Angela Garcia

Brownsville Veterans Memorial, senior

Senior playmaker Angela Garcia had a terrific career at Brownsville Veterans that resulted in a scholarship with Our Lady of the Lake in the spring.

Garcia scored 43 times in District 32-5A for the Chargers in 2024 and is The Brownsville Herald/Valley Morning Star’s 2024 Girls Soccer Most Valuable Player.

Garcia was amazing during her career as a playmaker in the heart of the Chargers; midfield. Brownsville Veterans had more successful seasons as a team when Garcia had experienced forwards around her, but Garcia still helped the Chargers to the playoffs in 2024.

Garcia’s 43 district goals was the third-most goals scored among players in the Valley, only seven goals behind first and three behind second. Garcia outscored the closest Lower Valley rival by 21 goals. She was extremely talented with the ball at her feet, was a threat at set pieces and could pull the strings in the midfield.

Juliana Garcia

Harlingen High, sophomore

Garcia had a breakout season after only appearing in the playoffs for the Cardinals as a freshman.

Garcia finished 25 times to earn the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Offensive Player of the Year award.

The standout had a lot of talented players around her that provided her good service to grab goals, but Garcia has a relentless engine. The work rate the Cardinals’ forward showed really put pressure on opposing back lines as the forward was always trying to make runs and press when the Cardinals did not have possession.

There is a lot of talent on the Cardinals’ roster despite churning out college prospects of late, and leading the forward line will be Garcia.

Aliyah Fonseca

Harlingen South, senior

Easily one of the best all-around players in the Valley, Fonseca did it all for the Hawks, but is going to play at Texas Lutheran as a left or right back.

Fonseca is the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Defensive Player of the Year.

It is hard to say what Fonseca’s best position is, but when she lined up in the sweeper role for Harlingen South she was amazing and could cover the field like a single-high safety on the football field.

It is no surprise college coaches would see her as a left/right back because of her height and because of her cross country background as center backs tend to be taller, but Fonseca could be strong a 1-on-1 situation with the size of any attacker, and she will have to do that against wingers in college.

Fonseca chipped in with seven district goals as the Hawks dominated District 32-5A and competed admirably against some of the better 5A teams in the region.

Grace Reed

Harlingen High, senior

Harlingen High dominated possession for long stretches, with numerous players having the ability to play on the ball. In the heart of the formation was Reed.

Reed did it all in the midfield, the No. 6, the No. 8 and even the 10 on the Lower Valley’s best team. Reed is the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Midfielder of the Year.

Reed played in a more advanced role in the midfield this season, and it paid off as the midfielder scored nine goals and provided two assists in all competitions.

Reed’s ability proved she could do it all in the midfield after playing more of a defensive role in the heart of the midfield. It should help her next year in college at Lubbock Christian University.

Gilliece Gomez

Harlingen High, senior

Gomez was a rock at the back for a Cardinals side that had top players leave its back line in recent years. Gomez was key as the Cardinals’ defense dominated opponents to earn the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Goalie of the Year honor.

Gomez went 15 straight games without picking the ball out of her net. The streak lasted to the third round of the playoffs, where she gave up a goal after a dubious call on a back pass awarded San Antonio Warren an indirect free kick in the box.

Gomez is aggressive when she needs to be and good with the ball at her feet as well, and she will be playing next season at St. Edward’s University in Austin.

Claudia Millan

Brownsville IDEA Riverview, freshman

They are building something special in Brownsville.

The Rockets have a chokehold around District 32-4A and it doesn’t look like they will let up with talented players breaking into the team at a young age.

Millan will be one to watch the next three years after excelling with the Rockets to earn the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Newcomer of the Year award.

Millan led the Rockets in scoring this season with 18 goals, 14 coming in district play. Riverview will return four of its five top scorers in 2024. Millan also chipped in five assists, the third-most on her team, as the Rockets went undefeated in district and picked up a 9-0 bi-district playoff victory.

Riverview has had players find college homes before and likely has another potential prospect with Millan.

Jose Galvan

Harlingen High head coach

Galvan continued where he left off last season with the Cardinals. Harlingen High was the best Class 6A team in the Valley and easily the best in the Lower Valley after being led by Galvan.

Galvan has had talent, for sure, but talent does not always equal results. Galvan is the Herald/Star 2024 Girls Soccer Coach of the Year.

The Cardinals have had key players — multiple college level players — graduate in recent seasons and have only gone deeper in the playoffs. Harlingen High made it to the fourth round this season and is one of the best teams in Region IV under Galvan.

Galvan’s next challenge will be competing with those top teams out of the Austin area, and he will have plenty of talented players on the roster next year to do it.

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McALLEN — Standing calm amongst coiled rattlesnakes is Jackie Bibby as crowds gathered to see the deadly snakes Saturday and will today, Sunday, at the 33rd Annual Texas Hunter & Sportsman’s Expo at the McAllen Convention Center. 

Bibby, a 53-year veteran to snake handling, has been bitten by rattlesnakes 12 times and will be at the McAllen Convention Center for the final day of the expo talking to locals about the venomous snake that could by starring you in the eyes. 

As the summer continues, Valley residents may encounter the deadly snakes while vacationing in outdoor areas or hunting. 

“The people that come to these events generally get outdoors a lot, so they get the opportunity to let us tell them what to expect if they encounter one, what to do if they get bite. That is information they might not have otherwise,” Bibby said.

Bibby holds five Guinness World records. Bibby laid in a bath tub with 195 rattlesnakes for one of his records and has been featured by multiple publications throughout his career that date backs to 1969.

Bibby’s exhibits has taken him all over the country and Europe as well. 

‘The Texas Snake Man’ has lost a leg due to a snake bite and has been bitten in the hand and stomach as well. 

“We would love to have anybody come out and ask us questions, look to see what we are doing, come out and have some family fun,” Bibby said. 

Today is the last day to check out the expo. The convention center will open at 11 a.m. and close at 6 p.m. for attendees.

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BROWNSVILLE — Brownsville native Cassandra Valdez told her mother, Jenny Valdez, before her career-defining senior season at Our Lady of the Lake that she would be “snatching souls.”

The collegiate pitcher snatched a lot of them. She compiled a 30-1 record on the mound, racking up multiple individual accolades as she helped the Saints capture an NAIA national softball title in late May. Cassandra Valdez now will embark on a professional career with Coastal Bend Tidal Wave of the Women’s Professional Fastpitch league.

The Saints dominated NAIA softball this season, going 57-3 and picking up a 2-0 win over Jessup University in the NAIA World Series, with Valdez throwing a four-hit shutout.

Valdez, the guest speaker at the RGVSports.com All-Valley Sports Banquet on Friday, picked up the NAIA World Series MVP award, was named best pitcher for the NAIA and earned a spot on the NAIA’s All-American first team for the second straight season. She was an All-American honorable mention in 2022.

Valdez spoke to the media and the community last Friday at Brownsville Veterans Memorial High School, where she shined as the best female athlete in the Valley from the Class of 2018. Valdez earned a scholarship to UTSA before moving to Texas State and then finishing her college career at OLLU.

She admitted she was close to hanging up the cleats prior to joining OLLU, but her mother was doing work behind the scenes and reached out to another former Valley standout, Joanna Gonzalez, who at the time was catching for OLLU after playing at San Benito.

“I took a visit to OLLU, and I felt like it was home,” Valdez said. “I prayed to God about it. I put the OLLU hat on, and it felt right. Three years later we win a national championship and I am so glad that God led me there. I had to go through some things to get to OLLU, but everything happens for a reason.”

Valdez thanked her mother for helping her out of her comfort zone and making those moves to help her go to OLLU, and also her father, who instilled hard-working values that pushed her through the tough times in the sport.

“I am just one woman, one testament for many of the girls — whether you are from the Valley or not — just work for everything you want, and playing pro was not a dream of mine until three years ago,” Valdez said.

Valdez led the NAIA with a 0.53 ERA and with 286 strikeouts. She also had the most wins and had the sixth-most home runs at the plate with 15 to show off her abilities to pitch and hit. Valdez also was a three-time conference pitcher of the year and a two-time conference player of the year.

The Coastal Bend Tidal Wave begin their season June 20 with their home opener set for June 27 at Fairground Field in Robstown.

“This is a great league, there are so many good players in this league and I am so excited to be a part of it while representing the NAIA and the Valley,” Valdez said.

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Offensive Player of the Year: Angelina Reyes, San Benito

San Benito’s Angelina Reyes averaged 16 points a game this season for the Greyhounds with a tough schedule and competitive district.

Reyes is the The Brownsville Herald/Valley Morning Star’s 2023-24 Girls Basketball Offensive Player of the Year.

Reyes has been a standout for the Greyhounds since a freshman and played another key role during the 2023-24 season as San Benito picked up a bi-district win after finishing third in District 32-6A. The junior has one more season in the gold and purple. Reyes also provided 2.5 assists per game.

Reyes averaged 16 ppg last season but had an assist less. The Greyhounds’ baller has 1,511 career points and is on pace to reach 2,000 next year as a senior.

Defensive Player of the Year: Regina Tovar, Brownsville St. Joseph

Brownsville St. Joseph’s Regina Tovar was one of the best all-around players in the Lower Valley this season and one of the best point guards in the Valley.

Tovar had stellar defense in 2023-24 to earn The Brownsville Herald/Valley Morning Star’s Defensive Player of the Year.

The senior guard averaged six steals a game as she led her defense from the front. Tovar’s steals often led to points that helped the Bloodhounds reach the Elite Eight in the TAPPS 5A playoffs.

Tovar had a total of 161 steals this season and six blocks. The four-year letterman finished with 472 career steals for St. Joseph.

Utility Player of the Year: D’Arrah Howard, Brownsville Lopez

Brownsville Lopez’s D’Arrah Howard dealt with injuries her first two years at Lopez. Howard came back strong this season and did a lot for the Lobos anywhere she could.

Howard is The Brownsville Herald/Valley Morning Star’s Utility Player of the Year.

The junior averaged 15.5 ppg and also grabbed 12.5 rebounds a night as she had to maneuver between guard and post duties. Howard also found teammates, played terrific defense and will be a key player in the Lower Valley during the 24-25 season.

Co-Newcomers of the Year: Seanah Mireles, Brownsville St. Joseph and Natali Lozano, Los Fresnos

The Lower Valley had a lot of young talent this season because of some retooling at major programs.

There could have been a whole team of newcomers.

Mireles and Lozano were fantastic and will be key pieces and players to watch the next three years.

Mireles led the Bloodhounds in scoring, averaging 14 ppg with a total of 407 points, to go along with 7.5 rebounds a game, three steals and two assists a game as well.

The Bloodhounds’ freshman was clutch in the playoffs and down the stretch in their challenging TAPPS district.

Lozano averaged 13 points, six rebounds, 1.5 steals, a block and an assist for the Falcons this season. Like Mireles, Lozano was a key player as a freshman on a team in arguably the toughest district in the Valley, District 32-6A.

The Falcons’ freshman held her own against Edinburg High, the Valley’s best team for the 2023-24 season, during the bi-district round.

Sub-5A MVP: Heather May, Lyford

Lyford’s Heather May was the Bulldogs’ rock this season as she helped lead Lyford to a co-District 32-3A title and a trip to the area round.

May is The Brownsville Herald/Valley Morning Star’s sub-5A MVP.

May was unstoppable at times down low as she dominated the paint, grabbing boards, making it to the foul line and finding open teammates for buckets.

May was not the tallest post but was strong and athletic from playing multiple sports at Lyford, and was one of the key reasons that Lyford had a chance against Aransas Pass in the area round.

Coach of the Year: Arnold Torres, Brownsville Veterans

Brownsville Veterans head coach Arnold Torres again graduated a bunch of key players only to win another District 32-5A title.

The Chargers won 34 games and only took one loss in district to Harlingen South. Brownsville Veterans also won a bi-district meeting with McAllen Memorial and was the only team in its district to pick up a playoff win.

Torres is going to have his work cut out for him next year as the Chargers are set to move up to District 32-6A.

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AUSTIN — Things looked desperate for the Weslaco High Panthers after going down 9-3 to Waco Midway entering the bottom of the seventh inning in the Class 6A state title game Saturday at McCombs Field in Austin.

The Panthers never gave up and battled to set things up for sophomore shortstop Andrea Ortiz with bases loaded and Weslaco High down 9-7.

Ortiz smashed a grand slam to lift the Panthers to their first ever state softball championship and the first for a Valley program, beating Waco Midway 11-7. The win also meant it was the first state title for a girls sporting program in Valley history.

“At the end we just told the girls give yourself a chance, keep fighting, keep fighting,” Weslaco High head coach Mario Rodriguez said to the media at McCombs Field in Austin. “We knew they had a powerhouse over there and we were just trying to slow them down a little bit. I did not know if we could stop them, but we were going to slow them down.”

Rodriguez said in the end, it came down to quality at bats.

The Panthers started off with an out in the bottom half of the seventh. Sophomore Dayla Hinojosa made it to third on an error and was driven in by senior Alexis Soliz. A couple walks and a hit batter later, seniors Elizabeth Craig and Romy Nuñez drove in runs to make 9-7.

Next up, Ortiz.

“I knew I had it,” Ortiz said. “I told my coach and I told everybody I got you guys, I got you guys. Our saying is, ‘we got our backs’ and I knew I had to come through for my team. So, I believed in myself as much as I could and I came through.”

Waco Midway had hit four home runs off of Weslaco High and the Panthers did not do themselves favors with a couple of errors to build the 9-3 lead.

No team from the Valley had made it to a state title game in softball before Harlingen South and Weslaco High did it this weekend.

Harlingen South played the earlier game against a tough Melissa team loaded with D1 talent for the Class 5A state title.

The Hawks would lose 8-0, but it was a terrific season filled with playoff magic to send one of the Valley’s best softball programs to their first ever state tournament.

Harlingen South, Weslaco High and San Benito are the only Valley programs to make it to the state tournament.

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AUSTIN — Things looked desperate for the Weslaco High Panthers after going down 9-3 to Waco Midway entering the bottom of the seventh inning in the Class 6A state title game Saturday at McCombs Field in Austin.

The Panthers never gave up and battled to set things up for sophomore shortstop Andrea Ortiz with bases loaded and Weslaco High down 9-7.

Ortiz smashed a grand slam to lift the Panthers to the first ever state softball championship and the first for a Valley program, beating Waco Midway 11-7.

Waco Midway went up 9-3 thanks to four home runs by various players and a few errors by Weslaco High.

No team from the Valley has ever made it to the state title game before this season.

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AUSTIN — It was a heck of a day for Rio Grande Valley high school softball, a historic one.

The Valley will have two representatives in a state title game in the first season for the first time ever after the Harlingen South Hawks and Weslaco High Panthers won semifinal games in Class 5A and Class 6A respectively and they did so Friday in Georgetown with everyone on the edge of their seats.

Harlingen South will meet Melissa in the Class 5A state title game at 1 p.m. and Weslaco High faces Waco Midway at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Harlingen South 1, Aledo 0

Thursday night and early morning Friday rains in Austin moved the games to Georgetown at East View High School from McCombs Field in Austin and it was Harlingen South to take the field first at 1 p.m.

Hawks junior pitcher Lexi Sandoval has been brilliant all season in the circle and continued with maybe her best game ever in orange. Sandoval struck out 10 Aledo batters after throwing six innings and picking up two outs in the bottom of the seventh.

The Hawks closed the game with Amira Rodriguez.

It was a crazy final out, the Aledo runner advancing to home from third got caught in a pickle thanks to an awkward throw, but Jaylin Mata was there to scoop it up. Mata and catcher Haley Vasquez ran down the runner to pick up the final out.

“We knew it was going to be a tight ball game, we just said, ‘hey continue to fight until the end,’ and we did just that,” Harlingen South head coach Joey Rios said.

Rios praised Sandoval for her performance in the circle. The junior was happy about hers, “a win is a win,” she said to reporters from KRGV and KVEO as fans shouted congratulations and words of encouragement to her during her interview.

“We are one game away, one game away,” she said. “Why not finish it off.”

It was a pitcher’s duel for sure. Sandoval picked up the win over Aledo’s Taylor McKean, but McKean was equally as good on the day. McKean was probably done in by the walks after finishing with 14 strikeouts.

The Hawks picked up six walks and only one hit according to the UIL’s live stats from the game.

Harlingen South benefited from a Yezenia Perez walk in the third. Perez was moved over by Rodriguez who officially got on base because of an error, but it was hard enough to force a bobble, they are strict with the scoring at state.

Hawks senior Emily Ruiz came up next to deliver the only hit of the game for the Hawks. Ruiz took a 3-2 pitch to right center to drive in Perez from second.

“I just really focus on calming myself down and just doing everything that I have been taught throughout the season,” Ruiz said. “I just try to and look for the right pitches.”

Ruiz battled an illness/stomach bug against Liberty Hill and into practice this week. Ruiz has come through clutch on multiple occasions during the Hawks’ run.

“One more game left, this is everything we have been working for – all season,” Ruiz said. “We are all really excited.”

The Hawks have their toughest opponent of the season in the state championship with Melissa.

Melissa defeated Lake Belton 4-0 and it does seem cliché to say Melissa is the best, but the Cardinals took down Aledo 11-2 early in the season. That was a long time ago and now they are going to face a Harlingen South team that have ice in their veins.

Weslaco High 5, Denton Guyer 3

If your heart was not done in after the South game, the Weslaco High game took care of you.

It was 13 innings of pure intensity as the newly No.1 ranked team in Texas, Denton Guyer, was taken into deep waters by the Weslaco High Panthers.

The Panthers, fueled by Wildcat tears (Gatorade), battled with the Guyer Wildcats for four hours in Georgetown to come out on top thanks to great pitching by Madelynn Cantu and some timely hitting by the Panthers’ offense to advance to the Class 6A state title game.

Cantu, a sophomore, has been terrific all season and has pitched double-headers this postseason already. Cantu went back-to-back games against Lake Travis in round four in temperatures well over 100 degrees in Beeville.

Georgetown was a lot cooler and Cantu looked fresh in the dugout even after giving up three runs in the sixth, she never looked like she would not get the job done Friday night for the Panthers.

Cantu struck out 12 and was especially good in pressure situations as the sophomore worked out of more jams than she probably should have. The Wildcats finished with 15 hits.

Weslaco High senior catcher Romy Nuñez started the Panthers off in the 13th inning with a single. Kalysa Izaguirre came into run and she was moved over to second by a nicely placed bunt by Andrea Ortiz. 

Senior right fielder Ema Galvan has been amazing at the plate late in postseason and she continued to deliver with the game-winning RBI by placing a line drive down the third-base line.

“Coming in when the moment is right … words can’t describe it,” Galvan said. “I was waiting for her to pitch me inside.”

Galvan was then driven in by Dayla Hinojosa for insurance. Hinojosa had a great game at the plate, going 4-for-6 with two runs scored as well.

Senior Elizabeth Craig chipped in with two hits, Nuñez also should have had two but it was scored an error by the UIL and fellow senior Alexis Soliz came through with a big hit to drive in Hinojosa in the sixth. 

Panthers second baseman Mia Rodriguez also drove in Hinojosa as well as Lola Reyes in the fifth inning when she picked up a double. Rodriguez’s hit looked to be a game-winner if not for the late rally by Guyer.

“We just kept fighting, and so did they, I give a lot of credit to Guyer – they never gave up,” Rodriguez said. “Neither did we. I am just glad we got the win in the end.”

Galvan and Rodriguez said they were not overly worried about rankings come into the game since they have already beaten Katy, who was the previous No.1 but was taken out in the regional championships, and they know what they are capable of.

Weslaco High will look to grab that No. 1 spot for good at 4 p.m. Saturday.

Final takeaways

Both sets of players and coaches have talked about being able to play at McCombs Field during practice this week, probably one of the biggest perks about coming to state is playing where the current No. 1 NCAA D1 team, the University of Texas, plays at.

So, the news this morning was kind of disheartening in a way, but one thing both teams also said during practice this week was that they are enjoying the fun times and memories they are making on the fields and in the dugouts.

Both teams will have one more game of that.

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