SAN BENITO — This group of San Benito Greyhounds never tasted playoff victory before its run this season.

No past glory plastered on the outfield walls. This season’s accomplishments will be on the wall, no doubt, but history could still be written by the Greyhounds.

History, glory and all that the comes with advancing to the final four is on the line in the Region IV-6A finals series against San Antonio East Central, starting with Game 1 at 6 p.m. today in Beeville. Game 2 is set for 6 p.m. Friday at Cabaniss in Corpus Christi and Game 3, if needed, is at 3 p.m. Saturday in Beeville.

Martinez said he knew his softball team had a lot of potential to make it this far in the beginning of the season.

“Potential does not win ball games, it is productivity,” Martinez said to his team during the season.

Martinez and the coaching staff believed their team was capable of being here after the non-district and tourney schedule saw the Greyhounds ranked as high as No. 2 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association’s top 25 softball poll.

“Things just started meshing,” Martinez said. “Hey, we are all right … That is when we started finding out that we had the ability to go deep in the playoffs. Before you know it we are here, at the elite eight. The girls came through and are living up to it.”

Still, the Greyhounds needed to fight through the tough District 32-6A. They did by going unbeaten. District 32-6A ended up sweeping District 31-6A in the bi-district round but lost to San Antonio teams in other rounds, with the exception of San Benito. O’Connor escaped Los Fresnos and Weslaco High, but lost to San Antonio East Central to set up the meeting with the Greyhounds.

“They are a hard to team to find information on. If anybody knows something, let me know,” Martinez said jokingly.

An extensive highlight of Game 3 against San Antonio O’Connor on YouTube and their MaxPreps page are the main things a quick search on the internet could yield on East Central. It did come in second behind New Braunfels in District 27-6A.

Martinez respects all opponents at this point of the playoffs.

“That district had two teams in the sweet 16,” Martinez said. “That says a lot, so you know that they can play some ball. Had we lost and New Braunfels won, it would have been their district in the elite eight. They can definitely play.”

San Benito can play, too, and at this point worrying about oneself is just as important as trying to gain a competitive edge through film. Martinez said the Greyhounds are going to be playing under pressure with plenty of eyes on them.

They are going to have six seniors on the field while doing so. Emily Delgado, Kylie Sanchez and Bethany Aguilar are the seniors in the infield, and GG Garcia, Leila Lopez and Elyssa Ruvio patrol the outfield as seniors.

Offensively, it is hard to not become enamored by San Benito’s Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 6 hitters. Delgado, Sanchez and then sophomore studs Amira Rodriguez and JoJo Montes make up the run of power hitters.

If Delgado does not bring in the runs, Sanchez usually finds a gap with a double. Sanchez leads the team with 17 doubles. Rodriguez and Montes are there to clean up, and they tend to do so. Rodriguez leads the team with 14 homers, and Montes in second with 12.

“I know the batters in front of me and behind have my back,” Sanchez said. “If I do not produce, or even if I move the runners over, I know that we will score because I have Amira and JoJo behind me, so I think we will be good.”

The power hitters need base runners.

To start off, the opposition has to deal with the speed and consistency of Aguilar and Ruvio before facing Delgado. Aguilar has a .400 batting average on 56 hits, and Ruvio has a .432 average on 57 hits.

“You just have to be that person to step up and start the game good, get your team going,” Aguilar said. “If I do not get on, Ruvio gets on for sure, she is a consistent hitter, but either one of us has to get on. It is very important for us, especially with our 3 and 4 hitters coming through for us.”

Garcia starts things back up as the No. 7 batter. The senior said things become hectic with the fans after the big hits, but she knows she has to pick her spots. Defensively, Garcia and the outfield pulled down plenty of hard-hit balls to make it out to the regional finals.

“We know the higher we go that teams will have strong hitters,” she said. “We are ready for anything that comes to us.”

CORPUS CHRISTI — San Benito’s Amira Rodriguez solemnly ran the bases after smashing the most important hit of a three-game series with New Braunfels Saturday night at Cabaniss softball field in Corpus Christi.

After touching the plate and the swarm of smiling teammates descended to the dugout the sophomore finally exploded with a scream towards a sea of purple.

Rodriguez’s grand slam, Emily Delgado’s pitching and a six-run top of the seventh sent the San Benito Greyhounds to the Class 6A Region IV championship. The Greyhounds won the series 2-1.

San Benito lost Game 2 prior to Game 3 by a score of 12-9. Greyhounds head coach Elias Martinez expected a tough New Braunfels team to possibly force a Game 3.

“We knew it was always a possibility,” Martinez said. “It is a great program over there. We knew that they were not going to quit. We expected three games, hoping for two. I told the girls, ‘Game 3 is going to come down to who wants it the most, and who handles the pressure the most at that time’.”

“Fortunately for us, it came out in our favor,” Martinez said.

Game 2 was a slugfest. San Benito were on the wrong end of it despite a three-run home run by Rodriguez and a grand slam by sophomore JoJo Montes. The Unicorns picked up 11 runs in the middle innings against Rodriguez.

The sophomore walked some batters and was tagged up by a New Braunfels team that could make nice contact on the ball. Grace Simons, Veronica Peitersen and Buggie Myer came up with RBIs during that stretch for the Unicorns.

Delgado relieved Rodriguez in Game 2, and after Montes’ grand slam the Greyhounds could not mount a comeback. Delgado started Game 3, only giving up a run in the fifth inning.

“We wanted to come back and win this game so much, every game,” Delgado said. “Everyone has seen it, Amira has done amazing in the circle, so to be able to come back and help her and us is an amazing feeling.”

“We went out there and battled,” Delgado said.

The Greyhounds took a lead in the first inning of Game 3 when Kylie Sanchez ripped a ball down the third baseline to drive in a run despite hurting her ankle in Game 2.

The next few innings sped by before walks loaded the bases for Rodriguez. The sophomore destroyed the ball into deep left-center field. The Unicorns outfielders could only trace the ball with their eyes as Rodriguez’s shot easily cleared the wall.

“I was not planning on hitting it over at all because I was just trying to hit it flat, get a base hit, but I hit it over,” Rodriguez said.

Bethany Aguilar and Elyssa Ruvio helped put the game away in the top of the seventh with RBIs.

Next up for San Benito is San Antonio East Central. The Hornets defeated San Antonio O’Connor 2-1 in their series to set up the meeting with the Greyhounds.

The Hornets are 25-14 and finished second in District 27-6A behind New Braunfels.

Rio Grande Valley FC is still on the hunt for a first home win of the season.

The Toros have played nine games so far this and are coming off their best offensive performance on the road last week when they scored three goals to pick up three points against San Diego Loyal SC.

The Toros host a tough Tampa Bay Rowdies at 7:30 p.m. tonight at H-E-B Park in search of that first home win of the season.

“It is no secret that we have not won a match at home,” Toros head coach Wilmer Cabrera said in a press conference on Thursday. “We need that win here in front of our fans. We are looking to earn our first home win of the season, that is something very important to us and we feel in debt to our loyal fans who come and support at this beautiful stadium each time.”

The Toros are firing offensively. RGVFC has scored five goals in the last two matches. The Toros had previously scored four in the previous seven matches.

Taking three points back to Texas! 🧳

Ricky Ruiz had a goal and an assist to help @RGVFC defeat @SanDiegoLoyal 3-2!#SDvRGV | https://t.co/fvkt2sO57i pic.twitter.com/JjbhwXXyVT

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) May 14, 2023

“I believe that it is a result of confidence, this is all reflective of all the team,” forward Ricky Ruiz said about his recent form. Ruiz scored the match winner against San Diego.

“We have been gaining confidence through each training session. We have been clicking much better recently and you can see those results in these past games. Personally, my current success is based on the confidence aspect,” Ruiz said.

Here is a brief preview of @rgvfc forward @riiickyruiz talking about the form translating from practice to game and facing Tampa Bay. #RGVvTB pic.twitter.com/gIAnDRE41h

— Rey Silva of Pro Sports RGV (@SoTxAthletix) May 19, 2023

Christian François, an off-season signing, is also heating up offensively. The Haitian international has scored in back-to-back matches after not scoring the first seven matches. Ruiz and François lead the Toros in scoring with Taylor Davila

This is the first match ever between the two clubs.

The Rowdies are one of the more recognizable teams in the USL Championship. Tampa Bay is the former club of Freddy Adu and former England international and Chelsea player Joe Cole, head turning transfers almost a decade ago.

“We do not know much on Tampa Bay, the only thing that we will know is what we can review on film,” Cabrera. “We recognize that they are one of the toughest teams to face in the Eastern conference. We have an opportunity to start this history between both clubs here at home. They have always been solid and have qualified to the [USL Championship] finals often. We need to be very respectful to their playstyle.”

Tampa Bay is currently in fifth place in the Eastern Conference. The Rowdies won their last match 5-1 over Detroit City FC thanks to a Jerome Williams hat trick.

We want to win, we are anxious to win at home,” Toros defender Gabriel Benitez said on Thursday. “We have two upcoming games that are tough tests, but we want to earn all six points available in the next two home games.”

RGVFC is currently 2-5-2 and in 10th place, but only two points outside of the playoff spots.

MERCEDES — The Mercedes Tigers — the District 32-5A champs, area-round winner and now Region IV-5A semifinalist — believe they deserve to be here.

The fourth round, this round, was their goal, senior left fielder Bridgette Sanchez said Wednesday before lightning sent practice indoors. The Tigers were preparing for this week’s opponent, Smithson Valley.

“We have put too much work in,” Sanchez said. “We have been making history since we were small. We went to state together in Little League, most of the team — not all. I think we are going to continue to do big things.”

The series is set to begin at 7 p.m. today at Southwest High School in San Antonio, the site of the entire series. Game 2 is at 2 p.m. Saturday and Game 3 is 30 minutes after if needed. The winner moves on to the Region IV-5A final.

The Tigers’ fans have traveled extremely well for their softball team despite playing Coastal Bend teams closer to their homes. Mercedes beat Gregory-Portland in Bishop for the area title and Corpus Christi Carroll in Alice in Round 3 with the bleachers loaded with burnt orange.

Mercedes head coach Kristy Leal praised the support the team has received from the community.

“They have stepped it up for us,” Leal said. “When you can look in the stands, hear the energy and that support behind you, it really helps the kids that are on the field. They know that everyone has their back, and I think it helps them perform well.”

Teams with lofty expectations and, of course, talent usually have a great following. Mercedes always shows love to its sports teams, but it does help when the team that is being watched is highly entertaining.

Seniors Zelinda Camacho, Klarissa Rizo, Adamari Perales and Sanchez make up the Tigers’ core. Ashley De Leon, Rhianna Sierra, Elise Perez, Mishale De La Torre, Lindsey Lopez, Kenzie Rodriguez, Anastasia Gomez, Kayla Garza, Alessandra Alvarado and Abigail Trevino make up the seniors’ supporting cast.

When the Tigers are clicking, they are a fun watch.

De Leon exploded at the plate when they beat up Gregory-Portland 23-1 and hit a two-run home run against Carroll. Sanchez tied the Carroll game with a home run. Rodriguez, a freshman, came in against Carroll, stole bases and scored pivotal runs, and Lopez went 3-for-4 during that game.

“If the top is not doing well, the bottom of the lineup picks us up,” Sanchez said. “We are pretty well-balanced. Everyone is a hitter.”

What also makes them entertaining is their ability to come back.

The Tigers were down going into the top of the seventh against Brownsville Lopez in a pivotal District 32-5A second-round meeting in April and came back to win. The Tigers had an 11-inning game with Brownsville Veterans and other showdowns with district rivals.

It looked like Gregory-Portland switched the momentum after taking Game 2 in the area series, but the Tigers came out swinging and came back last week after being down 9-0 to Carroll.

“I feel like we are pretty confident coming off of that big win,” Camacho said. “Last week is going to help us be ready for this week.”

Camacho and Rizo are the two main pitchers for the Tigers. Camacho is 17-1 with a 1.73 ERA and Rizo is 8-3 with a 1.74 ERA. They have combined for 235 strikeouts.

“We have been a good duo since sophomore season,” Camacho said. “Knowing she has my back and I have her back helps us to be comfortable in the circle.”

Camacho and Sanchez said that Smithson Valley has good hitters and a confident pitcher. The Rangers went 25-16 and finished second in District 26-5A behind 28-0 New Braunfels Canyon. Corpus Christi Flour Bluff and New Braunfels Canyon meet on the other side of the Region IV bracket.

“I think we match up really well,” Leal said. “I think we are going to be able to compete. It is going to be a great series.”

SAN DIEGO — Lyford’s Trinity Villalobos and Jourdanton’s Hailey Sralik were in a pitchers’ duel Thursday night for a spot in the Region IV-3A final.

Sralik bested Villalobos 3-1 in the Region IV-3A semifinal to eliminate Lyford from the playoffs at San Diego High School.

“We knew it was going to be a close game,” Lyford head coach Albert Garza said. “We knew the type of pitcher that they have, so we just neeeded to execute. We left a few runners on base and should have executed to bring those runners in. Maybe I could have done something different. That is one I am going to look at on film.”

A home run by Sralik during the bottom of the sixth inning and two runs in the fifth from plays at the plate tripped up Lyford in the one-game playoff.

“We fell apart a little bit after that,” Villalobos said. “We could not get the wheels going again, but it is fine.”

Villalobos was pitching a superb game before the Jourdanton Squaws’ offense had their breakthrough in the fifth inning. Villalobos had nine strikeouts and allowed one hit the first four innings.

Lyford freshman Danae Garcia drove in the only run of the night for the Bulldogs. Garcia’s RBI double drove in leadoff hitter Victoria Lopez after Lopez picked up a two-out single.

Lyford’s season ends in the same round as 2022. The Bulldogs picked up a District 32-3A title, Class 3A area-round victory and a Region IV quarterfinal win in 2023.

“The season was successful,” Villalobos said. “We started slow and kept building. These girls keep fighting and wanting to play. It was a fun season for me and the team.”

Garza is appreciative of the experience his young team received from this season, he said. The Bulldogs return 11 of 14 players next season. Nine were underclassmen this season.

“In reality, this was supposed to be a rebuild because we lost six seniors,” Garza said. “Six starters, girls that are leaders and are off playing college right now. We turned a lot of heads. Trinity made a lot of believers, and the team as well. So we are excited about next year. My assistant coaches did a really good job of keeping the girls on track. We have a good bunch of girls for next year.”

ROBSTOWN — Weslaco High had a chance to pick up a walk-off win, but San Antonio O’Connor’s defense came up clutch and in the top of the 10th inning its offense scored the needed runs to win the series 2-1.

It was a defensive battle at Robstown High School for the Region IV-6A quarterfinal. Weslaco High forced extra innings with a clutch hit during the bottom of the seventh to make it 1-1, but O’Connor put three on the board in the 10th to win 4-1 on Saturday.

“They still got some players from their state championship run, big hitters,” Weslaco High head coach Mario Rodriguez said. “It is a game of inches. We hit the ball a couple of inches higher over the shortstop, we bring a run in. Overall, the girls, they came in and fought hard. You could not ask more of them.”

Weslaco High shortstop Lexie Escamilla, the only senior on the team, drove a shot down the left-field line, pulling out a double. Escamilla made it to third but stayed there because O’Connor short stop Meiko Dominguez pulled off a wonderful jumping catch to end the inning.

Escamilla started the seventh with a triple and was brought in by catcher Romy Nuñez with two outs to extend the game.

“We gave ourselves a chance,” Rodriguez said. “That is all we could ask for, focus on us. Hats off to their pitcher, she kept us in check with a lot of off-speed pitches.”

An error gifted O’Connor a run during the top of the sixth. Other than that, it was a stout defensive performance from Weslaco High. Freshman pitcher Madelynn Cantu was in the circle for the entire series and threw a terrific game, and had plenty of help from her defense.

Weslaco High center fielder Lola Reyes reacted to hard-hit balls in the outfield easily, third baseman Alexis Soliz threw out quick runners and Elizabeth Craig helped Cantu out of the fourth inning with a double play from first base.

“Madelynn just keeps growing in front of our eyes,” Rodriguez said. “She has got better and better throughout the entire season. Madelynn and the rest of the girls got better every game. Even when we lost we learned, and we ended up here.”

Rodriguez said that if someone were to tell him before the season that the Panthers would be in a Game 3 in the third round with a 25-15 record, he would take it.

“Super proud of the girls and happy we were able to send off our lone senior on a good note,” Rodriguez said.

Brownsville native Omar “El Relámpago” Juárez knows it is an important fight in his career when he steps into the ring tonight against Rances Barthelemy as the co-main event of a Showtime Championship Boxing card that starts at 8 p.m., with the headline fight being Rolly Romero vs. Ismael Barroso.

Photos: https://t.co/Ur7cbQPpJL via @boxingscene @iamOmarJuarez .@kveotv23 .@rgvfox .@kgbt .@monitornews .@cityofmcallen .@valleystar .@MVTCnews
.@710KURV .@RioGGuardian .@BrownsvilleNews .@RGVnews .@RGVPartnership .@krgv pic.twitter.com/xLA8f9bwH7

— Mario Serrano – Boxing Publicist (@FightAction) May 13, 2023

Juárez (14-1) is on a three-fight win streak but faces arguably his toughest opponent in Barthelemy (29-2-1).

“At the end of the day, I am ready,” Juárez said during a Showtime Championship Boxing press conference Thursday. “We are both putting everything on the line. It is whoever is tougher at the end of the day, so I am ready.”

Barthelemy is a former two-time world champion. The Cuban boxer held the IBF junior lightweight and lightweight titles. It has been seven years since Barthelemy held a title, and he is coming off a loss in his last fight.

“He’s just in my way.”@iamOmarJuarez has greatness in mind 🧠 💯#BarthelemyJuarez#RomeroBarroso ➡️ https://t.co/2xOosYsTsJ pic.twitter.com/lD2OOlMZoQ

— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) May 11, 2023

Juárez’s only loss in his career was in 2021 to All Rivera, an opponent Barthelemy beat prior to Rivera fighting Juárez.

The Brownsville native has bounced back with wins over Austin Dulay, Ryan Karl and Jairo Lopez. Juárez last fought in December 2022, picking up a 96-91, 96-91, 94-93 unanimous decision. Juárez has five career knockouts.

“What a CRUSHING right hand!” 💥🥊@iamOmarJuarez takes on his toughest test to date in @RealKidBlast THIS SATURDAY, live on @ShowtimeBoxing.#RomeroBarroso Fight Night Details: https://t.co/mpIFjCfgPO pic.twitter.com/p4GfUrZB5M

— Premier Boxing Champions (@premierboxing) May 9, 2023

ALICE — Corpus Christi Carroll punched Mercedes straight in the gut during the first two innings, putting up nine runs on the Mercedes Tigers.

Mercedes ate the punches and start delivering pain themselves to pull off a thrilling comeback against Carroll, winning 11-9 in a Region IV-5A quarterfinal playoff game Friday night at Alice High School.

“Like I said before, we have had so many games that we have been down and these kids do not let it faze them,” Mercedes head coach Kristy Leal said. “Not one bit, they are constantly fighting for each other, and today it was all about playing for each other.”

Mercedes was down 9-1 for the majority of the game but teased scoring at times until it finally exploded offensively during the fifth and sixth innings.

Sophomore Ashley De Leon smashed a two-run home run in the sixth to make it 9-8 and was followed by Bridgette Sanchez with a shot in the same place, over the left-center field wall.

Senior Klarissa Rizo drove in the game-winning runs to make it 11-9. Rizo also came in to pitch after being down 9-1. Rizo pitched a brilliant game. Rizo easily maneuvered past the Carroll lineup, hardly surrendering a runner.

“You have to go in there strong and not be afraid,” Rizo said. “That is all I did. I just told myself, ‘What can we lose?’ It was unbelievable what we just did, but I knew we can do it and knew in my heart that all I had to do was play tough.”

Sanchez went 3-for-4 on the evening. Sanchez picked up the first RBI of the game in the second for the Tigers and two more pivotal RBIs during the bottom of the fifth. First baseman Elise Perez drove in the last run of the fifth inning to make it 9-6.

Mercedes had other chances to score. During the bottom of the third, the Tigers had bases loaded and no outs with the No. 3, 4 and 5 hitters coming up to the plate, but all three popped their hits straight up.

“I think it was just a little small shot to the jaw,” Leal said. “The kids were trying to do too much. They were trying to put too much on their shoulders. It takes one at a time and they all fight for each other — when you put it all together, that is what you get, a comeback.”

Mercedes faces the winner of South San Antonio and Smithson Valley in the Region IV-5A semifinal round next week.

ROBSTOWN — Weslaco High hung around with San Antonio O’Connor, the defending Class 6A state champs, but lost 5-4 in Game 1 of a Region IV-6A quarterfinal series.

Weslaco High hit into a double play during the top of the seventh inning to end Game 1 at Robstown High School on Thursday and give San Antonio O’Connor the one-game lead.

Game 2 is set for 6:30 p.m. today at Robstown High School. Game 3 is Saturday if needed.

Weslaco High came within a run in the sixth inning when Dayla Hinojosa hit a sac fly with bases loaded, making it 5-4 with only one out. San Antonio pitcher Tivoli Martinez then maneuvered out of the jam to end the inning.

“I think we just need to relax a little bit more and see the ball better,” Weslaco High head coach Mario Rodriguez said. “We just have to come back (today), execute and hit when it matters.”

Weslaco High’s Emalee Galvan drove in a run in the top of the fourth to tie it at 3. San Antonio O’Connor responded in the bottom half to make it 5-3 after Meiko Dominguez drove in two runs with a double.

Weslaco High first baseman Elizabeth Craig smashed a two-run home run over the left-field wall in the top of the first. O’Connor responded in the bottom of the first with two runs and another in the second to go up 3-2. The San Antonio school pulled their starting pitcher in favor of Martinez after the first inning.

Martinez mixed her off-speed pitches to move ahead in counts or pick up the occasional strikeout.

“We knew that coming in,” Rodriguez said of Martinez’s off-speed pitching. “She just had us going there for a little bit. We need to focus on us, make adjustments that we need to do, not worry about so much of what they have and put the focus on us.”

Rodriguez said they did give themselves some chances toward the end of Game 1. The Panthers worked Martinez and had plenty of runners in scoring positions when threatening late but did not pick up the hit to bust the game open, and O’Connor made some nice snags when Weslaco High made contact.

“The ball just did not bounce our way at the end. Sometimes the ball has to bounce your way,” Rodriguez said.

Lyford also was in action Thursday night. The Bulldogs shut out Corpus Christi London to advance to the Class 3A regional semifinal round.

LYFORD — Lyford softball has been here before, five Bulldogs teams during the past nine seasons have made it to a Region IV-3A quarterfinal.

The Bulldogs play Corpus Christ London in a one-game playoff at 6:30 p.m. today in San Diego with a Region IV-3A semifinal spot on the line.

Lyford and London met in this round last season. The Bulldogs run-ruled the Pirates, winning 10-0 in a one-game playoff. Lyford lost to eventual state champion Hallettsville during the fourth round. The winner this year takes on either Jourdanton or Columbus in Round 4.

Bulldogs head coach Albert Garza is excited about the outcome of the flips after going back-and-forth about a series or one game.

“I basically put it in God’s hands,” Garza said. “He knows what is best and he said one game, so that is what we will go with. I think it is going to be fun.”

One game does suit a team with a good pitcher. Lyford’s Trinity Villalobos no-hit San Diego in Game 1 but did not start in Game 2, only to come in and strike out 12 batters in six innings to pick up the 5-4 win and the area-round victory.

The senior shook off a slow start to the start of the season, she said.

“It gradually got better,” Villalobos said. “Now I feel like I am playing at my best potential.”

Villalobos is one of three seniors on the team — Victoria Lopez and Clarissa Salazar are the other two. Nine of the 14 players on the team are underclassmen, and six of those are freshmen.

“I think we have kind of mixed our puzzle pieces together, and we are almost as strong, if not as strong, as last year,” Lopez said.

Plenty of the youth on the team have sisters who played in the program. Freshman Danae Garcia came up clutch with two triples in Game 2 against San Diego. Her sister, Alyssa Garcia, was on last year’s team, and now she plays for Our Lady of the Lake University.

Garza said the youth have played well but could still use some work on being softball savvy. That comes with game time.

“The tradition is here,” Garza said. “It is a small town, but softball is pretty big.”

Lyford shares the playoffs with three other Valley teams rich in softball tradition. Weslaco High, San Benito and Mercedes also are set to be playing this week in the Coastal Bend area.

Mercedes takes on Corpus Christi Carroll in a one-game playoff at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Alice High School. Carroll defeated Weslaco East in two games. Mercedes needed three to defeat Gregory-Portland but ended the series with a 23-1 win.

Mercedes ace Zelinda Camacho won both games in the circle and has been key all season for the District 32-5A champion. The Tigers were on a 17-game winning streak before dropping Game 2 last weekend.

The Weslaco High Panthers defeated a tough Eagle Pass team for a Class 6A area-round victory last weekend. Weslaco High and San Benito needed three games to pick up titles.

The Panthers have arguably the tougher matchup during the third round. Weslaco High plays all three games in Robstown against the District 29-6A champ, San Antonio O’Connor. The San Antonio school defeated Los Fresnos 7-6 in a one-game playoff to set up the meeting with Weslaco High.

Weslaco High and San Antonio O’Connor meet in a rematch of 2022’s Region IV finals. O’Connor won the series and then the state title. Game is at 6:30 p.m. today in Robstown.

San Benito, No. 2 in the latest TGCA Class 6A state poll and the District 32-6A champion, took down San Antonio Brennan in the area round. The Greyhounds have only one game with San Antonio Harlan at 4 p.m. Saturday at Cabaniss in Corpus Christi.

Harlan defeated Harlingen High in the area round. Harlan finished third in District 29-6A behind O’Connor and Brennan.