PHARR — .477, .466, .429, .427, .404.

That’s the batting averages of the top five hitters — Victoria Gonzalez, Kristy Alanis, Kristin Maldonado, Chelsea Salinas and Victoria Maldonado — for the PSJA Memorial Wolverines softball team.

.0994.

That’s the ERA (earned run average) of starting pitcher Salinas, a junior, this season.

So, what can one extrapolate from those numbers?

This is a very, very good team and they will be out to show that once again as the Wolverines host Corpus Christi Calallen in the Region IV-5A quarterfinals, a best-of-3 series beginning at 7 p.m. Friday.

Memorial advanced to the quarterfinals following an anticlimactic three-game series against Port Lavaca. The Wolverines left their bats home (not literally) for Game 1, falling 6-1. They tied the series at 1 each with a 6-4 win then rolled in Game 3 with an 8-0 victory.

The Wolverines went 14-0 in District 31-5A, not getting much resistance from the competition. Overall, they have a 31-5-3 record.

First-year coach Rachel Barbosa said she has been impressed by the team. She took as interim coach and was named head coach midway through the season.

“Some of them play basketball and volleyball, so I knew what they could do since I coached them already,” Barbosa said. “They moved down from 6A to 5A and I knew they could take care of business.”

Salinas blew through the district from on the mound. In one of the closest games in terms of score, PSJA Memorial beat Sharyland High 6-0. Salinas struck out 15 and gave up just two hits.

“When I came in she was the one who really stood out, with her bat and on the mound,” Barbosa said. “She was clutch in some many of our games, getting big home runs, driving in crucial runs and striking out big hitters. She’s amazing.”

Barbosa said with all the big bats in the lineup there were times during the year when the team became a little complacent with such easy wins. Instead of “next man up,” it was more like “next man can do it.”

“Look at the Port Lavaca game,” Barbosa said. “The only bat to show up was Victoria (Gonzalez), who hit a home run.”

That loss, however, woke up some bats and the Wolverines hit four home runs over the next two games to advance to this Calallen series.

“I am always telling the girls to stay starving — not just stay hungry,” Barbosa said.

They’ll need to be hungrier than Calallen for the regional quarterfinals. Barbosa said the team is nearly a mirror image of the Wolverines with big bats, solid defense and a pitcher that can throw the team upon her shoulders.

“It’s just going to come down to who makes the fewer mistakes, who doesn’t commit the errors fielding or mentally,” Barbosa said. “Chelsea is confident but, of course, is more confident if we can put up some runs. It makes her job easier — let’s her be a little more calm and confident in what she’s doing.

The last time we were in the regional quarterfinals, the seniors right now were freshman. Now the goal is to go one round farther, at least.”

[email protected]

GEORGETOWN — One hundred minutes of play wasn’t enough to find a winner in the UIL Class 5A state semifinal between Valley View and El Paso Bel Air.

The match was decided in penalty kicks after each squad found the net three times in regulation, but came up empty in 20 minutes of extra time.

After nearly 2 1/2 hours, the Highlanders prevailed 4-2 in penalty kicks.

Valley View’s season concludes in the same round as it did a season ago, one match away from the state title game.

In PKs, two Tigers scored and Valley View keeper Diego Cuellar made a save. It wasn’t enough, however, because Bel Air’s goalie Kevin Peña made two saves to give his team the edge.

“Since the beginning, El Paso (Bel Air) was a really good team. They knew how to pressure us,” Tigers junior Jorge Amaya said. “Their positions were really on top of the game. It was really hard, but we found their weaknesses.”

Freshman forward Yonathan Castro was a standout in his state debut for Valley View. He scored once and was instrumental in forcing a defender to make a play that ended up in an own goal. The pair of goals turned the tide toward Valley View in less than a minute at the end of the first half to put the Tigers in front, 2-1.

“We were very calm even though their talent is amazing,” Bel Air coach Sergio Delgado said. “They have so much talent, such good athletes. I think they broke us in the last 25 minutes of the first half and we had to come back and adjust.”

For the second year in a row at state, Valley View found itself playing from behind early. Three minutes into the match, Bryan Guzman sent a howitzer into the wind that seemed to catch a gust and sailed into the top corner from 38 yards out.

In 2018, Valley View allowed a goal during the first 10 minutes but was unable to knot the game.

Castro’s goal and the own goal held until Guzman scored his second for the Highlanders with a crafty flick into the net.

Another storyline during the second half was Amaya’s health. The midfielder suffered an apparent knee injury, but was able to finish the match after a few moments testing the leg.

“Under no circumstances was I going to leave my team on the field,” Amaya said. “I’ve been playing varsity since freshman (year) and I’ve always wanted to help and support my team through every situation. I knew I had to go back in and help my team.”

The final 10 minutes of regulation was hectic with the Highlanders watching their season on the line and prying overtime from the jaws of defeat.

With 7:35 remaining, Pablo Torre sent a bending shot past the keeper to give Valley View a late 3-2 lead. The elation was short-lived because Bel Air marched down the field and tied the game 58 seconds later.

The Tigers were given a gift in the form of handball less than a minute later. Defender Adrian Rodriguez was tabbed to take the kick but his shot hit the spot where crossbar meets post.

For the third time in the 2019 playoffs, the Tigers needed overtime. This was the first time they didn’t score in the 20 additional minutes.

“The guys gave it all. The kids gave it all they got,” Valley View coach Damien Magallan said. “Unfortunately, soccer’s that way. … When the ball doesn’t go in, it’s kind of hard.”

The coach said despite the disappointment, the group will use the result as fuel for another run.

“We have a lot of kids that are coming back,” Magallan said. “All of them are going to come back with the experience that they gained from the state tournament.”

ELSA — The Edinburg Bobcats unleashed a 20-0 run in the second quarter and never looked back as they went on to dismantle the Harlingen Cardinals 54-34 Tuesday night and claimed the regional quarterfinal championship.

Senior Edinburg guard Jenessah Santa Maria scored 15 points to lead a balanced Bobcats attack that scored inside and out and was aggressive on the defensive side of the ball.

Edinburg, 33-8, moves on to the play the San Antonio Clark-Cibolo Steele winner in the regional semifinals. The Lady Cardinals end the season at 31-6.

Santa Maria and teammates Brianna Martinez, Annika Saenz and Brianna Sanchez initiated the second-quarter surge that took a 10-9 Edinburg lead to start the period to a 30-9 advantage five minutes later before Harlingen could finally respond.

Edinburg coach J.D. Salinas said the change to a zone defense, which they haven’t used in weeks, helped ignite the Bobcats fire.

“We adjust and that’s part of basketball,” Salinas said. “The girls did a really good job with what they were asked to do. It (defense) held them to one shot. We able to get defensive rebounds, and we were able to push.”

The 5-foot-3 Santa Maria, the playmaker with dazzling handles, had eight points, two steals and a rebound to spark the devastating run – which saw Edinburg hit four treys and four layups while shooting 9 of 12 from the floor.

On the flip side, Harlingen was flat out cold. The Cards connected on just 2 of 17 field goals in the first half and turned the ball over nine times.

Sanchez, a 6-foot-2-inch post player, was not to be outdone. The junior rejected three shots, altered countless others and posted 10 points and 11 rebounds while playing with foul trouble.

Sanchez, Santa Maria and others worked just as hard on the defensive side of court. The Bobcats closed out quickly on shooters, deflected passes and crashed the defensive glass at every opportunity.

“We played with hustle and fight,” Santa Maria said. “We are going to fight for every loose ball. Find the open lane so they don’t get back into the open lane. Any little stop will get the momentum on our side. It brings the other team down and us up.”

Harlingen hit a few baskets late but was never able to recover. It once got the deficit down to 14 points, but Edinburg quickly doused any fourth-quarter comeback hopes with hoops of its own. The Cardinals were led by Ariel Leal’s 11 points, meanwhile Teagan Dickey added 10.

FROM STAFF REPORTS

The Edinburg High girls’ basketball team grabbed a 30-11 lead over Harlingen High during the Class 5A Regional Quarterfinals on Tuesday night at Edcouch-Elsa gymnasium.

Check back later at RGVsports.com for a complete story after the game.

HENRY MILLER | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — Angel Avila stood across from his opponent on the wrestling mat and, at first glance, he wasn’t too concerned.

Then the two shook hands and that handshake shook Avila.

“He was standing there all scrawny and like he never lifted anything and his bones were scrawny,” said the Sharyland Pioneer 120-pound wrestler. “Once I felt that grip though I knew he was going to give me a hard time.”

“Scrawny guy” won the match, being held in Illinois during a summer wrestling event.

Avila learned a lot from that match, and his previous two years as a Diamondback grappler. Now, coming off a first place at the All-Valley Wrestling Match, he’s hoping to take that momentum to Rio Grande City High School today for the district duals.

It’s been a long year for Avila, who was disqualified from the district tournament last year on the second day. “I busted weight,” he said. “I ate too much.”

“That’s exactly what happened,” said Pioneer coach Richard Eckley, in his fifth year at the helm of both the Pioneer boys and girls program. “You have to maintain your weight.” The lost cost him what Eckley believes a chance at making state. The wrestler who won the district, Rio Grande City’s Raul Lopez, defeated Avila earlier in the season, 8-6.

“Angel was on a roll at that point in the season,” Eckley said. “I think he could’ve advanced.”

The junior, who also competes in cross country and pole vaults in track, is in his third year on the mat. He didn’t compete in districts his freshman year, instead traveling to California to attend his brother R.J.’s graduation from the Marine Academy.

R.J. also wrestled at Pioneer and Eckley describes both of their styles as “relentless.” After Angel was disqualified during his sophomore year, R.J. did what good big brothers should do.

“He got after me,” Angel said, wincing just a bit at the memory. “I don’t want that – he got mad at me and had ‘a talk’ with me.”

There’s a certain respect Angel has for his brother when he talks about him. He described him as 5-feet-9 inches tall, 216 pounds and “just a little fat.” Then he unconsciously ducked, seemingly concerned big brother was suddenly standing behind him instead of being on base in California, just having returned from a tour in Iraq.

Of course, “fat” for wrestlers might mean a percentage of bodyfat over perfection – it’s all relative. What is not is the non-stop aggression he maintains on the mat.

“Conditioning is the most important thing for relentless aggression style wrestlers,” Eckley said. “They work on it a lot in practice. You don’t want them getting tired in the third period and suddenly they run out of gas and get pinned.”

There’s an old cliché that wrestlers come just from a different breed. Their mentality is different – as is the one-on-one physicality of one of the world’s oldest sports. Avila is soft-spoken with a seemingly quiet demeanor. Put him on the mat and he transforms into the Tasmanian Devil, ready to battle anything and anyone in his way. He knows he has missed opportunities on the mat and his actions during practice prove he’s out for a different result this year.

“Angel is the most improved wrestler over the year; his practice habits have really improved,” Eckley said. “He’s always been really talented and his practice habits have improved so much. He is looking to get better every second he gets a change to be on the mat in practice. It has shown at all the meets this year.”

Eckley, who brought five girls and four boys to the state meet last year, expects Angel to have a shot this year to be on a part trip to Cypress, Texas, for the state tournament. “He has a chance to be a regional champion and a place-winner at state,” Eckley said.

“I want to prove everyone that I can do it,” Angel said. “I need to be in condition, work on technique and endurance and strength.

“And maintain my weight.”

If he doesn’t do that last one, he can expect another “talk” from his brother R.J., even if he is “a little fat.”

[email protected]

VALLEY HS BOYS BASKETBALL SCORES

Wednesday, Jan. 2

District 30-6A

La Joya High 54, McAllen Memorial 51

McAllen Rowe 65, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 27

Mission High 64, McAllen High 59

PSJA North 68, PSJA High 55

District 32-5A

Brownsville Porter 67, Brownsville Lopez 52

Brownsville Pace 65, Donna High 49

Brownsville Veterans Memorial 66, Valley View 41

Mercedes 73, Edcouch-Elsa 70 OT

District 32-3A

Santa Rosa 64. Lyford 54

Non-District

San Perlita at Corpus Christi London, not reported

VALLEY HS BOYS BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Friday, Jan. 4

District 30-6A

La Joya High at McAllen High, 3:30 p.m.

Mission High at La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 3:30 p.m.

McAllen Rowe at PSJA North, 3;30 p.m.

PSJA High at McAllen Memorial, 3:30 p.m.

District 31-6A

Edinburg High at Weslaco High, 6 p.m.

Weslaco East at Edinburg Economedes, 2 p.m.

Donna North at Edinburg Vela, 1 p.m.

District 31-5A

La Joya Palmview at Roma, 7:30 p.m.

Sharyland High at Mission Veterans, 7:30 p.m.

Sharyland Pioneer at PSJA Memorial, 2:30 p.m.

PSJA Southwest at Rio Grade City, 7:30 p.m.

District 32-4A

Port Isabel at Grulla, 8 p.m.

Raymondville at Rio Hondo, 8 p.m.

Hidalgo at La Feria, 6:30 p.m.

District 32-3A

Santa Rosa at Brownsville IDEA Frontier, 12:30 p.m.

Non-District

Lasara at Ben Bolt, 10 a.m.

Benavides at San Isidro, 11:30 a.m.

Lyford at San Perlita, 11:30 a.m.

Donna IDEA at La Villa, 6:30 p.m.

Brownsville St. Joseph at Brownsville Hanna, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Jubilee at Los Fresnos, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 5

District 32-5A

Brownsville Pace at Mercedes, 1 p.m.

Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Brownsville Porter, 1 p.m.

Brownsville Lopez at Donna High, 1 p.m.

Edcouch-Elsa at Valley View, 2:30 p.m.

Non-District

Corpus Christi Miller at Harlingen High, 2:30 p.m.

Monday, Jan. 7

Non-District

San Isidro at Mission Juan Diego, 7 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 8

District 30-6A

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at La Joya High, 7:30 p.m.

McAllen Rowe at PSJA High, 7:30 p.m.

McAllen High at McAllen Memorail, 7:30 p.m.

PSJA North at Mission High, 7:30 p.m.

District 31-6A

Edinburg Vela at Edinburg High, 6 p.m.

Edinburg Economedes at Edinburg North, 6 p.m.

Weslaco High at Weslaco East, 6 p.m.

District 31-5A

Rio Grande City at La Joya Palmview, 7:30 p.m.

Roma at Sharyland Pioneer, 7:30 p.m.

PSJA Southwest at Sharyland High, 7:30 p.m.

PSJA Memorial at Mission Veterans, 7:30 p.m.

District 32-5A

Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Brownsville Lopez, 6 p.m.

Valley View at Brownsville Pace, 6 p.m.

Brownsville Porter at Edcouch-Elsa, 6 p.m.

Mercedes at Donna High, 6 p.m.

District 32-4A

Hidalgo at Port Isabel, 8 p.m.

Rio Hondo at Grulla, 8 p.m.

Progreso at Raymondville, 8 p.m.

La Feria at Zapata, 6:30 p.m.

District 32-3A

Brownsville IDEA Riverview at Santa Rosa, 6:30 p.m.

Brownsville IDEA Frontier at Lyford, 7:30 p.m.

District 32-2A

Lasara at San Perlita, 7:30 p.m.

Santa Maria at La Villa, 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Jan. 9

TAPPS District 6-5A

Corpus Christi Incarnate Word at Brownsville St. Joseph, TBA

VALLEY HS BOYS BASKETBALL BOX SCORES

Wednesday’s Games

District 30-6A

PSJA NORTH 68, PSJA HIGH 55

PSJA North 18 17 11 22 — 68

PSJA High 13 9 16 15 — 55

PSJA NORTH (68): Matthew Cantu 3, Arturo Beltran 3, Elijah De LA Garza 12, Daunte Galvan 31, Isiaah Rangel 19.

PSJA HIGH 55: Nick Ruiz 2, Andrew Casas 7, Ethan Castillo 7, Victor Rangel 4, Josh Loredo 1, Jesus Salinas 10, Chuy Ramos 9, Juan Rodriguez 4, Miguel Villarreal 6, Rick Salazar 5.

RECORDS: PSJA North 18-7, 2-0; PSJA High 1-1.

MISSION HIGH 64, MCALLEN HIGH 59

McAllen High 12 19 9 19 — 59

Mission High 20 17 15 12 — 64

MISSION HIGH (64): Eddie Rivera 15, Tito Moronta 10, Deandre Sifuentes 6, Rey Garcia 6, Jahal Salinas 25, Louie Garcia 2.

McALLEN HIGH (59): Eric Ruiz 4, Matthew Ibarra 12, Quinn Canada Jr. 2, Jackson Helmcamp 6, Bryan Argil 17, Jaden Conrow 18.

LA JOYA HIGH 54, MCALLEN MEMORIAL 51

McAllen Memorial 10 9 17 15 — 51

La Joya High 14 13 15 12 — 54

LA JOYA HIGH (54): Jesus Huerta 4, Cesar Villarreal 4, Juan Trujillo 7, Santiago Rodriguez 17, Michael Reyna 3, Zeke Garcia 13, JC Barrientes 6.

McALLEN MEMORIAL (51): Mando Alvarado 3, Caleb Eberly 1 Javi Fuentes 5, RJ Roth 13, Christian Espinoza 16, Nate Zuniga 3, Miguel Fuentes 10.

MCALLEN ROWE 65, LA JOYA JUAREZ-LINCOLN 27

MCALLEN ROWE: Mark Medrano 12, Adrian Salinas 11, Louie Yebra 18, Darin Everage 6, John Galan 4, Tristian Mata 4, Patrick Tarbutton 3, Josiah Alonzo 9.

District 32-5A

BROWNSVILLE PORTER 67. BROWNVILLE LOPEZ 52

Brownsville Porter 17 18 16 16 — 67

Brownsville Lopez 13 13 13 13 — 52

BROWNSVILLE PORTER (68): Chris Orozco 12, Rocco Almanzan 11, Benji Eckersly 11, Mundo Martinez 10, Kevin Garcia 7, Danny Morales 6, Jose Garza 5, Diego Rivera 5.

BROWNSVILLE LOPEZ 52: J.J. Briones 15, Jose Sanchez 9, Hiram Matoviche 7, Angel Gonzalez 6, J.C. Sosa 4, Ozzy Gallegos 3, Angel Aguirre 3, Jose Garcia 3, Pablo Galvan 2.

RECORDS: Brownsville Porter 0-2.

A rundown of Saturday boys high school basketball scores:

VALLEY HS BOYS BASKETBALL SCORES

Saturday, Dec. 29

District 30-6A

PSJA High 44, La Joya High 37

PSJA North 93, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 35

McAllen Rowe 55, McAllen High 46

McAllen Memorial at Mission High 55, McAllen Memorial 52

District 31-5A

Mission Veterans 64, La Joya Palmview 63

Sharyland Pioneer 68, Sharyland High 45

Rio Grande City at Roma, not reported

District 32-5A

Brownsville Pace 76, Brownsville Lopez 36

Brownsville Veterans 57, Mercedes 54

Brownsville Porter 70, Valley View 62 OT

Edcouch-Elsa 69, Donna High 59.

VALLEY HS BOYS BASKETBALL BOX SCORES

Saturday’s Games

District 30-6A

PSJA NORTH 93, LA JOYA JUAREZ-LINCOLN 35

PSJA North 39 19 20 15 — 93

LJ Juarez-Lincoln 7 8 5 15 — 35

PSJA NORTH (93): Matthew Cantu 11, Arturo Beltran 10, Elijah De La Garza 15, Daunte Galvan 34, Ricky Garcia 1, Isaac Gonzalez 1, Timur Lamb 2, Iziaah Rangel 16; Ramses Perez 3

LJ JUAREZ-LINCOLN (35): Adan Hernandez 7, Kenneth Gonzalez 10, Jesus Garcia 4, Adan Torres 10, Luis Flores 4.

RECORDS: PSJA North 17-7, 1-0, LJ Juarez-Lincoln 0-1.

McALLEN ROWE 55, McALLEN HIGH 46

McAllen Rowe 15 10 9 21 —55

McAllen High 6 12 10 18 — 46

McALLEN ROWE (55): Mark Medrano 9, Adrian Salinas 12, Louie Yebra 10, Darrin Everage 10, John Galan 14

LJ JUAREZ-LINCOLN (46): Dylan Suarez 8, Matthew Ibarra 7, Quinn Canada Jr. 3, Jackson Helmcamp 11, Bryan Argil 10, Jaden Conrow 7

RECORDS: McAllen Rowe 1-0; McAllen High 0-1

PSJA HIGH 44, LA JOYA HIGH 37

La Joya High 11 10 9 7 — 37

PSJA High 5 12 13 14 — 44

PSJA High (44): Jesus Ramos 24, Andrew Casas 5, Ethan Castillo 2, Victor Rangel 4, Jesus Salinas 2, Juan Rodriguez 5, Rick Salazar 2

RECORDS: PSJA High 1-0, La Joya High 0-1

District 31-5A

MISSION VETERANS 64, LA JOYA PALMVIEW 63

LJ Palmview 12 19 13 19 — 63

Mission Veterans 18 15 15 16 — 64

MISSION VETERANS (64): Carlos Ramirez 2, Noe Cantu 30, Josue Muniz 20, Jacob Marquez 12, Ednay Galanal 2.

LJ PALMVIEW (63): Carlos Montelongo 21, Faban Flores 2, Freddy Flores 9, Gabriel Garza 7

RECORDS: Mission Veterans 64, LJ Palmview 63.

District 32-5A

EDCOUCH-ELSA 69, DONNA HIGH 59

Edcouch-Elsa 12 18 18 21 — 69

Donna High 10 14 17 18 — 59

EDCOUCH-ELSA (69): Marcos Esobar 13, Christian Lira 7, Dillon Lopez 4, Aaron Aguinaga 13, Damian Granados 5, Lupe Baldera 3, Eduardo Saenz 9, Brian Guerra 16

DONNA HIGH (59): Roger Rodriguez 9, Derik Medrano 15, Joshua Aguilar 3, Eric Garza 14, Avery Bowen 9, Justin Lopez 9.

RECORDS: Edcouch 1-0, Donna 0-1,

BROWNSVILLE VETERANS 57, MERCEDES 54

Brownsville Veterans 18 14 18 7 — 57

Mercedes 11 20 16 7 — 54

BROWNSVILLE VETERANS (57): Kelly Davis 4, Justin Anaya 9, Paul Barrara 5, Damian Maldonado 17, Matt Maddox 13, Tommy Pena 2, Sebastian Sandoval 2, Dax Delgado 5

MERCEDES (54): Caleb Arthur 7, Jared Castaneda 16, Jay Ayala 10, Jesse Fuentes 5, Jordan Ovalle 14, Brandon Lozoya 2.

RECORDS: Brownsville Veterans 1-0, Mercedes 0-1

Lanie Nitsch knew this day was going to come; she had envisioned it and worked for it.

Sitting in the McAllen Memorial gymnasium, her coaches, friends and family all around, she was about sign a letter of intent continuing her athletic career at a higher education institution.

The question that remained was whether it would be volleyball or track, and it ended up being neither.

Visions don’t always come to fruition, after all, but dreams do have a funny way of becoming reality.

This is what Nitsch learned Thursday in that same gym with a larger and louder crowd gathered, as she signed her National Letter of Intent to be on the University of Texas nationally ranked rowing team.

If it wasn’t for track and volleyball, this day may have even had another twist to it. But for the 5-foot-11 Mustang, recent knee surgery put an end to the track/volleyball collegiate path. Her dad, an athlete in his own right, brought to her the idea of rowing, something doctors agreed wouldn’t have the pounding an those already damaged knees.

Looking at her physically, she fits right in with every one of those Longhorn port and starboard athletes, most coming in between 5-feet-9 and 6-feet tall.

“They said she had the right levers,” said her mom, Karen Nitsch. “She wanted to be a heptahlete which is seven events but the doctors didn’t know if her kneed would hold up for her. But because of her power and strength and work ethic that she would be a good fit. A week and a half after the camp they (UT recruiters) were at our home asking her to commit.”

What may be the most impressive note in all this is that Nitsch hadn’t rowed until she participated in a camp at UT and they had to teach her during the camp.

“I absolutely fell in love with it,” she said. “I’ve never been on the water like that. When the boat gets going, it’s crazy. I think I gained my endurance from track and power from both volleyball and track.”

Nitsch went to other camps during the summer, including perennial power Duke. The experience there, however, didn’t come close to what she experienced at UT, making her choice much simpler.

“There are amazing athletes and rowers there,” she said. “It was so hard mentally. For the first time in my life I had to ask for help with the sport. I’m so used to being the one helping – but that was real neat too.”

When she returned from that UT camp, her passion was ignited and she started working out rowing machines at nearby gyms.

“There’s nowhere to row here,” she said. “The closest place I think is San Antonio.”

Nitsch will be aided with a book scholarship and can earn more financial scholarships based on how far up she moves through the team and boats.

BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER

CORPUS CHRISTI — Senior linebacker Ian Ochoa came into Friday’s regional semifinal game against Austin Westlake fighting through immense pain.

“I tore my UCL, the same injury that AJ had,” Ochoa said. “I ripped off a block, and just tore it. It was against Weslaco East in the first quarter.”

Ochoa has battled through the pain every week since.

“For my brothers, I just had to push through,” Ochoa said.

He wanted to be out there for his team, so he was going to do whatever it took to get onto the field.

Just as he fought through it, senior defensive lineman Kobe Gipson also picked up an injury that he had to gut out. He twisted his ankle in the second quarter Friday, but he went back in one play later.

“I was in lots of pain, I just had to fight through it,” Gipson said. “Until it started locking up and cramping. I couldn’t do anything at that point.”

Gipson eventually had to end his night early. In his absences, and even prior to that, Ochoa was all over the place, making tackles. Gipson was the most dominant player on the field, when he was in. He had several huge sacks, tackles for losses and tipped passes. He described going against the Westlake offensive line as “too easy.”

“I was surprised they didn’t bring more fight,” Gipson said. “They slept on us.”

The defense overall was the reason Vela had a fighting chance going into the second half.

“The whole time the defense stepped up for us, and I couldn’t ask for more from them,” senior left tackle Jayden Borjas said. “They played one of the best games of their lives, and to do it against a team like this is impressive.”

If only the defensive injuries were the only ones Vela was dealing with, they still would have had a great chance. However, the most disastrous injury of all came to the team’s most vital player.

Sophomore quarterback AJ Sotelo was dragged down to the ground on top of his shoulder in the second quarter. He stayed in for the next play, but everyone in the stadium could see the pain etched on his face through his facemask. When he got checked out on the sideline, he was told it was probably a broken collarbone, and that he could not continue.

With Sotelo out, the only quarterback who has played major time for Vela this year, senior Elijah Trujillo was not available for disciplinary reasons. That left senior Rosendo Ramirez, and freshman Chase Campbell to lead the team through the entirety of the second half.

“It was tough without AJ,” Campbell said. “We lost a lot of what we were wanting to do. Rosie can get us into plays, but he doesn’t quite have the arm strength. And then obviously, Chase is a freshman. To break him in against one of the top teams in the state was tough.”

The loss of Sotelo was too much for the SaberCats to overcome, as they fell to Austin Westlake 28-0 in the Class 6A-DII Regional Semifinals on Friday at Buccaneer Stadium.

Everyone on the team will tell you the mentality needs to be ‘next man up,’ but the reality of the situation is, when you work so hard on the game plan throughout the week, there is very little time to make sure the backups are ready.

“(Sotelo’s injury) brought the whole team down, because we didn’t run any twos,” senior running back Christian Flores said. “We were working with AJ all week. We thought we could pass protect and give him enough time.”

Flores felt helpless watching from the sidelines.

“The play that he got hurt, I wasn’t in, I should have been in, I would have protected him,” Flores said. “He fell on his shoulder, he was in for another play, but after that he was done.”

No one from Westlake will feel too bad for the SaberCats though, as they came in without their 1,000-yard rusher Tripp Graham, who was hurt last week in the area round. The Chaparrals also lost their senior quarterback Taylor Anderson just before the half. He did not return.

Anderson was dominant, as advertised, before the injury. His first touchdown was a 39-yard pass to senior receiver Mason Magnum. He then gave Westlake a 14-0 halftime lead with a 41-yard run into the end zone.

Just before halftime, both quarterbacks came off with their respective injuries.

In the second half, the Vela defense was the star again, limiting the Westlake offense.

Just before the end of the third quarter, Westlake was looking for their third score, and Vela’s defense was doing everything it could to prevent it.

On fourth-and-one, Westlake could not get into the end zone, but the Chaparrals were able to gain enough yards to earn a fresh set of downs at the 1. Vela used two timeouts during the goal-line stand, and Westlake used one. Vela held strong on a first-down run, and then again on a second-down run, but on third down, Westlake junior quarterback Drew Willoughby found the speediest man on the field, Mangum, for another Westlake touchdown.

“I think that is a little snapshot of the entire game,” Campbell said. “We were fighting on that goal line stand. We were stopping their run. We had the throwback covered, we were just a step behind. But I think that is a snapshot of what ended up happening.”

The Chaparrals tacked on their fourth score in the fourth quarter to seal the game.

“Our main battle cry was we felt we were embarrassed last year. We felt like we didn’t put a good product on the field,” Campbell said. “We wanted to come out here and be competitive, we truly felt like we could put ourselves in a position to go toe-to-toe with these guys. We did that tonight.”

“We have been waiting for this game all year,” senior running back Aaron Alvarez said. “It felt great to come out here and give it our all. We played a good caliber team, and we did our best.”

Ochoa fought through tears to describe what the SaberCats mean to him, and why he played through the screaming of agony inside his body: “My family, they are my family. They will always be my family.”

After the game, the first person Ochoa wanted to see was senior safety-turned-receiver Daniel Enriquez.

“Ian that guy is tough. He fights through all his pain,” Enriquez said. “Sometimes, he won’t even tell the trainers about his injuries. He’s a ball player. I really love that guy, because he is like a brother to me. He played his heart out.”

It is one thing for a player who has been there for four years to do that, but what about the guy who joined the team this year?

“I think those two are just representative of the fight in the whole team,” Campbell said of Ochoa and Gipson. “At this time of year, there is not a Texas high school football team that is not fighting injuries. The fact that they stuck with it, those guys are tough. The whole football team is full of tough kids.”

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PHARR — Diego Treviño was just sitting around during his school’s sixth-grade track meet when the track coach walked over to him.

“You’re our biggest kid,” he said. “Go throw.”

Those six words had an impact nobody could comprehend. Now, six years later not only is the PSJA Southwest senior still throwing both the shot put and the discus, but he’s going be throwing for at least another four years after this season.

Treviño signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his athletic career at the University of Oklahoma while also pursuing a Petroleum Engineer degree.

The 6-foot-4, 280-pound thrower has become a phenom and one of the favorites to win the state championship in the shot put. His personal best (PR) in the event is 60 feet, 3.5 inches. The top thrower in the state comes in at just about 62 feet.

Treviño’s throw coach since eighth grade, Eloy Garza, said it’s easy to look at his size and just assume he is a great athlete. There’s a lot more to it though.

“Size is just half of it,” Garza said. “It’s an incredibly technical sport and the amount of dedication he has put into it to become a student of the sport is just impressive. We would start working at 6 a.m. during the season to make sure he’s getting his strength training. In the summer we’re throwing, after football season is over, we’re throwing. This is a young man who is committed to being the best he can possibly be.”

Garza emphasized again that Treviño’s physical stature may be large, but so is every other part of who he is including morally and educationally.

“Greatness has no zip code,” Garza said. “You put in the time like he has done and have the right mentality, great things are going to happen. That’s just the way it is.”

Treviño may be intimidating by his size, but he brings with him a sense of calm, led by his soft-spoken demeanor. He said that when he started throwing, he wasn’t very good at it — even after the first two years.

“I started working with coach Garza in my eighth-grade year and he just kept telling me to keep throwing, until it all came together,” Treviño said. “He took me to the state summer track meet and I won first.”

His goal isn’t just to work toward a state championship this year or a national championship at Oklahoma. Garza said the goal is for him to represent the region on a global scale.

“He’s going to throw in the Olympics one day, that’s the goal,” Garza said. “Reaching that greatness is attainable if you have the right mentality, if you have the right work ethic and the passion to improve yourself. It’s not going to happen overnight — but it will happen early in the morning when you are busting tail in the weight room or after school when you’re doing your homework. That’s what it takes — that’s what he’s done and will continue to do.”