surprising loss at PSJA North, a plan that was premeditated by coach Gonzalez, who works game by game.

“We never think ahead,” coach Gonzalez said. “We were thinking we needed to win the PSJA North game before this one. It just didn’t happen that way. It was (Canul’s) turn Wednesday; that’s what we did.

“I have a lot of confidence in Carlo, in my pitching staff. That’s what we’re going to ride on. The decision was easy.”

The result of the game was not. But in the end, it was the Bobcats’ seventh straight win and the Cougars’ second loss in a row.

“We came out and played as a team,” Treviño said. “We had fun. That’s what we’ve been doing. This was about the district title, and it shows we’re coming together as a team and that all the work we’re putting in during practice is paying off.”

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District 30-6A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-*La Joya Palmview 13 2 8 0 —
McAllen Rowe 12 5 6 3 2½
McAllen High 14 5 5 4 3½
La Joya High 11 8 5 4 3½
McAllen Memorial 6 11 4 5 4½
Mission High 4 13 2 6 6½
LJ Juarez-Lincoln 2 15 0 8 8
*Palmview has tied once

District 31-6A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-*Edinburg High 13 2 6 1 —
x-*Edinburg North 13 3 6 2 ½
x-Weslaco High 11 5 6 2 ½
PSJA Memorial 9 10 3 5 3½
PSJA North 5 13 3 5 3½
Weslaco East 4 13 2 6 4½
*Economedes 6 9 1 6 5
*Edinburg North has tied twice
*Edinburg High has tied once
*Economedes has tied once

District 32-6A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-Harlingen South 14 3 9 1 —
x-*Brownsville Vets 15 1 9 1 —
Brownsville Hanna 10 8 6 4 2
San Benito 11 6 6 4 3
Los Fresnos 10 10 3 7 4
Brownsville Lopez 9 8 3 6 4
Harlingen High 6 13 2 8 5
Brownsville Rivera 4 11 1 8 6
*Brownsville Vets has tied twice

District 31-5A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-Sharyland High 16 2 7 1 —
x-Edinburg Vela 11 7 7 2 ½
Mission Veterans 15 6 6 2 1
Roma 8 11 4 5 3 ½
Valley View 4 6 3 5 4½
Rio Grande City 6 14 2 7 5 ½
Shary Pioneer 4 15 1 8 7
*Valley View tied once

District 32-5A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-Bro. Porter 12 5 8 1 —
x-*PSJA High 12 3 8 1 —
Edcouch-Elsa 7 10 5 4 3
Mercedes 9 8 5 4 3
Brownsville Pace 7 9 4 5 4
Donna High 6 12 3 6 5
Donna North 4 15 2 7 6
*PSJA Southwest 4 14 1 8 7
*PSJA High has tied twice
*PSJA Southwest has tied once

District 32-4A
Overall District
Team W L W L GB
x-Hidalgo 14 4 9 0 —
x-Zapata 11 6 8 1 1
La Feria 12 6 6 3 3
Port Isabel 10 6 5 4 4
Rio Hondo 10 9 3 6 6
Progreso 6 12 3 6 6
Grulla 3 11 2 7 7
Raymondville 0 12 0 9 9
*Hidalgo has tied once
*La Feria has tied once
x-claimed playoff spot

DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

Some familiar faces in the Valley are returning to the state golf tournament later this month.

Sharyland High’s girls golf team, paced by junior standout Ana Jose Erana, earned a bid after placing second in the Region-IV tournament Thursday at Republic Golf Club in San Antonio. It’s the Rattlers’ third straight trip to state.

Sister school Sharyland Pioneer will also be represented, as junior Carina Hernandez finished in sixth to earn a bid to state after going last year as a member of the Rattlers.

The top three teams, and the top three individuals not on a top-three team, advance to state.

Erana won a two-hole playoff against Georgetown’s Brynne Bunte to win the girls individual title. Each girl went par on the first hole, and Erana went par on the second hole with a tap-in while Bunte bogeyed.

“I was nervous, but I just tried to keep my emotions under control and put a good swing on the ball,” Erana said. “The only thing I could control was that.”

Erana had already earned a trip to state after the Lady Rattlers shot a two-day score of 622 to finish second as a team. That was goal No. 1, Erana said.

“I was really just focusing on keeping a good rhythm and on making sure I didn’t let any shots get away from me,” said Erana, who finished with a two-day score of 143. “I kept in mind that every shot counts. I didn’t even think about me. I wanted to put a good score for my team.”

She had plenty of help. Michelle Moroles (155) finished tied for eighth, and Mariana Flores (162) and Raquel Flores (164) finished in the top 20. Christina Shinn-Roldan (172) finished 23rd.

Sharyland High finished 26 strokes behind first-place Austin Vandegrift and 36 ahead of third-place Alamo Heights.

“They played as a true team,” Sharyland coach Fernando Rodriguez said. “The girls finally started to jell together and function as one.”

Hernandez shot a two-day score of 150. She said a concentrated effort to improve her accuracy and stay level-headed through every shot is paying dividends.

“It was definitely the focus level that I was able to keep that was the difference,” Hernandez said. “I was thinking about every shot. At the district meet, I didn’t do my best. So I worked very hard just to shoot my best and see what happens.”

At the girls Class 6A girls regional meet at Brackenridge Golf Course in San Antonio, no Valley team qualified for state, but Harlingen High’s Hanna Greer did. She shot a score of 151 and finished 10th.

Brownsville Hanna was the highest Valley finisher as a team, closing in fifth place with a score of 704, 85 strokes behind third-place San Antonio Churchill. Brownsville Veterans Memorial finished seventh, Weslaco High 11th, Edinburg North 13th, La Joya Palmview 14th and Mission High 16th.

Spring Branch Smithson Valley won the team title with a 609, and San Antonio Reagan and Churchill will join them at state.

Weslaco High’s Anika Hovda finished 12th with a 155, four strokes behind Greer. Joining Greer at state will be first-place finisher Taylor Coleman (141) of San Antonio Johnson and Caitlin Brown (147) of New Braunfels.

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Region IV-6A Golf Tournament

Final Day

Brackenridge Park Golf Course, San Antonio

Girls

Team: 1. Spring Branch Smithson Valley, 609; 2. San Antonio Reagan, 614; 3. San Antonio Churchill, 619; 4. Schertz Clemons, 635; 5. Brownsville Hanna, 704; 6. Laredo United, 715; 7. Brownsville Veterans Memorial, 718; 8. San Antonio Clark, 724; 9. Helotes O’Connor, 749; 10. Corpus Christi Carroll, 768; 11. Weslaco High, 769; 12. Del Rio, 774; 13. Edinburg North, 808; 14. La Joya Palmview, 852; 15. Corpus Christi Ray, 878; 16. Mission High, 918.

Individuals: 1. Taylor Coleman, S.A. Johnson, 141; 2. Stirling Phillips, S.A. Churchill, 146; T-3. Brooklyn Sutton, Smithson Valley, 147; T-3. Caitlin Brown, New Braunfels, 147; T-3. Lauren Mancha, Smithson Valley, 147; T-3. Michelle Grilliette, S.A Churchill, 147; 7. Faith Summers, S.A. Reagan, 148; 8. Amanda Turney, Smithson Valley, 149; 9. Kristin Glesne, S.A. Reagan, 150; 10. Hanna Greer, Harlingen High, 151; 11. Alicia Lehane, Schertz Clemons, 154; 12. Anika Hovda, Weslaco High, 155; 13. Morgan McClaugherty, Harlingen High, 156; 14. Julie Lucio, Brownsville Hanna, 157; T-15. Dabin Cleary, Schertz Clemons, 158; T-15. Haleigh Jordan, S.A. Johnson, 158.

Region IV-5A Golf Tournament

Final Day

Republic Golf Club, San Antonio

Girls

Team: 1. Austin Vandegrift, 596; 2. Sharyland High, 622; 3. Alamo Heights (Blue), 658; 4. Corpus Christi Tuloso-Midway, 679; 5. Edinburg Vela, 701; 6. Marble Falls, 704; 7. Calallen, 752; 8. Bastrop, 781; 9. Castroville Medina Valley, 787; 10. Alamo Heights (Gold), 822; 11. Edcouch-Elsa, 823; 12. Mercedes, 877; 13. San Antonio Brackenridge, 1061; 14. San Antonio Jefferson, 1074; 15. Uvalde, 1727.

Individuals: T-1. Ana Jose Erana, Sharyland High, 143; T-1. Brynne Bunte, Georgetown, 143; 3. Erin Fahey, Austin Vandegrift, 145; 4. Jenna Phillips, Austin Vandegrift, 148; 5. Story Shaw, Austin Vandegrift, 149; 6. Carina Hernandez, Sharyland Pioneer, 150; 7. Sophie Di Gesualdo, Austin Vandegrift, 154; T-8. Michelle Moroles, Sharyland High, 155; T-8. Kelly Xac, Tuloso-Midway, 155; T-8. Charlotte Davis, Tuloso-Midway, 155., 11. Martha Milner, Alamo Heights (Blue), 157; 12. Jordan Jalufka, Austin Vandegrift, 159; 13. Julia Nittoli, Alamo Heights (Blue), 160; T-14. Brooke Degaish, Gregory-Portland, 161; T-14. Jordyn Caruso, Alamo Heights (Blue), 161; T-16. Mariana Flores, Sharyland High, 162; T-16. Abby Dunn, Austin Vandegrift, 162.

DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

McALLEN — The birthday boy delivered, and so did McAllen High’s baseball team.

In a tango with La Joya High for the fourth and final playoff spot in District 30-6A with three games remaining, the Bulldogs struck early and often Thursday against McAllen Rowe at McHi, earning a demonstrative 14-4 win in five innings.

The win pushed McAllen High (13-5 overall) to 5-4 in district, tied with La Joya High, while Rowe fell to 6-3. Though their goal is simply to make the playoffs, the Bulldogs are now a game back of Rowe for second place and tied the season series with Thursday’s win.

“We have to be ready to play,” McHi coach Eliseo Pompa said. “We’re trying to get to the playoffs, and every game’s important.”

Celebrating his 18th birthday, senior Fred Hover got things started with a two-run homer to left center with no outs in the first inning.

Hover took a high 2-0 pitch from Ethan Ramirez and “was sitting dead red.”

“I was like, ‘Birthday!’” Hover said, laughing. “I took a cut and was able to get on top of it.”

It was an onslaught from there. The Bulldogs sliced Warriors pitching for four runs on five hits in the first inning, six runs on five hits in the fourth, and three runs on three hits in the fifth.

Hover went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Kike Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Victor Valdez outdid them all by going 4-for-4 with three RBIs.

“The best present ever,” Hover said. “This was a big win for us, a much-needed win. We’re in a playoff battle and we want it real bad. We’ve been hitting well late in games, and today we made it a point to come out like that from the start.

“We didn’t come out and test the water. We jumped right into it.”

Defensively, McHi junior Eli Rodriguez was stellar on the mound. The 6-foot-4 lefty pitched a complete game, struck out three and surrendered six hits.

Content to pitch to his defense, the only blemish on Rodriguez’s outing was a pesky rally by Rowe late in the fifth, when the Warriors scored three runs with two outs to extend the game a bit longer.

Otherwise, Rodriguez kept his pitches outside and low and didn’t look for strikeouts as much as routine plays.

“I was just throwing the ball down the middle and my defense made the plays,” Rodriguez said. “We had a good game. We didn’t want to lose again and we pretty much have to win out to make it. Tonight, our minds were in this game.”

The Bulldogs were coming off a 10-9 loss the night before to La Joya High. That game, the Bulldogs’ offense was sporadic. A wart this season has been leaving too many runners on base in big situations.

Against Rowe, that wasn’t the case. The Bulldogs had 16 hits, seven for extra bases.

“We put the ball in play,” Pompa said. “We kept our strikeouts to a minimum. We were patient and we swung at strikes. The kids were a little more focused than yesterday.”

McAllen High finishes the district season at La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, versus McAllen Memorial, and at 30-6A leader La Joya Palmview. La Joya High finishes against Mission High, at McAllen Rowe, and versus Juarez-Lincoln.

“Tonight really showed what we can do when we put our pitching and hitting together,” Hover said. “Now we need to keep it going.”

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DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER

Mission Veterans Memorial recently encountered a couple of key injuries.

First, there was a ligament sprain suffered by Ruben Cavazos, who was hurt on his first swing April 7 against Sharyland High. He’s expected to be out another 10-14 days or so. And then there’s Edward Pena, who suffered a sprained thumb Monday against Roma and is out for at least the next two games.

Fortunately, Vets has rising sophomore Matthew de la Garza, who is hitting .404, tied for the team lead in runs scored, and has a .516 on-base percentage. De la Garza’s versatility (he plays all over the infield) and offensive prowess, coach Casey Smith said, allows flexibility in the lineup.

“He understands situations, counts, what we want at the plate,” Smith said of his underclassman that joined the varsity during last year’s playoffs. “He’s got baseball savvy. He just gets it.”

Without its two all-staters in the lineup, Mission Vets (15-6, 6-2 District 31-5A) has remained competitive. It fell to Sharyland, then bounced back with a big win against Roma.

“It is what it is,” Smith said. “You lose two of your best three hitters, and you’re going to have a hard time replacing them. But having someone like Matty gives me room to move people around.”

Smith said the team will get by with more of a small-ball approach. Until then, he won’t return Cavazos or Pena unless they’re at full health.

NOT QUITE THERE

Hidalgo coach Karlos Carrasco has not lost a district game during his three years at the helm. So far this season, he’s 9-0, all the more impressive since No. 2 pitcher Allan Wilburn has pitched just one game this season because of arm and hamstring injuries.

Still, it’s not all gravy for the Pirates.

“Right now, I feel like there’s something not clicking,” Carrasco said. “It happens every year, which is good because we usually peak at the right time.”

Aside from Wilburn, pitcher Adrian Ruiz has also been sidelined with arm injuries, so Carrasco has turned to Kike Mendoza, little-used as a pitcher, and Mike Alvarez, never used as a pitcher, on the mound.

The Pirates have not had a full, healthy rotation yet this season. But that’s OK, Carrasco said. His team is a perennial late-bloomer.

Last year, Hidalgo, which has relied heavily on pitching and defense because of offensive inconsistency, didn’t hit its stride until the playoffs versus Kingsville King. The year before, it wasn’t until a Game 3 third-round win against Robstown that the Pirates reached their peak.

“I’m happy because we’re winning,” Carrasco said. “But we’re not satisfied. We haven’t found a groove yet. We haven’t found ourselves.”

Good news, though. Wilburn is probable to return next week, just in time for the playoffs.

WANTED: A HOME

Edinburg Vela’s baseball field is not exactly ideal. Vela, coach Jaime Perez said, has the state’s smallest baseball field, while boasting the state’s largest softball field.

More than that, however, Perez’s field is uneven. Left field is at least a foot lower than right field, and the baseball field is on lower ground than the softball field. That makes this season, full of relentless rain, a trying one.

“Our bullpen is on flat ground,” Perez said. “We haven’t practiced the last three days; we had to rent out a facility. It’s ridiculous. It can’t stay like that.”

It has caught the district’s attention. Perez said the district is looking to either build a new baseball field for Vela, likely off campus “near old Bobcats Stadium near the football stadium,” or remodel the current one.

“It all comes down to money and winning games,” said Perez, whose team qualified for the playoffs for the first time in program history with Thursday’s win over Pioneer. “If we get to the third round (of the playoffs), then I think we can get what we want. But they’ve got to do something, because every time it rains we can’t get on for a week. I know they’re working to fix the problem.”

Inclement weather, which has forced a plethora of postponements and cancellations for baseball and softball teams this season, has made a long-term impact. Perez said Edcouch-Elsa is going to full turf on its field next season, and PSJA Memorial and PSJA North will likely have turf fields in the near future.

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RGVSPORTS.COM TOP 10 BASEBALL POLL

Rank, Team Record Previous
1, Sharyland High 16-2 1
2, Brownsville Veterans Memorial 15-1 2
3, Edinburg High 13-2-1 4
4, Harlingen South 14-3 5
5, La Joya Palmview 13-2-1 7
6, Hidalgo 14-4-1 6
7, Edinburg North 13-3-2 3
8, Brownsville Porter 12-5 10
9, Mission Veterans Memorial 15-6 9
10, PSJA High 12-3-2 NR