VALLEY-BOYS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A Area

Friday, April 1

McAllen High vs. Brownsville Hanna at Weslaco East, 5:30 p.m.

Brownsville Rivera vs. La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at La Joya ISD Stadium, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Lopez vs. La Joya High at Brownsville Sports Park, 8 p.m.

Brownsville Veterans vs. Laredo United South at Gladiator Stadium in Roma, 8 p.m.

Class 5A Area

Friday, April 1

Sharyland High vs. Victoria East at Buc Stadium in Corpus Christi, 6 p.m.

Flour Bluff at Valley View, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Pace vs. Laredo Cigarroa at Sharyland High, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Porter vs. Calallen at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi, 8 p.m.

Class 4A Area

Friday, April 1

Port Isabel vs. Pleasanton at Mopac Field in Kingsville, 6 p.m.

Saturday, April 2

Progreso vs. Rockport Fulton in Kingsville, 2 p.m.

VALLEY-GIRLS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A Area

Friday, April 1

Edinburg Economedes vs. Del Rio at Gustafson Stadium in San Antonio, 6 p.m.

Los Fresnos vs. Laredo United South at Roma’s Gladiator Stadium, 6 p.m.

Brownsville Lopez vs. Laredo United at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi, 6 p.m.

McAllen High vs. Harlingen South at Weslaco East, 7:30 p.m.

Class 5A Area

Friday, April 1

Brownsville Porter vs. C.C. Veterans at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi, 6 p.m.

Sharyland High vs. Flour Bluff at Shirley Field in Laredo, 7 p.m.

PSJA Southwest vs. Gregory Portland in Alice, 7 p.m.

Sharyland Pioneer vs. Victoria East at Buc Stadium in Corpus Christi, 8 p.m.

Class 4A Area

Friday, April 1

La Vernia at Port Isabel, 5 p.m.

Hidalgo vs. Kingsville King in San Benito, 6 p.m.

La Feria vs. Pleasanton at Mopac Field in Kingsville, 8 p.m.

Saturday, April 2

Grulla vs. Rockport-Fulton at Mopac Stadium in Kingsville, noon

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

Behind a pair of goals from Lizeth Cantu, PSJA Southwest opened up a three-goal lead by halftime and held on to knock off Mission Veterans 3-1 in a Class 5A bi-district game on Friday at PSJA Stadium in Pharr.

The win propels Southwest into an area round tilt against Gregory Portland.

“First of all, it was determination,” Southwest coach Juan Rodriguez said of Friday’s win. “Mission Veterans came out playing hard in the beginning, but we worked our game, how we practiced, and the girls wanted to play.”

The Lady Javelinas entered the playoffs riding high after finishing 12-2 in District 32-5A to claim the first district title in school history.

Southwest didn’t need long into its bi-district opener to keep the momentum flowing, as Salma Gonzalez scored in the fourth minute.

“Every game, if you start with a goal in front really early in the game, it does give you a sense of not comfort, but definitely believing in the game,” Rodriguez said. “Now, they have to adapt to you. Now, they kind of have to open up.”

That pressure was even more squarely on Mission Veterans after Cantu, Southwest’s leading scorer with 17 goals during the district season, found the back of the net twice in the opening half, including once on a free kick.

Mission Veterans turned up the offensive pressure from there, but a change in formation by Southwest kept the Lady Patriots from getting any closer than 3-1.

“We had to readapt,” Rodriguez said. “It was more of a counterattack, which really worked for us.”

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

EDINBURG — About 10 minutes into the opening half of Friday’s bi-district matchup against Brownsville Lopez, Edinburg High’s Yessi Molina tossed a few blades of grass into the air to gauge the wind as she lined up a free kick.

Molina’s calculations were nearly perfect — her arching shot soared the 30 yards to the net before clanging off the crossbar, only narrowly avoiding becoming the game’s first goal.

Less than a minute later, Lopez scored on the counterattack to snap the scoreless tie. Although Edinburg High would threaten in or near the box, the Lady Bobcats never again produced a solid scoring opportunity as the Lady Lobos controlled the pace of play in a 4-0 win at Edinburg High.

The victory advances Lopez into a Class 6A area matchup against Laredo United.

“All week long, we had been practicing that the defense can not make a mistake. Not at this level, not at any level,” Edinburg High coach Cerjio Elizarraraz said. “You make one mistake, and you’re going to pay. But they fought for it. They fought to the end. They were resilient, and they never gave up.”

The Lady Bobcats, who finished the District 31-6A season 5-7 and were a heavy underdog against the District 32-6A No. 1 seed Lady Lobos, trailed just 1-0 at halftime.

Aside from Carla Garcia’s opening tally with 28:38 to play in the first half, Lopez had been kept off the board, barely missing chance after chance. Garcia had two shots go just wide of the net, Samantha Ruiz put one over the crossbar, and Jaky Olivares-Iracheta was unable to convert after finding a loose ball only 10 yards from goal. The missed chances left coach Alex Macias and his players discontented heading into the halftime break.

“He wasn’t very happy, because he expects a lot more from us,” Garcia said. “The way he coaches us, we weren’t doing that the first half. At halftime, he was telling us what to do to put our head back in the game, and we did, and we came out with the win.”

Lopez extended the lead less than two minutes into the second half. After Ruiz dribbled past a pair of defenders and put the ball off the crossbar, Olivares-Iracheta recovered it in the box and converted.

Garcia scored again with 14:16 to play to all but ice the game, and Kiara Garcia added an insurance goal late.

“You have to have imagination in order to get those shots,” Carla Garcia said. “Me and (Ruiz), that’s something we have in common. We know our plays and we connect very well with each other.”

Lopez could have had a much larger lead were it not for Edinburg High keeper Yolanda Reyes, who made critical saves in both halves and snuffed out other scoring opportunities before they could fully develop.

A JV player last season, Reyes stepped into the full-time role this year as a junior.

“Every week, she got better. Every single week, and I’m very proud of her,” Elizarraraz said. “It’s been a learning experience for her, as well.”

Elizarraraz is hopeful the season can be a learning experience for all of the Lady Bobcats, who graduate just four seniors from their 23-player roster.

Simply making the postseason was a significant accomplishment for Edinburg High, which had to win three of its final four games following a 2-6 start to crack the playoffs in a tight district race.

“Like I told them, we’re building,” Elizarraraz said. “It’s another block in the foundation that we’ve already started. The second year in a row that we get in, and I just wish that the outcome would’ve been a little bit different. Other than that, very proud of the girls that they played their hearts out.”

[email protected]

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

PHARR — In his first year playing for Valley View after transferring from Edinburg Economedes, Ivan Rodriguez had been having a relatively quiet season before Thursday night. Sure, he’d scored the occasional goal here or there, but he hadn’t proven to be the type to come through in a huge moment or take over a game.

Playing his first playoff game in a Tigers uniform on Thursday, Rodriguez stepped up with a pair of goals, including the game winner with 4:21 to play, lifting Valley View past PSJA Southwest 3-2 in a Class 5A bi-district game at PSJA North High School.

“He had not been explosive at all during the season, and then this time he just surprised us,” Valley View coach Damian Magallan said through an interpreter. “I’m just glad he came through at the right time.”

With the score knotted at two, Rodriguez corralled a long ball and split a pair of defenders before pushing the winning goal into the back of the net.

As he sprinted and slid to the turf just beyond the sideline, his teammates poured off Valley View’s bench and piled on top of him.

“I knew I had one last run at the goal, so I gave it all I could, and I kicked it in,” Rodriguez said through an interpreter. “I have no words to explain that feeling.”

Valley View’s season looked to be in peril early in the game, as PSJA Southwest scored first on a goal by Roberto Colula to take a 1-0 lead that stood until halftime.

A Valley View team with history and aspirations of making it to the state tournament was facing the possibility of a second-straight bi-district playoff exit after losing to Brownsville Pace to open the 2015 postseason.

“Their goal came in, but the will to keep going and keep fighting and keep winning, the team had that mentality,” forward Avi Garcia said through an interpreter. “We knew it was going to be tough coming back, but it wasn’t impossible.”

Southwest stifled Valley View’s offense early on with a tenacious offsides trap led by senior defender Manny Ortiz. The Tigers put the ball in the back of the net and began celebrating goals twice in the first four minutes of the game, only to find the referee’s flag raised to signal the infraction.

Valley View adjusted its attack by sending the ball out wide before trying to press forward, and the move paid dividends in the second half.

After Rodriguez got behind the defense and rocketed a shot into the top of the net to level the match with 32:56 to play, Garcia beat the offsides trap for a breakaway and scored to give Valley View a 2-1 lead with 19:30 remaining.

“I was happy, and I knew I was going to put the ball in there, and that was going to give us a big confidence booster,” Garcia said.

PSJA Southwest netted an equalizer with 10:34 to play after Daniel Salinas scored on a penalty kick, then nearly earned a lead when Francisco Montoya put a free kick off the crossbar with 7:30 remaining.

Rodriguez’s game-winning goal was the last significant chance for either side.

“The emotion is indescribable,” Magallan said. “The emotion carried the team. You have to live it in order to experience it. I don’t have words for it.”

PSJA Southwest coach Jesus Palomin was pleased with how his team played, even down senior captain and center midfielder Humberto Medina to a suspension stemming from a red card in the final regular season game.

Palomin and Magallan were both displeased with the officiating crew from Corpus Christi, which included two 19-year-olds. Palomin thought Valley View was offsides on its second goal, had been mistakenly rewarded a penalty shot and got away with a delay of game late. Magallan felt the officials were incorrect on the offsides calls that disallowed Valley View’s first two scores.

“We gave the boys everything we needed to battle Valley View, and we had an officiating crew that plays a big role in the final outcome,” Palomin said. “It looked like we were going to pull it off. We had good scouting, and a good film report. We just didn’t count on that third factor, which was the officiating.”

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VALLEY-BOYS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Brownsville Hanna 2, Weslaco East 1, PKs

Brownsville Rivera 4, PSJA Memorial 2

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 3, Laredo United 0

Laredo United South 2, La Joya Palmview 1

McAllen High 4, Del Rio 0

Brownsville Lopez 6, Edinburg Economedes 1

La Joya High 3, Laredo LBJ 2

Friday, March 25

Brownsville Veterans Memorial 3, Edinburg North 2

Class 5A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Brownsville Porter 2, Edinburg Vela 0

Valley View 3, PSJA Southwest 2

Brownsville Pace 3, Roma 0

Sharyland High 3, Donna North 2

Class 4A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Port Isabel 4, Monte Alto 1

La Feria 2, Grulla 1

Progreso 5, Zapata 0

Hidalgo 3, Brownsville IDEA Frontier 0

Class 6A Area

Friday, April 1

McAllen High vs. Brownsville Hanna at Weslaco East, 5:30 p.m.

Brownsville Rivera vs. La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at La Joya ISD Stadium, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Lopez vs. La Joya High at Sam’s Stadium in Brownsville, 8 p.m.

Brownsville Veterans vs. Laredo United South at Gladiator Stadium in Roma, 8 p.m.

Class 5A Area

Friday, April 1

Sharyland High vs. Victoria East at Buc Stadium in Corpus Christi, 6 p.m.

Flour Bluff at Valley View, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Pace vs. Laredo Cigarroa at Sharyland High, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Porter vs. Calallen at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi, 8 p.m.

Class 4A Area

Friday, April 1

Hidalgo vs. Kingsville King in San Benito, 8 p.m.

Saturday, April 2

Progreso vs. Rockport Fulton in Kingsville, 2 p.m.

TBA

La Feria vs. La Vernia

Port Isabel vs. Pleasanton

VALLEY-GIRLS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Del Rio 3, McAllen Memorial 1

McAllen High 3, Eagle Pass 0

Laredo United 4, McAllen Rowe 1

Harlingen South 4, Edinburg North 1

Los Fresnos 3, PSJA North 1

Laredo United South 2, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 1

Edinburg Economedes 3, Brownsville Veterans Memorial 2

Friday, March 25

Brownsville Lopez 4, Edinburg High 0

Class 5A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Sharyland High 3, Edcouch-Elsa 2

Sharyland Pioneer 3, Brownsville Pace 0

Brownsville Porter 3, Valley View 0

Friday, March 25

PSJA Southwest 3, Mission Veterans 1

Class 4A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Port Isabel 2, Raymondville 1

Hidalgo 1, Lyford 0

Grulla 2, Progreso 1, PKs

Saturday, March 26

La Feria at Monte Alto, 11 a.m.

Class 6A Area

Friday, April 1

Edinburg Economedes vs. Del Rio at Gustafson Stadium in San Antonio, 6 p.m.

Los Fresnos vs. Laredo United South at Roma’s Gladiator Stadium, 6 p.m.

McAllen High vs. Harlingen South at Weslaco East, 7:30 p.m.

TBA

Brownsville Lopez vs. Laredo United

Class 5A Area

Friday, April 1

Brownsville Porter vs. C.C. Veterans at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi, 6 p.m.

Sharyland High vs. Flour Bluff at Shirley Field in Laredo, 7 p.m.

PSJA Southwest vs. Gregory Portland in Alice, 7 p.m.

Sharyland Pioneer vs. Victoria East at Buc Stadium in Corpus Christi, 8 p.m.

Class 4A Area

Friday, April 1

Hidalgo vs. Kingsville King in San Benito, 6 p.m.

La Vernia at Port Isabel, 5 p.m.

La Feria vs. Pleasanton at Mopac Field in Kingsville, TBA

Saturday, April 2

Grulla vs. Rockport-Fulton at Mopac Stadium in Kingsville, noon

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

At Shirley Field in Laredo, Victor Aramberri scored three times and Brandon Rangel added a fourth to lift McAllen High to a 4-0 win against Del Rio on Friday at Shirley Field in Laredo.

“I think we dominated the game,” McAllen High coach Fernando Segovia said. “There were times where Del Rio put pressure on us, but the defense held, and the offense did very well today.”

The Bulldogs will face Weslaco East at 5:30 p.m. next Friday at Weslaco East.

LA JOYA HIGH 3, LAREDO LBJ 2: At Krueger Field in Laredo, La Joya High held on to win a game in which all the goals were scored before halftime.

Jordan Montes, Johnny Gutierrez and Isaac Ochoa all scored for the Coyotes, setting up a matchup with Brownsville Lopez in the area round.

“It was a very tight game,” La Joya High coach Alex Davila said. “They kept in the game mentally and physically. Defensively at the end, that’s what ended up making the big difference.”

LA JOYA JUAREZ-LINCOLN 3, LAREDO UNITED 0: At Krueger Field in Laredo, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln dialed up the pressure to shut down Laredo United.

Manuel Castrejon, Angel Garcia and Elias Adame scored for the Huskies.

“We controlled the game, we slowed down the pace when we needed to, and we pushed it up when we saw we had the opportunity,” Juarez-Lincoln coach Victor Ramos said. “That was the key to the game tonight.”

Juarez-Lincoln will next play Brownsville Rivera in a rematch of last year’s postseason.

BROWNSVILLE HANNA 2, WESLACO EAST 1, PKs: At Weslaco, Brownsville Hanna pulled out a win in penalties to end Weslaco East’s season. The Golden Eagles will face McAllen High in the area round.

LAREDO UNITED SOUTH 2, LA JOYA PALMVIEW 1: At Laredo, United South handed Palmview a loss.

CLASS 5A

SHARYLAND HIGH 3, DONNA NORTH 2: At Donna’s Bennie LaPrade Stadium, Sharyland High scored with about 20 minutes left to break a deadlock and escape pesky Donna North.

Edson Silva, Paul Castaneda and Salvador Martinez found the back of the net for the Rattlers, who at one point trailed 2-1 while struggling to cope with Donna North’s team speed.

“We just had to wait for them,” Sharyland coach Rev Hernandez said. “They were attacking us. They had a lot of chances on us, and we had some chances, also. The only difference was that this time, we scored one more than them.”

Sharyland High will face Victoria East in the area round.

BROWNSVILLE PACE 3, ROMA 0: At Mercedes, Brownsville Pace shut out Roma to end the Gladiators’ season.

CLASS 4A

PROGRESO 5, ZAPATA 0: At Progreso, Progreso peppered Zapata with shots, scoring goals from five different players in a win.

Christian Chavez, Rodrigo Blanco, Hugo Guajardo, Omar Anguino and Sam Almaguer found the back of the net for the Red Ants.

“The key tonight was our persistence in taking shots from outside the box,” coach Margarito Jimenez said. “Even though the score was 1-0 at the half, we were the dominant team, and we were very persistent and were able to score four goals in the second half.”

Progreso will play Rockport Fulton at 2 p.m. next Saturday in Kingsville.

HIDALGO 3, BROWNSVILLE IDEA FRONTIER 0: At Hidalgo, Hidalgo shook off some early rust to pick up the shutout win against IDEA Frontier.

Marco Garcia, Fili Sustaita and Alek Macias scored for the Pirates.

“We did a really good job having possession of the ball,” Hidalgo coach Zeke Morales said. “We did a really good job passing, moving the ball from one side of the field to the other. Defensively, we looked solid, we looked really strong.”

Hidalgo next plays Kingsville King at 8 p.m. next Friday in San Benito.

LA FERIA 2, GRULLA 1: At La Feria, La Feria pulled out a win against Grulla to set up an area round matchup against La Vernia.

PORT ISABEL 4, MONTE ALTO 1: At Monte Alto, the Blue Devils ended their season in the bi-district round.

GIRLS

CLASS 6A

EDINBURG ECONOMEDES 3, BROWNSVILLE VETERANS MEMORIAL 2: At Edinburg, Edinburg Economedes scored with about three minutes remaining to come through with a win against Brownsville Veterans.

Ayssa Ozuna scored twice for the Lady Jaguars, and Arandi Platas added a goal of her own.

“We took advantage of some mistakes that they made,” Economedes coach Robert Garcia said.

Economedes will face Del Rio in the area round.

McALLEN HIGH 3, EAGLE PASS 0: At Laredo, McAllen High dominated possession throughout in a win against Eagle Pass.

Serena Cervantes, Laura Sanchez and Quetzal Toren scored for the Lady Bulldogs.

“Big keys were I thought Serena Cervantes and Quetzal Toren did a great job,” McAllen High coach Pat Arney said. “Our defense did a great job of shutting down the attacks that they had. We started off the first half really strong, I don’t know that they got a shot on goal. It was in their half almost the whole half.”

McHi will face Harlingen South in the area round.

LAREDO UNITED 4, McALLEN ROWE 1: At De Leon Middle School, McAllen Rowe got a goal from Veronica Dougherty but could not overcome Laredo United.

HARLINGEN SOUTH 4, EDINBURG NORTH 1: At Edcouch-Elsa, Harlingen South topped Edinburg North to set up a matchup with McAllen High in the area round.

DEL RIO 3, McALLEN MEMORIAL 1: At Shirley Field in Laredo, Del Rio ended McAllen Memorial’s season in the bi-district round.

LAREDO UNITED SOUTH 2, LA JOYA JUAREZ-LINCOLN 1: At Laredo, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln was unable to break through against Laredo United South.

CLASS 5A

BROWNSVILLE PORTER 3, VALLEY VIEW 0: At Hidalgo, Brownsville Porter notched a shutout against Valley View.

SHARYLAND HIGH 3, EDCOUCH-ELSA 2: At Mission, District 31-5A champion Sharyland High was pushed by Edcouch-Elsa before pulling out the win.

CLASS 4A

HIDALGO 1, LYFORD 0: At Hidalgo, Yajaira Martinez scored the lone goal to life Hidalgo past Lyford.

“We were on top of them,” Hidalgo coach Frank Alday said. “We had them pinned down, and we kept shooting and shooting and the goal almost never got there.”

Hidalgo will face Kingsville King at 6 p.m. next Friday in San Benito.

GRULLA 2, PROGRESO 1, PKs: At Grulla, Grulla used penalty kicks to end Progreso’s season and advance to the area round.

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — Sharyland High junior Isabella Marinaro has built her game by following her favorite professional sides. Rather than just watching casually, Marinaro finds players at her aggressive midfield position and models her game after the way they move, dribble and attack.

She likes to watch Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris Saint-Germain and Luis Suarez of Barcelona, but her true favorites are two of Suarez’s teammates: Neymar and Lionel Messi.

“They’re my idols,” Marinaro said. “My top dream is to be a soccer player, so I can follow them.”

Marinaro may be a long way from the pro ranks, but in her third varsity season she’s continued to establish herself as one of the Valley’s best players. She’s scored more than 25 goals for the second consecutive year, including 19 in Sharyland High’s undefeated run through District 31-5A.

Her next challenge is the playoffs, which Sharyland opens tonight with a matchup against Edcouch-Elsa at 6 p.m.

“In my years of coaching, she’s probably got the strongest leg that I’ve ever had in a player,” Sharyland High coach Aaron Clemons said. “This year, she’s really dedicated herself to conditioning and getting in shape and getting stronger and getting faster. It’s come out in her play.”

Marinaro said she’s comfortable putting shots on net from as far as 60 yards out, and that she’s confident hitting her spot from 30 or 40.

Although she spent the past offseason working with the Taylor Sports and Human Performance Lab, she credits her strong leg less to the weight room and more to her time playing at her home in Pachuca, Mexico from age 5 up until she moved to Mission for the start of middle school.

“It’s something I’ve always had,” Marinaro said. “Since I was little, I could kick from anywhere, and it will probably go in.”

Marinaro also counts dribbling, quick thinking and communication among her strengths.

With Marinaro flanked by other proven scoring options in sophomore Kaitie Watson and junior Vanessa Guevara, Sharyland High has been among the Valley’s most potent offenses. Clemons said he would hate to have to come up with a defense for the Lady Rattlers. Watson added that she and Marinaro have split the scoring load from their position at the center of the midfield, with both proving to be threats either passing or finishing.

“Isabella is a fantastic player,” Watson, the 2015 All-Valley Newcomer of the Year, said. “She has a great leg. She can take shots from like the 30-yard line and make them. She’s just an all-around player. She can dribble. She can pass. She can shoot. Anything.”

Marinaro’s vast and varied skillset has her optimistic she will be able to find a home at the college level. Already she’s been in contact with UTRGV and a few schools in Florida, where she spent the first five years of her life after being born in Miami.

Clemons said he had no doubt Marinaro could succeed on that level, even at a position other than her typical midfield role.

“This year I’ve had her play some defense, and it’s crazy to watch her clear a ball,” Clemons said. “It’s crazy. I always tell her, she’s stuck on wanting to play offense, but I said when it comes down to the next level, you might be a great defender.”

If professional soccer never comes to fruition, Marinaro hopes to have a career in the medical side of athletics.

After spending eight months volunteering to transport patients and deliver lab results at Rio Grande Regional Hospital, Marinaro has started shadowing at Doctors Hospital at Renaissance. Typically, she tags along for check-ups on babies in the ICU, where the doctor can explain what’s wrong and how they’re being treated.

“I’m looking into studying medicine in college — pre-med or something related,” Marinaro said. “I want something related to sports, too.”

[email protected]

VALLEY-GIRLS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

McAllen Memorial vs. Del Rio at Shirley Field in Laredo, 5 p.m.

McAllen High vs. Eagle Pass at SAC in Laredo, 5:30 p.m.

McAllen Rowe vs. Laredo United at De Leon Middle School, 6 p.m.

Harlingen South vs. Edinburg North at Edcouch-Elsa, 6:30 p.m.

PSJA North at Los Fresnos, 6:30 p.m.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln vs. Laredo United South at SAC in Laredo, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Edinburg Economedes, 7:30 p.m.

Friday, March 25

Brownsville Lopez at Edinburg High, 6 p.m.

Class 5A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Edcouch-Elsa at Sharyland High, 6 p.m.

Sharyland Pioneer vs. Brownsville Pace at Weslaco’s Bobby Lackey Stadium, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Porter at Valley View, 8 p.m.

Friday, March 25

PSJA Southwest vs. Mission Veterans at PSJA Stadium, 7 p.m.

Class 4A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Port Isabel at Raymondville, noon

Lyford at Hidalgo, 6 p.m.

Progreso at Grulla, 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, March 26

La Feria at Monte Alto, 11 a.m.

VALLEY-BOYS SOCCER PLAYOFF SCHEDULE

Class 6A bi-district

Thursday, March 24

Brownsville Hanna at Weslaco East, 6 p.m.

PSJA Memorial vs. Brownsville Rivera at Brownsville’s Sams Memorial Stadium, 6 p.m.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln vs. Laredo United at Krueger Field in Laredo, 6 p.m.

Laredo United South at La Joya Palmview, 7 p.m.

McAllen High vs. Del Rio at Shirley Field in Laredo, 7 p.m.

Edinburg Economedes vs. Brownsville Lopez at Brownsville’s Sams Memorial Stadium, 8 p.m.

La Joya High vs. Laredo LBJ at Krueger Field in Laredo, 8 p.m.

Friday, March 25

Edinburg North vs. Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Brownsville’s Sams Memorial Stadium, 7:30 p.m.

Class 5A

Thursday, March 24

Edinburg Vela vs. Brownsville Porter at Brownsville Sports Park, 7 p.m.

PSJA Southwest vs. Valley View at PSJA North, 7 p.m.

Roma vs. Brownsville Pace at Mercedes, 7 p.m.

Sharyland High vs. Donna North at Donna’s Bennie LaPrade Stadium, 7:30 p.m.

Class 4A

Thursday, March 24

Port Isabel at Monte Alto, 3 p.m.

Grulla at La Feria, 6 p.m.

Zapata at Progreso, 7 p.m.

Brownsville IDEA Frontier at Hidalgo, 8 p.m.

GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

PHARR — PSJA Southwest’s Jesus Acosta has been a soccer player most of his life, but when he arrived at Kennedy Middle School in seventh grade, football coaches wanted to make use of his talent on the gridiron.

“They just told me to go and run with the ball,” Acosta said. “Don’t let them tackle you. I didn’t know how football worked or what to do.”

With time, Acosta became one of the best backs in District 32-5A, this season ranking third with 1,279 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.

On the pitch, he takes a similar approach, willing to do whatever is asked of him. That mentality permeates the PSJA Southwest roster, especially with Acosta and fellow senior Joe Benavides, and is a major reason the team is back in the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year.

“They’re all-around athletes,” PSJA Southwest coach Jesus Palomin said. “In whatever sport they would’ve chosen as their primary sport, they would’ve been successful.”

When PSJA Southwest switched from a 4-4-2 formation to a 4-3-3 to try to negate its size disadvantage and lack of elite forwards, Acosta stepped into the third forward role.

Later, when the Javelinas’ starting goalie was lost due to injury, Acosta filled in. Acosta hadn’t played the position since middle school, and Southwest was facing undefeated Brownsville Porter, but he still answered the call.
“It was a baptism by fire, and he’s done a real great job,” Palomin said. “He’s very calm. We like that he doesn’t panic.”

Neither does Benavides, who Palomin said has played every position in the book.

Typically, Benavides lines up on the defensive end, earning the team’s playoff MVP the past three seasons for his ability outmuscle larger center midfielders.

But this district season, Benavides has moved forward, scoring eight goals as a midfielder. With senior captain Humberto Medina suspended for three games after picking up a red card in the season finale, Benavides will become the central figure of the Javelinas’ quick touch offense, calling out the plays on the fly.

“We’re a team, and people have to step it up,” Benavides said. “He’s going to be out for three games, but we said his season is not over, because we’re going to go deep, and he’s going to come back.”

Acosta, Benavides and a third senior stalwart, Manny Ortiz, have also adjusted their mental approaches during their four years on varsity.

As freshmen, those three would be knocking on random doors in the team hotel, or hiding the clothes and towels when their senior teammates went to shower. Now, as seniors, their approach is more business-like.

“These guys have taken the role of the leaders and put (the younger players) in their place and told them, ‘Hey, you can’t be doing that,’” Palomin said. “We laugh, because we’re like, ‘Now you’re telling the younger ones not to do it, when you used to do it.’ It’s funny how the roles change.”

Each of the seniors has had to take on more responsibility this year, as Southwest graduated 13 players and half of last season’s starting lineup.

The turnover hasn’t done anything to change the expectations for the Javelinas, who have bested their previous playoff run in each of the past three years. Last season, Southwest advanced all the way to the regional finals before losing 4-2 to Georgetown East View.

“It’s pressure, because ever since my freshman year: Third round, fourth round, fifth round,” Benavides said. “The only thing that’s left is going to the Final Four, and I think we’re going to accomplish that this year.”

The road to state gets off to a difficult start on Thursday, with a matchup against one of the region’s top teams in Valley View. The Javelinas face that challenge without Medina, who was ejected from the team’s final game over what Palomin called confusion with the official. Medina was yelling at one of his teammates to try to fire him up, and the official thought the comments were directed at him.

The blow has done nothing to shake PSJA Southwest’s confidence.

“The players said, ‘We’ve got it, coach,’” Palomin said. “Joe Benavides, he was one of the main ones that said, ‘Don’t worry about it. We’re going to carry this team.’”

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GREG LUCA | STAFF WRITER

EDINBURG — Entering Wednesday night’s game just one win from securing the first district title in program history, Edinburg Economedes coach Robert Garcia didn’t need to launch into any kind of elaborate pep talk.

“Believe it or not, they were the ones that told me, ‘We got it,’” Garcia said. “I didn’t have to say anything. They knew what they had to do. They knew what was at stake, so they did their job.”

Behind typically stalwart defense and a second-half goal by Pricilla Vela, Economedes took down Edinburg North 1-0 at Cats Stadium to secure the District 31-6A championship.

Economedes finishes the regular season with 31 points, 5 ahead of second-place Edinburg North.

“It’s amazing,” junior Krysta Armstrong said. “It’s something we worked for, and we improved a lot from last year. This year, we wanted it more than anything.”

When the final horn sounded, Garcia and his assistants raised their arms over their heads in celebration as players sprinted to goalkeeper Theisa Bigelow for a group hug.

After the postgame handshake, the Lady Jaguars found a water cooler and poured it on Garcia, in his eighth year at Economedes.

“This means the world to me, the school, and the whole Economedes community,” Garcia said. “We got one, and that’s awesome.”

The Lady Jaguars were on the cusp of winning their first title last year. Edinburg North went 12-0 to earn all 36 possible points, but Economedes lost both head-to-head matchups 1-0 and swept the rest of the league.

The near-miss sparked a strong offseason for the Lady Jaguars, leading to a confident return this year. Armstrong said the team improved its passing and communication without any drop on the defensive end.

“My outlook was positive. I believed we would win the district championship,” Armstrong said. “In the fall and summer leagues, we were always first and second, so we had a chance. We just knew district was ours. District was ours. And that was our main focus and goal.”

Entering Wednesday’s season finale with 28 points to Edinburg North’s 26, the only way Economedes would fail to win a district title was if Edinburg North won during regulation.

The Lady Jaguars almost ensured that wouldn’t be the case when Vela corralled a loose ball in the box off a corner kick by Armstrong and poked it into an empty net for a 1-0 edge with 28:34 to play.

North did not go quietly, as Itzamar Rios continued to be one of the district’s most potent threats on the offensive end, continually charging at the net in search of scoring chances. But a stout Economedes defense, led by Carolina Pardo and Maritzela Guzman, continually turned her away.

“(Edinburg North) opens up a lot, and they talk, and they do the long balls to Itza,” Armstrong said. “But we just shut it down.”

The next step for both teams is the playoffs, which get underway next Thursday. The Lady Jaguars are confident not just for this postseason but also for next year, as the team will return seven starters from its first district championship squad.

“We’re going to have a big bull’s-eye on our back, but I’m hoping we can continue,” Garcia said. “Now they know how it feels, and that should help them for next year, also.”

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