BY JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — Sharyland High’s Sandra Valdez burst off the diving board and into the history books Thursday at Bannworth Park Natatorium with a record-setting performance in the 5A diving championships. The sophomore took first place in the girls competition with a score of 419.35, a new district record among Valley schools.

“I was nervous at first,” Valdez said. “I always get nervous when we start the meet, but I got more confident when I saw I was doing good.”

Valdez’s afternoon on the board was marked by consistent execution. Of the 11 dives she attempted, she scored better than 18 points on all but one occasion — a backwards somersault where she received a 14. Her highest score of 22.5 occurred on an inward somersault tuck.

“When I saw the scores, I was super happy,” Valdez said.

Valdez shattered the previous record of 252.45 set in 2014 by Emily Alvarado of Mission High.

“I’ve been trying to build up her mentality of knowing she has these skills and that she can do it,” Sharyland diving coach Leslie Richardson said. “I told her, ‘You have to be confident on that diving board and know that you can do it like you’re the best.’”

Valdez takes to the board again on Feb. 6 in Corpus Christi for regional competition. There, she will look to advance to the state diving championships for a second straight year.

“I saw how good the swimmers were at regional and state last year,” Valdez said. “Seeing them last year made me want to get better this year.”

‘A LITTLE MEANS A LOT’

In the boys’ competition, Roma’s Orel Chapa took home first place for the Gladiators with a score of 359.10, a few points shy of breaking his personal record. The senior led from start to finish and scored a 21.00 on an inward somersault tuck, a meet-high for all male divers.

“It felt good out there,” Chapa said. “I was just praying I wouldn’t mess up.”

Chapa will compete at regionals as a diver for a third time. The senior was the only Gladiator from the boys team to advance.

“We encouraged him to stay focused,” Roma coach Calvin Snyder said. “He stayed with it the first two or three dives. He fought through it. He had to dive very well because (runner up Aaron Kolodzej of Sharyland) dove very well.”

Chapa’s score bested Kolodzej’s by 18 points.

“I’m going to work hard,” Chapa said of his preparation for regionals. “I need to work on my forward double and my twist. I just need to practice how to spin faster.”

Chapa’s coach claims there’s more to diving than refining technique.

“Diving is so much more mental (than swimming),” Snyder said. “You have to keep that focus for the whole 11 dives. It allows you to do very well. You don’t have to do much wrong to have a dive not look good. That little bit means a lot on the board.”

ROOKIES TO REGIONALS

PSJA High saw a pair of recent diving converts round out the top five. Juniors Noah Robles and Isaac Rodriguez placed fourth and fifth respectively, with Robles missing third place by a five-point margin.

For Robles, who scored a 244.35, Thursday’s meet doubled as his debut on the diving board in competition. Only two weeks ago, however, he suffered an injury he feared would keep him off the board.

“I got stepped on by a heifer,” Robles said. “It (weighed) about a thousand pounds.”

The incident happened at the agricultural farm at PSJA High.

“She was trying to run away from me and, when I turned her, I had slipped underneath her. She stepped on my spine and my upper ribs on my left side,” Robles said. “The doctor couldn’t believe I was still alive.”

Thanks in part to scoring a 19.00 on a reverse tuck, Robles has gone from banged up to jubilant at the thought of participating in his first regional meet.

“I can’t believe it,” Robles said. “I thought my season was over.”

Robles’ teammate, Rodriguez, took up diving in November. An offensive lineman for the Bears football team, the junior dropped 30 pounds to get in swimming shape. Rodriguez’s high score came on a reverse tuck in which the judges awarded him 16.5 points.

His lone blemish came on a back dive. Rather than gracefully plunging head first into the water, Rodriguez’s back slapped the surface and gave the pool-side judges a small shower.

“I flopped a lot. It hurt,” Rodriguez said of the learning curve on the board. “But it was just the mindset of moving on to the next one.”

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Jon LaFollette and Mario Aguirre discuss the heart-warming story of Rene Diaz of Mission High, the #RGVSports.com Top 10 rankings and preview the upcoming week in Valley basketball. Also, Mario tries to start the zombie apocalypse and apologizes to San Isidro.

Click here to listen and subscribe to the show in iTunes.

BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER

The McAllen Rowe Lady Warriors sit atop District 30-6A with a 6-1 record, a tremendous improvement for a team what only won six games all of last season.

“Last year, when all these kids were sophomores, it was all about getting them to believe in the system,” Rowe coach Raul Vega said. “It was hard to do that with so many losses.”

The Lady Warriors (16-12, 6-1) enter Friday’s open date having won four of their previous five games, including a 47-42 road win over then-district leading La Joya Palmview on Jan. 13. The five-point victory was the latest in a string of close games for Rowe.

“We’re banking on the experiences from last year to guide us through this season,” Vega said.

Making the Lady Warriors’ recent run more impressive is the fact the team is without what Vega describes as “that go-to player.”

“The girls have bought into the fact that we’ve got to play as a team, especially when you don’t have that one scorer that you know will score 16 or 17 points a game,” Vega said.

Taking the points as they come on offense, Vega and his staff have emphasized a mantra of rebounding as defense, relying on the inside duo of junior Ryela Rodriguez and junior Mayda Garcia to clean the glass.

“We had to remind the kids how important it is to limit the other team to fewer shots,” Vega said. “Earlier this season, teams were getting their first and second shots. Eventually, (the opponent) is going to make them.”

Despite their district lead, the view from the top is far from cozy. Only three games separate the first four teams in the standings.

“I think coming into the season all the coaches knew it was going to be a battle,” Vega said. “We never saw one team as head and shoulders above everyone else. We all thought we were in the same boat.”

RUNNING ROMA

The Roma Lady Gladiators host the Edinburg Vela Lady SaberCats on Friday in a rematchof District 31-5A foes. When the two teams last met on Dec. 19, Vela handed Roma a 70-60 loss. Freshman center Bianca Cortez of the Lady SaberCats scored 23 points in that contest.

“That was the first time we’ve seen then play all year,” Roma coach Romeo Rios said. “But we’re more familiar with their personnel and their style of play. We’ll be ready for them.”

Roma (17-10, 5-2) enters Friday’s game with a four-game winning streak. During that stretch, the Lady Gladiators have outscored their opponents by an average of 23 points. The driving force for Roma has been senior point guard Yosalin Barajas, who Rios calls the team’s “soft-spoken” leader.

“She leads in a different way,” Rios said. “She may not score 20 or 30 points on a nightly basis, but she does so much for us offensively. Without her, there is no (senior) forward Kassy Rocha and there are no easy buckets.”

Roma’s recent run follows a difficult stretch in which the team lost three of five.

“We were playing .500 ball for a while there,” Rios said. “But we played a lot of good teams with good coaches. Unfortunately, we just didn’t bring it those nights.”

MOVING ON

Tuesday’s 61-44 loss to the Weslaco Lady Panthers marked the second time this season the PSJA North Lady Raiders lost to a Valley team. The District 31-6A rivals split their season series.

“(Weslaco is) no pushover,” PSJA North coach Randy Bocanegra said. “They came to play.”

The loss creates a tie for the district championship with five games remaining in the regular season.
“We’re very optimistic,” Bocanegra said. “We’re going to keep playing, and I like to think that if we had a bad game, it was (Tuesday night).”

The Lady Raiders (23-4, 6-1) will play Edinburg North on Friday night.

“These next five games we have to win,” junior forward Belle Palacios said. “We have to keep working hard and take things more seriously. We have to just go out there and play.”

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The RGVSports.com Girls Basketball Top 10 Rankings for the week of Jan. 21

Girls Top 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pre.

1. Weslaco High 24-5 3

2. Harlingen High 23-3 1

3. PSJA North 23-4 2

4. Brownsville Veterans 20-7 4

5. Edinburg Vela 18-8 5

6. Mercedes 18-8 9

7. Mission Veterans 16-10 6

8. Roma 17-10 NR

9. Edinburg High 20-9 8

10. McAllen Rowe 16-12 NR

BY JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER

PHARR — In December, Megan Peralez watched from the sideline with a high ankle sprain as her Weslaco High teammates lost to PSJA North – the first time in more than a year in which the Lady Panthers were beat by an opposing Valley team.

Tuesday at PSJA North, however, Peralez was healthy and impactful, setting the tone early for Weslaco en route to a 61-44 win over the Lady Raiders. The Lady Panthers’ victory creates a first-place tie between the two teams in District 31-6A.

The senior forward scored 4 of her 8 points in the first quarter, and was an inside presence the Lady Raiders had no answer for.

“We were ready for (the game),” Peralez said. “We pasted articles (of the loss) all over the place, our lockers, all over the locker room. We’ve been ready since they beat us.”

While Peralez established her presence inside with put-backs, points in the paint and a game-high 10 rebounds, it was the exquisite guard play of the Lady Panthers that propelled the team to a comfortable win. Junior Jaz Muniz scored a team-high 20 points, and senior guard Angela Villarreal collected 16.

“We came out and we played, we really did.” Peralez said. “And we did it as a team. It wasn’t just one person who came out, everyone came out. We had one mission, one goal.”

But more impressive than Weslaco’s offense was its suffocating perimeter defense. The Lady Raiders, a run-and-gun team reliant on sharpshooting from behind the arc, struggled to get clean looks and was routinely flustered by the length of the Lady Panthers’ wings.

“Our defense was something (Weslaco coach Griselda Fino) talked to us about before the game,” Villarreal said. “Don’t let them get an open shot off, keep a hand in their face. Contest (the shot).”

Weslaco began the game on an 18-6 run that saw four of the team’s five starters contribute buckets. Amy Garcia, an undersized yet scrappy forward, muscled her way to four points while Muniz drained two of her four bombs from long range.

“They started hot, and we started slow,” PSJA North coach Randy Bocanegra said.

Facing a 29-18 deficit to begin the third quarter, the Lady Raiders abandoned their jump-shooting attack and responded with a concerted effort to take the ball inside. Junior Belle Palacios exhibited her post moves and scored 14 of her game-high 22 points in the quarter.

“Coach told us it was time to play,” Palacios said. “It was time to come out strong. I told my girls, ‘This is it, let’s go hard.’ We tried our best, but it wasn’t the outcome we wanted.”

Thanks largely to the effort of Palacios, the Lady Raiders came within one point of Weslaco, trailing 41-40 late in the third. It was as close as North would get. Villarreal stemmed the Lady Raiders’ run with a pair of 3-pointers. One closed the third quarter while another opened the fourth. Suddenly, it was a seven-point Lady Panthers lead.

“I had to get started,” Villarreal said. “It’s something I wanted to do. Once I hit the first (3-point shot), coach told me I was on fire and to keep it up.”

Weslaco outscored the Lady Raiders 17-4 in the final eight minutes — a span that saw Palacios foul out and senior guard Cynthia Martinez, North’s leading scorer, fail to obtain points.

After drawing even with PSJA North (23-4, 6-1), its back to business as usual for Weslaco (24-5, 6-1).

“I told the kids, ‘It doesn’t matter what you say. It doesn’t matter who says what,’” Fino said. “Bottom line is, if you tell me you’re the best team then you need to go out there and prove it.”

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To call in a girls basketball box score, please call 1 (956) 683-4402

Tuesday, Jan 20

District 30-6A

La Joya Palmview 42, McAllen Memorial 29

McAllen Rowe 48, La Joya 46

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 50, Mission 42

District 31-6A

PSJA Memorial at Edinburg Economedes, not reported

Weslaco 61, PSJA North 44

Weslaco East 42, Edinburg North 31

District 32-6A

Brownsville Veterans 41, Harlingen South 31

Harlingen 63, Brownsville Rivera 22

San Benito 41, Brownsville Hanna 30

Los Fresnos 62, Brownsville Lopez 22

District 31-5A

Roma 58, Rio Grande City 26

Edinburg Vela 52, Sharyland 25

Valley View 26, Sharyland Pioneer 33

District 32-5A

Donna North 47, Brownsville Porter 43

Donna 33, PSJA Southwest 31, OT

Mercedes 39, Brownsville Pace 29

PSJA High at Edcouch-Elsa,not reported

District 32-4A

La Feria 38, Raymondville 31

Grulla 36, Progreso 25

Rio Hondo at Hidalgo, not reported

Zapata at Port Isabel, not reported

District 32-3A

Lyford 52, Santa Rosa 32

Monte Alto at Brownsville IDEA, not reported

District 32-2A

La Villa at La Sara, not reported

Riviera-Kaufer at Santa Maria, not reported

San Perlita at Bruni, not reported

TAPPS District 6-1A

Juan Diego Academy 42, Harvest Christian 27

Tuesday’s Box Scores

DISTRICT 30-6A
La Joya Palmview 42, McAllen Memorial 29

McAllen Memorial 4 5 8 12 — 29

Palmview 9 8 17 8 — 42

McAllen Memorial (29) — Ebany Johnson 11. Victoria Izaguerra 13. Kailey Caldwell 4. Draik Banks 1.

La Joya Palmview (42) — Brittany Cano 1. Samantha Gutierrez 22. Edna Oballe 2. Monica Noyola 15. Martha Bocanegra 2.

RECORDS: McAllen Memorial (4-3); La Joya Palmview (5-2)

McAllen Rowe 48, La Joya 46

Rowe 6 11 17 14 — 48

La Joya 10 6 18 10 — 46

McAllen Rowe (48) — Vanessa Leal 2. Jovanni Solis 3. Dianna Stear 17. Mayda Garcia 11. Gisselt Gomez 2. Ryella Rodriguez 8. Joselyn Pena 5.

La Joya (46) — Jacqueline Villarreal 2. Desiree Segundo 4. Daniella Cantu 12. Ashley Olivares 21. Vanesssa Ortega 2. Monica Garcia 5.

RECORDS: Nikki Rowe 16-12 (6-1); Brownsville Pace (not reported)

Distrcit 31-6A

Weslaco High 61, PSJA North 44

Weslaco 18 11 15 17 — 61

PSJA North 6 12 22 4 — 44

Weslaco (61) — Angelina Villarreal 16. Amy Garcia 7. Magean Peralez 8. Ashley Gonzalez 10. Jasmine Munoz 20.

PSJA Southwest (44) — Paris Serrano 3. Cynthia Martinez 8. Tiffany Fuente 5. Arianna Madrano 6. Belle Palacios 22.

RECORDS: PSJA North 23-4 (6-1). (3-4); Brownsville Pace (not reported)

Weslaco East 42, Edinburg North 31

Edinburg North 10 9 6 6 — 31

Weslaco East 3 12 17 10 — 42

Brownsville Pace (42) — Brianna Garza 4. Klarissa Lopez 5. Nikki Rodriguez 2. Tiffany Chapa 2. Natalie Alaniz 10. Melissa Mojjaro 2. Stephanie Flores 2.

Edinburg North (31) —Michelle Marquez 16. Felicia Rivera 4. Giselle Reyes 3. Ashley Cruz 11. Yari Marin 2. April Olszak 2.

RECORDS: Weslaco East 14-14 (3-4); Edinburg North (2-5)

District 31-5A

EDINBURG VELA 52, SHARYLAND HIGH 25

Sharyland High 10 11 4 0 — 25

Edinburg Vela 9 16 13 14 — 52

Sharyland HIGH (25) — Sofie Reyes 2, Natalia Portillo 5, Sonia Trevino 3, Cassey Stephens 3, Anna Marshall 4, Maddie Garza 8.

EDINBURG VELA (52) — Jaida Muhammud 13, Julissa Cuellar 2, Bianca Cortez 6, Ariel Rodriguez 17, Maranda Washington 8, Terri Garza 2, Tatiana Guerrero 2, Emma Villarreal 2.

RECORDS: Sharyland High (Not reported); Edinburg Vela (18-8, 7-0 district)

Roma 58, Rio Grande City 26

Roma 18 15 16 9 — 58

Rio Grande City 4 7 10 5 — 26

Roma (58) — Yosalin Barajas 9. Krissitina Rocha 8. Kassandra Saenz 5. Luz Gonzales 10. Aylin Rodriguez 3. Denise Pena 6. Kasandra Rocha 14. Artlette Torres 2.

Rio Grande City (26) — Adriana C. 10; Jacky G. 1; Ashley B. 1; Andrea B. 1; Jozy A. 2; Gina V. 8

RECORDS: Roma 17-10 (5-2); Rio Grande City (not reported)

VALLEY VIEW 36, SHARYLAND PIONEER 33

Sharyland Pioneer 10 9 5 9 — 33

Valley View 2 15 11 8 — 36

SHARYLAND PIONEER (33) — M. Ramos 10, M. De Leon 7, A. Briseno 6, A. Alvarado 4, C. Alonzo 3, C. Beltran 2, C. Garza 1

VALLEY VIEW (36) — S. Munguia 14, G. Rodriguez 8, E. Saenz 7, T. Castillo 3, D. Cantu 2, M. Hernandez 1, N. Rangel 1

District 32-5A

Donna 34, PSJA Southwest 31

Donna 8 6 5 10 4 — 34

PSJA SW 2 8 10 9 2 — 31

donna (34) — Laurynn Williams 13.

PSJA SW (31) — Daniella Hernandez 11.

RECORDS: not reported

District 32-3A

Lyford 52, Santa Rosa 32

Lyford 16 15 9112 — 52

Santa Rosa 13 6 4 9 — 32

Lyford (52) — Miranda Ramirez 15. Bailey Scoggin 10. Rebekah Perez 9. Aaron Martinez 9.

Santa Rosa (32) — J Guerra 15. Vela 8. Contreras 2. Vasquez 5.

RECORDS: Lyford 21-6 (3-0); Santa Rosa (2-1)

JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — Carlos Graybill lifts his slender frame out of the Bannworth Natatorium pool. He’s just completed a heat in the 200-yard freestyle as part of the Mission Swim Meet. It’s the final competition before this week’s district championships.

A girl with frizzy hair pulled into a lose pony tail informs Graybill of his time as water falls off his swim cap.

2 minutes, 5.69 seconds.

Graybill is visibly flustered. He purses his lips for a moment before walking back to Sharyland High’s designated area of the natatorium.

“I didn’t have it today,” Graybill said. “I just wasn’t feeling it.”

Disappointed words despite a fifth-place finish in an event with 35 other swimmers. For Graybill though, the outcome serves as a microcosm for what he describes as a difficult year. Where he entered his senior season looking to beat his personal records, Graybill has seen the stopwatch remain stagnant.

The 17-year-old native of Bolivia sensed his performance in the 200 freestyle wouldn’t meet his rigorous standards before it even began.

“When you get on up the (diving block) and everything just quiets down a little bit, that’s when you know you’re feeling it,” he said. “You can hear your thoughts. Today, I heard everyone else’s voices. It was kind of annoying.”

Though harmlessly flustered, Graybill is friendly and likable. He says his biggest goal for his final year is to simply “relax, have fun and enjoy the moment.” It’s the creed of a confident swimmer who advanced to regionals a year ago, and who knows what it takes to make a return visit.

“I call him my sunshine,” Sharyland swim coach Tina Jensen said. “He’s always making other kids on the team laugh, cheering them on and pushing everyone to make them better.”

Graybill flexes his muscle later in the afternoon, taking first in the 100 backstroke relay with a time of 1:03.28, more than four seconds better than the runner-up.

Graybill and his family moved to the United States in 2005 after his father accepted a position in the oil and gas industry, and settled in the Dallas area. His first impression of Texas sounds like a bad punchline.

“Big,” he said. “Everything was just big.”

He tried his hand at football but suffered an Achilles injury. The doctor prescribed swimming as a means of therapy.

“I didn’t think I would like it as much as I do,” Graybill said. “People don’t realize how hard (swimming) is, and it’s all on you. You’re the only one who can make yourself better.”

But Graybill, who has started varsity at Sharyland since his freshman year, has loftier goals than making regionals and already envisions a life beyond the pool.

“I want to study nuclear engineering,” he said. “I want to make a difference. Oil is about to run out, what are we going to do afterwards? For a greener world, I feel like nuclear energy is the right choice for it. There’s a lot of possibilities.”

Graybill has already been accepted to Texas A&M, but hopes to be admitted into the University of Michigan. After hop-scotching about South America with his family as a child, he says he “knows how to make a new start.”

In addition to wrapping up his senior year at Sharyland, Graybill is also enrolled in engineering classes at South Texas College, and will obtain his high school diploma along with an associate degree.

“It’ll be hard to let swimming go,” Graybill said. “I know I’m going to miss it a lot.”

Until he exits the pool a final time, he remains focused and alone with his thoughts on the diving board.

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To report girls basketball scores, call The Monitor sports desk at (956) 683-4402.

Friday, Jan. 16

District 30-6A

La Joya Juarez Lincoln 47, La Joya Palmview 42

McAllen High 39, McAllen Memorial 25

McAllen Rowe, 47, Mission 36

District 31-6A

PSJA North 64, Edinburg High 41

Edinburg Economedes 50, Edinburg North 47

Weslaco 36, Weslaco High 28

District 32-6A

Brownsville Veterans 60, Brownsville Lopez 21

San Benito 49, Brownsville Rivera 29

Harlingen 56, Harlingen South 14

Brownsville Hanna 33, Los Fresnos 23

District 31-5A

Edinburg Vela 55, Mission Vets 34

Roma High 47 vs Valley View 14

Sharyland 37, Rio Grande City 28

District 32-5A

Brownsville Pace 38 at PSJA Southwest 15

Donna 59, Edcouch-Elsa 27

PSJA High 41, Donna North 26

District 32-4A

Rio Hondo 55, Zapata 34

Hidalgo at La Grulla, not reported

La Feria at Port Isabel, not reported

Progreso at Raymondville, not reported

District 32-3A

Lyford 54, Edinburg IDEA 33

Santa Rosa 41, Brownsville IDEA 37

District 32-2A

La Villa 39, San Isidro 34

Bruni at Riviera-Kaufer, not reported

La Sara at Santa Maria, not reported

Non-District

First Baptist at San Perlita, not reported

Friday’s Box Scores

District 31-6A

PSJA NORTH 64, EDINBURG HIGH 41

Edinburg High 6 12 15 8 — 41

PSJA North 21 5 15 23 — 64

edinburg high (41) — Jayla Santa Maria 18, Kiana Ramirez 2, Reyna Del Castillo 9, Emily Acosta 4, Rita Garcia 2, Mercedes Hernandez 4, Jennifer Galvan 2

psja north (64) — Sara Serrano 15, Cynthia Martinez 23, Ariana Medrano 10, Lisa Palacios 3, Belle Palacios 13

RECORDS: North 23-3, 6-0

Friday’s Game

District 30-6A

MCALLEN HIGH 39, MCALLEN MEMORIAL 25

McAllen High 9 8 8 14 — 39

Weslaco East 9 5 7 4 — 25

mcallen high (39) — Not reported.

mcallen memorial (25) — Victoria Izaguirre 7, Ebony Johnson 6, Kaley Caldwell 3, Andrea Garcia 3, Draik Banks 3, Cassandra Reyes 2, Krystal Villarreal 1

RECORDS: McAllen Memorial 4-2

District 31-5A

ROMA 47, VALLEY VIEW 14

Roma 18 15 9 5 — 47

Valley View 0 4 5 5 — 14

roma (47) — Yosalyn Baraja 6, Kassandra Saenz 9, Annette Jasso 6, Luz Gonzalez 6, Denise Pena 2, Kassandra Rocha 16, Arnette Torres 2

VALLEY VIEW (14) — S. Mungia 3, N. Rangel 3, A. Ramirez 1, M. Hernandez 2, G. Rodriguez 2, A. Prado 1

RECORDS: Roma 16-10, 4-2 district

District 32-5A

Brownsville pace 38, PSJA Southwest 15

Brownsville Pace 2 14 11 11 — 38

PSJA Southwest 3 0 3 9 — 15

Brownsville pace (38) — Abbey Leanos, 8.

PSJa Southwest (15) — Suzana, 8.

RECORDS: PSJA Southwest (3-4); Brownsville Pace (not reported)

JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER

EDINBURG — Edinburg Vela’s Lyssa Garcia made an off-season pact with her mom and dad.

“This year, I had promised my parents I would score a lot more than I usually do,” she said.

The senior guard’s father asked for at least 3 points scored in every quarter Garcia played.

“But I decided I would do more than 3 points,” Garcia said. “And (I would) just keep pushing and pushing and see how many points I could get out of that.”

What she got Friday night at Edinburg Vela High School was a 13-point performance in the Lady SaberCats’ 55-34 win over Mission Veterans. Garcia scored in every quarter and in almost every fashion: a put-back in the first, a triple in the second, layups in the third, capped by an and-1 in the fourth.

Garcia’s break-out night came during the most important game of Vela’s season. Both the Lady SaberCats and the Lady Patriots entered the contest at 5-0 in District 31-5A, with the winner claiming sole possession of first place.

“We knew it was going to be a dog fight coming in,” Vela senior guard Ariel Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez’s words echoed a quote written on a dry-erase board in the Lady SaberCats’ locker room by Vela coach Lottie Zarate.

“That was (Mission Veterans coach Rafael Cantu’s) words to me back in November,” Zarate said. “Every time a coach talks to me, I’ll put it (on the board) so that (my players know).”

The game only resembled a “dog fight” in the first quarter. Each team kick-started the night with a pair of turnovers and sloppy offensive execution, which led to a paltry, if closely contested, 11-8 Vela lead.

“Things were kind of difficult there in the beginning,” Garcia said. “We had trouble making shots.”

Vela’s offense came alive in the second quarter, however. The Lady SaberCats (17-8, 6-0) scored 17 points behind a pair of Rodriguez 3-pointers to take a 28-20 halftime lead. Rodriguez scored a game-high 19 points, one better than her season per-game average.

Vela’s offense clicked thanks in part to its pristine ball movement. Of the team’s 11 first half field goals, 7 came on an assist.

From there, Mission Veterans (16-10, 5-1) never recovered. The Lady SaberCats outscored the Lady Patriots 27-14 in the second half, and continued pouring in shots from behind the arc, generating turnovers and getting to the foul line. For Cantu, it was a night of missed opportunities.

“We got punched and we never punched back,” he said. “We didn’t respond. We need to respond in those situations by coming together.”

The Lady Patriots were marred by foul trouble and an inability to convert open looks. Forward D.D. Ibarra sat out much of the second quarter with three fouls, and leading scorer Ashley Smith missed several looks close to the rim.

“We haven’t been shooting the ball well,” Cantu said. “Against Rio Grande City we were 4 of 26 in the first half, and we escaped that one. We can’t shoot like that and win ballgames.”

For the Lady SaberCats, Friday’s win brings them one game closer to their goal of an unblemished district record. But as the victories come, Zarate attempts to find a balance between confidence and ego.

“I tell my girls, ‘Don’t come in here with your head bigger than a water tower,’” she said. “‘You’re head won’t fit through the door.’”

Though Zarate and her team pledge the customary oath of taking things one game at a time, the Lady SaberCats like where they’re at. On top.

“Coach told us we have two choices,” Garcia said. “We’re either in the back seat or the driver’s seat. She asked us what seat we want to be in, and we automatically responded, ‘The driver’s seat.’ We just have to stay up there.”

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Jon and Mario are joined by Adam Kujawski of the Brownsville Herald, who gives the low-down on the metro-area boys teams. The guys then talk about both Edinburg High programs, Friday’s looming games with district implications as well as their favorite species of shark.