MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer

After having no Rio Grande Valley state qualifiers on Day 1 of the Region IV-2/4A meet, a trio of girls runners on Day 2 ensured that their track seasons would continue.

Santa Maria’s Julissa Garcia, La Villa’s Robbie Espericueta and Rio Hondo’s Jazaline Ayala all went the distance and punched tickets to the state meet in their respective classes Saturday at Texas A&M Kingsville’s Javelina Stadium.

Garcia had the biggest day by bringing home gold in the 400-meter dash in 1:01.83 seconds. Espericueta and Ayala each placed second in the 2A and 4A 800, respectively.

The Santa Maria junior took the lead heading into the final 100 meters and held off Holland’s Kate Gordon and San Saba’s Kylee Eckerman down the home stretch to secure the win.

“The second-place girl was gaining on me, and that just made me push myself harder,” said Garcia, who is heading to state for the second straight year. “I was nervous before the race, but once it started I knew I had to get this win. It’s a really good feeling (to win). It’s better than last year because I got second in this race, but I still need to work on my time.”

Espericueta finished the 800 with a time of 2:25.19 behind San Saba’s Brighton Adams (2:23.23.).

The La Villa senior also is heading to state for the second straight year, but she was not pleased with her time or the fact that she did not pick up the win like last season.

Espericueta was in third place during the final 200 meters before making her kick capturing her state berth.

“This wasn’t my best race at all, and I’m not very proud of what I’ve done today,” she said. “My goal was to get first. When I was running the second lap, I knew I was behind so I had to catch up. I was trying to breathe right because my throat was kind of hurting and I was struggling there, but I picked it up at the 200 and I placed second.”

Espericueta also placed third in the mile run and may have an outside shot at a wild card spot.

In Class 4A, Ayala finished her race with a 2:27.76, behind Pleasanton’s Caitlyn Nieschwitz (2:22.69).

It was a close race down the stretch, but Ayala stayed strong down the home stretch.

“I felt really good and in my second lap, I started pushing and going stronger,” she said. “I kept on telling myself I could do it, and to push it and never give up. I’m happy, excited and very nervous for state. A lot of big schools are there, and this will be my first time. This is the first time in a long time someone for my school is going to state. It’s just exciting.”

Port Isabel managed to get on the awards podium with a couple of third-place finishes on Day 2.

The 800 relay placed third with a time of 1:31.08, and in the 200, Mac Strunk, who also anchors the 800 relay team, took bronze in 22.27.

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

BROWNSVILLE — The first inning went exactly how Brownsville Veterans Memorial hoped it would.

Senior pitcher Mia Anzaldua struck out the side and sophomore Mariangel Barbosa cranked a leadoff homer as the Lady Chargers rolled past Sharyland High 15-0 in five innings during their Class 5A bi-district playoff game Saturday.

Brownsville Veterans now awaits the winner between Calallen and Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial.

With the playoff win came school history. Anzaldua, who already holds records for single-season strikeouts and wins in a season, broke the career strikeout record with her 13-K performance Saturday.

Anzaldua struck out the side during the fifth inning, breaking former Lady Chargers pitcher Cassie Valdez’s career strikeout record of 666. The crafty lefty has 667 career strikeouts.

“Now I can finally relax, knowing that is all locked in,” Anzaldua said. “Now the rest is just me getting more strikeouts and adding to that record.”

Heading into their game against Sharyland High, Anzaldua knew she was within striking distance of the record.

“I knew at the beginning of the game, and then when they told me I had 10 strikeouts I knew I needed 13, so I needed to strike out the last three batters, but it was pretty stressful with the last three batters.” Anzaldua said.

Against the Lady Rattlers, it was vintage Anzaldua. The southpaw threw a complete five innings, fanned 13, walked one and yielded one hit. Anzaldua established her zone by striking out the first five batters she faced and retired nine of the first 10 batters she faced.

“(Mia) was far behind when the season started,” Lady Chargers coach Rayner Cardenas said. “So we knew and we talked with the parents, and we knew exactly what we had to do and what it was going to take for her to break it.

“From the number of innings pitched to the number of games, it was more than she is used to. This year she picked up all the innings, and the purpose was to see how close she could get, and the fact that she broke it today is an honor. Cassie was a legend here in Brownsville and in the Valley and we didn’t think anyone would break the record, but it goes to show how hard Mia works and how dedicated she is.”

Backing up Anzaldua, the Lady Chargers’ offense put on a clinic. BVM posted a five-run first inning, highlighted by a three-run triple from Sarah Gomez. During the second inning, the Lady Chargers sent 12 batters to the plate and added seven more runs.

Four Lady Chargers collected at least two hits each. As an offense, they collected 11 hits on 15 runs.

The strong start was ideal for the Lady Chargers and the exact way they wanted to start their playoff run.

“Heck yeah, we will take it,” Cardenas said. “Anytime you can get an early lead, especially in the playoffs, it takes off some pressure. You come out all week and practice hard for those things to happen, and for us to execute it helped us out.”

MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer

Harlingen South’s Andrew Ott has had quite the senior year after signing to throw for Kansas State and consistently delivering big performances in the shot put.

Now, Ott’s season will continue after placing second in the Class 6A shot put at Friday’s Region IV-6A meet at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio, securing a second straight state berth.

Ott was not the only Cameron County athlete to qualify for state, as Rivera senior distance runner Andrea de la Rosa made her way to the podium with a second-place finish in the 3,200-meter run.

De la Rosa, who was competing in her fourth straight regional meet, finished the race in 11 minutes, 20.51 seconds.

Ott’s top throw measured 60 feet flat. He said that he needed every last inch among a tough field.

“It felt well-fought and earned,” Ott said. “This has definitely been one of the more stacked regional meets that there has ever been; third place was 58 feet and some change. Just to get even close to the podium took a big toss. With it being my last year and all, it really drew out the more competitive side of me.”

Harlingen South coach Ralph De La Rosa said Ott scratched on his first two throws but eventually settled in and pushed through, and helped put on a show.

“He gets the crowd going,” the Hawks’ coach said. “They have a lot of fans in the throwing area. I walk around, and I see and hear all these people talking about seeing him since he was a sophomore. They’re saying, ‘Hey, watch that kid, he’s pretty special.’ It’s pretty cool to hear people say that.”

The rest of the Hawks’ throwers did not qualify for state but turned in top-five finishes in the discus.
Christian Cortez placed fourth with a throw of 161-9, and Chase Harrell placed fifth with a 159-05.

MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer

KINGSVILLE — Early in the Class 2A boys triple jump, San Perlita’s Tige Johnson tweaked his right knee, and he managed to a record a jump of 40 feet, 10 inches for a 10th-place finish.

After shaking it off, the junior jumper managed to finish Day 1 of the Region IV-2A track & field meet strong with a third-place finish after clearing 5-10 on Friday at Javelina Stadium in Kingsville.

Despite the strong finish and making the medal podium, Johnson was disappointed to fall short of the state meet, finishing behind Junction’s Kyle Lumpkins (6-05) and Iola’s Colton Bullion (6-00).

“The day started out pretty rough, and things just didn’t really bounce my way,” Johnson said. “I probably should have tried to get my steps right. I just went in and things didn’t bounce my way. My knee is aching, but there are no excuses. I just didn’t jump well. I’ll be back next year and try to make it to state.”

The regional meet continues today with field events at 9 a.m. and running finals at 1:30. Johnson has one more shot at state this season when he competes in the long jump, an event for which he qualified with a fourth-place finish at the area meet.

“It’s a blessing to even get (to regional),” Johnson said. “It’s my last event, so I’m just going to go have some fun.”

The top two finishers in each event qualify for the state meet, with third-place finishers possibly having a shot at qualifying for a ninth wild-card spot should their times, heights or distances make the cut.

In Class 4A, Port Isabel’s Mac Strunk had a pretty strong afternoon in the running preliminaries.

In the 200-meter dash, the junior sprinter finished the race in 21.99 seconds, vaulting him into today’s finals with the second-best time in the field.

In the 800 relay, Strunk anchored the Tarpons to the fourth-best time in the field with a 1:30.87.

“I think my team did well and I did well,” Strunk said. “We all had good days as a Tarpon. This boosts my confidence (heading to finals). It felt good. There’s a lot of competition and it was a good atmosphere.”

There were a few notable finishes by athletes from around the area.

In the Class 4A girls 3,200, La Feria’s Dariana Vasquez finished fourth place with a time of 11:58.06. In the boys 3,200, Progreso’s Jonathan Vega finished with a time of 10:05.30, good for fifth place.

In the girl’s pole vault, Port Isabel’s Marlyn Cesenes cleared 11-00 for a seventh-place finish.

La Feria’s Bethany Wood tied for seventh after clearing five feet.

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

LYFORD — After last year’s disappointing loss in the bi-district round, Lyford rolled through a perfect regular season and entered the playoffs on a mission.

On Friday, the Lady Bulldogs — filled with youth and high expectations — shook off a slow start and some nerves as they were fueled by a three-hit, five-RBI night from junior slugger Jerrica Rojas as the Lady Bulldogs took care of Corpus Christi London 11-1 in six innings in the Class 3A bi-district round, winning the one-game playoff.

The Lady Bulldogs await the winner of the matchup between Dilley and Mathis, who are in the middle of a best-of-three series.

“The kids hung in there, much credit to them,” Lyford coach Joey Rios said. “We knew coming in we had some youth and it showed, and even some of our upperclassmen kind of forgot what it was like to come into a competitive game. But it was great seeing them stick through it and taking the punches in the chin, and we gave up that one run but we were able to buckle down.”

Lyford got its scoring going in the first inning on RBIs from Rojas and Tiffani Alaniz, taking a 3-0 lead.

The Lady Bulldogs held a 3-1 lead during the fourth inning, when they loaded the bases after a leadoff walk from Mia Wetgrove and back-to-back singles from Hannah Garza and Hailey Pena. Rojas broke the game open with a bases-clearing double that gave Lyford a 6-1 lead, confidence and momentum.

“When I hit that double, I thought to myself, ‘Hell yeah,’” Rojas said. “I was hoping they wouldn’t catch it. I was able to get a hit and bring in the runs, and we were able to build a lead off of that.”

Rojas finished the night 3-for-4 at the plate. Mikaela Lopez followed with a 2-for-3 night with a pair of RBIs, a triple and a double.

Lyford added to its lead with a two-run fifth inning and a two-run sixth. During that inning, leadoff batter Hannah Garza sealed the win with a two-run double. Garza also had a fine night at the plate going, 3-for-5 with two runs.

Moving forward, Rios feels the Lady Bulldogs not only have some confidence but also have some playoff experience heading into the area round.

“Absolutely, we are extremely blessed to be able to get this win under our belts,” Rios said. “Especially for the younger girls — and we talked to them about it before the game, that tonight would be a different atmosphere, that it was going to be loud and chaotic. We were able to do the little things right. It took us a while, but we were able to settle in.”

In the circle, Rojas threw a complete six innings. After walking her first two batters, the right-hander settled in and struck out the side in the first inning. Rojas finished the game with nine punchouts, allowing five hits and walking five.

“I just had to settle in,” Rojas said. “It had been a while since I pitched in a playoff game. But I guess I was a little nervous to start the game, but I’m glad my defense was there to back me up. Now we have some confidence and we are done with the first round, but we are going to stay humble.”

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

BROWNSVILLE — On a night when runs came at a premium, Edinburg Vela did just enough at the plate and on the field against a tough Brownsville Hanna club.

The SaberCats took advantage of three errors and leaned on the right arm of sophomore pitcher Brianna Salinas in a 3-1 win over Hanna in Game 1 of a best-of-three series Thursday in the Class 6A bi-district round.

“We played Hanna twice and we scrimmaged (against) them. We knew what type of team they have and this is the playoffs,” Edinburg Vela coach Jon Maples said. “It is one of those things where you get the best from every team and that is why they are in the playoffs. But we fully expected for Hanna to come out tough, and their pitcher pitched really well tonight. She hit her spots.”

The series shifts to Edinburg Vela at 7 tonight with the SaberCats one win away from clinching.

Salinas dazzled in the circle. She threw a complete game, striking out eight, walking two on five hits and allowing one run.

“I could have hit my spots a little better throughout the game,” Salinas said. “But, that last inning, I just missed a few spots and it got to where I had to throw more down the middle. It was a little frustrating because I wasn’t getting the outside corner but as the game went on I gained confidence.”

The three runs all came unearned. Hanna committed an error during the first inning that led to an RBI single from Monee Montilla that gave Vela a 1-0 lead. During the fourth, Hanna committed its second error and, like the first inning, Vela made Hanna pay with an RBI double off the bat of Karina Guzman,

During the top of the seventh inning, Hanna’s third error later scored a run on a sacrifice fly from Julia Cordon, giving Vela a 3-0 lead.

“Our defense showed up tonight and made plays,” Maples said. “We can do offense and defense. We have done it all year. This is our 28th win of the year and it shows we can play defensive games and win close games.”

Despite the three errors, Hanna put together a strong showing against the reigning District 31-6A champs. In the circle, junior DD Guerrero held her own, throwing a complete game, yielding three hits, three strikeouts and one walk.

The Eagles managed to get a seventh-inning rally going. Jenna Otero drove in the lone run on an RBI double. Hanna got the tying run on base but failed to complete the rally. Hanna stranded five runners on the base paths.

“We made some great defensive plays, turned a double play and our catcher made a nice play,” Larson said. “We are hoping to carry this seventh inning momentum into tomorrow. Not a lot of people expected us to give them a game but I knew we could and now we believe that we can.”

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CLAIRE CRUZ | Special to The Star

The Lady Hawks are on a mission, and step one has been achieved.

In front of a rowdy crowd on Thursday night, Harlingen South defeated Edinburg North 7-4 to clinch the bi-district championship.

“Yesterday it was a good ballgame, but we weren’t pressured,” South head coach Elias Martinez said. “Today was exactly what I wanted to see. Edinburg North did a great job of giving us a lot of different situations and my girls rose to the occasion.”

The Lady Cougars made it clear they wouldn’t go down without a fight. All five batters that went to the plate in the opening frame put the ball into play. Catcher Hope Rodriguez blasted a two-out, two-run home run to give ENHS an early lead.

South responded by scoring three quick runs in the bottom of the first, thanks in part to a two-RBI double from Iliana Saucedo.

Saucedo was sent to the pitcher’s circle early in the second inning. She pitched 4.2 innings of relief and gave up two runs on six hits with three strikeouts.

“I’m really relieved we got through it in two games instead of three,” Saucedo said. “I felt really good tonight. I was proud of myself. Do it for my team; that was my mentality.”

The Lady Hawks scattered hits all over the field and got plenty of assistance from ENHS errors early on. But the two offenses went in opposite directions as the game went on.

South was scoreless in its final two frames and recorded just one hit while the Lady Cougars put runners on frequently and forced bases-loaded situations in the fourth and sixth.

Edinburg North pitcher Natalie Rodriguez helped herself with an RBI single in the sixth to cut the deficit to three. Hope Rodriguez was then intentionally walked for the second time, but the Lady Cougars hit into a double play to end the threat.

“We should have won this game, we just had too many errors … we had a lot of opportunities to score,” ENHS head coach Richard Tressler said. “But I couldn’t have asked them to come in here and end it any better.”

Along with her strong outing in the circle, Saucedo finished the game 3-for-3 with two doubles and three RBIs.

She and her squad will now turn their attention to the area round. South will play Eagle Pass or La Joya and will use the weekend to game plan.

“The way they responded, made adjustments and stepped up (today), I couldn’t be more proud,” Martinez said. “We’ll go out this weekend and scout and make adjustments. It’ll be fun.”

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

HARLINGEN—Senior quarterback Ryan Cortez secured his college future by signing his letter of intent to play football at Texas Lutheran University in Seguin. Cortez made it official by signing his name on the dotted line during a ceremony Wednesday afternoon.

“This is a little nerve wracking; this is something I have worked my whole life for,” Cortez said. “This is all a surreal moment for me to get an opportunity. This is what I love to do and it has been an amazing journey and I’m excited to continue it.”

Cortez, who plans to major in kinesiology, made a campus visit and loved the campus and feels their education was the right choice along with the football program.

“It was a little rough; I wasn’t looked at as much,” Cortez said. “But with the TLU coaching staff, they really hit it off with me and just the way the program has been over the last few years, they are amazing and I’m excited to join them.”

TLU is no stranger to recruiting here in the Rio Grande Valley.

On the current roster, there are five Valley athletes on the roster from McAllen, Los Fresnos and Harlingen.

In fact, Cortez will be joining former teammate, defensive end Brandon Bennett, who is currently a freshman for the Bulldogs.

Along with Bennett, is former Harlingen Cardinal Justin Davis, who also is in his freshman season and plays along the offensive line.

“I haven’t talked to Bennett yet, it has been a while since I talked to him,” Cortez said.

Heading into his freshman year, Cortez plans to play the under center next fall.

“The work ethic will be a challenge at the level of football I will have to play, but I do plan on playing the QB position,” Cortez said. “My advice to the younger guys on the team would be to not give up and to continue working.”

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

Los Fresnos, Hanna, Port Isabel and Brownsville Veterans Memorial all secured their playoff spots and will kick-off their bi-district matchups tonight and play throughout the weekend.

Starting in class 6A, Hanna will have its hands full as District 31-6A champion Edinburg Vela comes to town tonight at 7 p.m. to open a best-of-three series.

The Lady Golden Eagles will host Vela tonight in Game 1, with Game 2 scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday. Game 3, if needed, will be played Saturday at Vela with the first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.

It has been six years since Hanna last reached the post season and with the Lady Eagles hosting a playoff game, it has the campus buzzing.

“Since it has been a while since we have been in the playoffs, everyone is excited to have a game here at home,” said Hanna coach Greg Larson. “The girls have been very focused throughout the week and we have had some great practices.”

While the order is a tall one, Hanna did play Vela twice this season and lost both games 11-0 and 6-4. The keys for Hanna will be to limit the big plays and to keep senior slugger Taylor Chavez at bay.

“We need to play errorless softball and keep them off the bases,” Larson said. “Vela is an excellent team, so we will need to be at our best this week.”

Los Fresnos meets Weslaco High in a one-game playoff Friday in Weslaco at 7 p.m.

The Lady Falcons are quite familiar with the Lady Panthers. The two met earlier this season, with Los Fresnos hitting their way to a 13-6 win.

Not only did they meet this year, but the two were district opponents over the last two seasons. In each year, Weslaco swept Los Fresnos in the regular season.

Something will have to give on Friday with Weslaco seniors Audrey Escamilla and Ashley Sada as the last remaining members of the 2016 state team looking to avenge last year’s first-round playoff exit.

Meanwhile, Los Fresno’s young guns Reba Reyes, Sam Campos and Aileen Avelar will all make their playoff debuts.

In Class 5A,Brownsville Veterans will host Sharyland High on Saturday in a one-game playoff. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.

The Lady Chargers marched their way to another unbeaten district season and claimed their third straight district title behind the left arm of Mia Anzaldua.

The Lady Rattlers finished 8-6 in district 31-5A and will enter the playoffs as a fourth seed. BVM is looking to start another march to the third round, where it has lost the last two seasons.

In Class 4A, Port Isabel is in a one-game playoff against Beeville Jones. The two teams will square off tonight at 7 p.m. at H.M. King High School in Kingsville.

The Lady Tarpons are back in the postseason after a strong regular season that saw them finish in third place in District 32-4A with an 11-3 record.

“We have had three good days of practice,” said Port Isabel skipper Danno Wise. “The girls are upbeat and excited.”

The Lady Trojans finished 9-3 in district play and won two of their last three games to wrap up the regular season.

“(Beeville Jones) has a great program,” Wise said. “They are state ranked for a reason. Our girls were not expected to make the playoffs this season, but here we are. We are going to make the most of this opportunity. The girls know if we play our best ball, we have a chance against anyone, especially in a one-game scenario.”

By KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

HARLINGEN — The baseball world will have to wait a few more days for District 32-6A to decide a champion.

Brownsville Rivera kept its title hopes alive with a seventh-inning rally. Omar Rodriguez tied the game on an RBI double and Raul Gonzalez provided the go-ahead single en route to a 7-5 win over Harlingen High on Tuesday night.

“ When we came into the fifth inning, we were down to our last three at-bats and I just told the kids to focus and do what I knew they could do,” Rivera coach Travis Parker said.

The Raiders next play host to Harlingen High on Friday to decide the district winner.

“ We have been preparing for this moment and this opportunity since we got together at the start of the year, Parker said. “Now that it is here, it’s reality, we are not going to do anything different. We are going to suit up, and go out there and play seven hard innings.”

The Raiders trailed 5-1 entering the fifth inning, but Ricky Ibarra got Rivera back in the game with a two-run homer that helped cut the lead to 5-4.

The blast was the momentum Rivera needed heading into the final two innings.

“ I think that was what got us going, especially after that reversed call at third,” Parker said. “For us to come back and hit a homer and get us back in it was huge.”

Ibarra finished the night 2-for-3 with three RBIs and one run scored. Leadoff hitter Michael Gomez went 5-for-5 at the plate with three runs, three singles and a double.

After taking a one-run lead in the seventh, Rivera added an insurance run of the bat of Ibarra.