KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

SAN BENITO — Games are won and lost in the trenches and for San Benito, their up tempo offense has lit up the scoreboard this season. What makes the offense go has been the strong play from their offenive line.

San Benito’s starting five make up of four seniors and one junior. Andres Garcia plays center, Chris Vargas plays right tackle, Hector De Jesus plays right guard, Hector Garza Jr. plays left tackle and Aaron Saldana plays left guard.

The chemistry between the staring five dates back to their time at the junior high level and have all moved up the ranks has one unit.

Garcia has played two years on the varsity and directs the offensive line with check downs and is one of the vocal leaders along the offensive line.

“I stared playing right guard then I moved to center my junior year,” Garcia said. “It was a tough transition, I had to learn how to snap the ball. I had to practice hard and kept at it, and I eventually got used to it. It’s fun to be a part of a up tempo offense, it can be challenging sometimes because we have to move fast, we’re big boys but we make sure to keep up the tempo with the offense.”

Fellow senior and right guard De Jesus also made a position change. As a sophomore De Jesus played left guard and made the switch to right guard his junior season.

“It wasn’t a hard move, it is the same position,” De Jesus said. “I’m just on the other side of the ball and it’s the same rules as the left side. When I found out I was moving positions I didn’t ask questions I was ready to move and help my team in any way.”

De Jesus and company have paved the way for senior running back Ty-rone Harper who has rushed for 1,508 yards and 23 touchdowns, while quarterback Erick Retta has stayed up right all season thanks to his big men up front.

“It means a lot to us of-fensive linemen to see our running back and quarter-back shine. We put in a lot of work over the offseason. As a unit we spend a lot of time together, we work out together so our chemistry is strong and it transfers over to the field.” De Jesus said.

San Benito will play San Antonio O’Connor Friday at 7:30 in the class 6A Regional Quarterfinal at Corpus Christi’s Bucca-neer Stadium.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — San Benito, Harlingen and Harlingen South will have plenty of representatives in this year’s East versus West Volleyball All-Star game. The three schools will represent the East squad at 4 p.m. on Dec. 10 at the McAllen Rowe gym.

The East will be coached by San Benito’s Ruby Medina and assisted by Harlingen High’s Joslynn Torres. This year’s all-star match will be Medina’s sixth time leading the East squad.

“It’s fun to be back out on the court and playing the game,” Medina said. “We have some girls playing other sports and it’s going to take some time to get the kids to gel. The challenge is to get the kids in the right spot, and I told them we want to have fun but we also want to win.”

Representing the Lady Hounds will be senior hitters, Kayleen Reyes and Crystal Ibarra. Reyes re-ceived 1stteam all-district honors while collecting 174 kills, 318 digs and 165 total assists. Ibarra was named district 32-6A of-fensive player of the year while guiding the Lady Hounds offense with 198 kills and 134 digs.

Harlingen South will send outside and middle hitter Annelle Rodriguez to represent the Lady Hawks. Rodriguez finished the season with 225 kills, 156 blocks and 131 digs.

“I’m excited and blessed to be able to represent Harlingen South one more time,” Rodriguez said. “It’s exciting to be able to play my last high school game with the girls I played against over the last four years with the girls we played against all year.”

Harlingen High will send libero Julissa Munivez and outside hitter Yazmine Martinez. Munivez amassed 648 digs while Martinez wrapped up 536 kills and 384 digs.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — The Harlingen Cardinals used a strong first quarter and a 23-point performance from Junior point guard Michael Arellano en route to a 67-56 win against Brownsville Pace Tuesday night in Harlingen.
The Cards improve to 5-2 on the young season and win their home opener. Harlingen will now shift their focus to another 5A opponent in Mission Vet-erans Friday night.
“It’s nice to finally play at home and have a home crowd,” said Harlingen coach Greg Yates. “This is our seventh game of the year, we have had some away games and some tournaments so to have some enthusiasm from the crowd was great.”
The Cards rebounded Tuesday night after a tough 50-44 loss to Corpus Christi Veterans last week.
“They were a tough team,” said Yates of Veter-ans. “We were tied in the fourth quarter and they did a good job on pulling away, but tonight is a good win for us and a great way to bounce back.”
Big Red came out firing from the floor, and raced out to an 11-5 lead in the first quarter. Jeremy Vasquez directed traffic while scoring seven first quarter points for the Cards. Vasquez finished with nine points while teammates Matthew Sesler scored 10 and Antonio Aguilar netted 12 points.
The second quarter was a mirror image of the first quarter. Arellano dropped seven of his 12 first half points in the second quar-ter while the offense pushed their lead 26-15. After a slow start to the third quarter, Harlingen picked up the pace and sealed the game in the fourth quarter
“It was a great team win tonight,” said Arellano. “I attacked the rim aggres-sively tonight and I got to the free throw line. Offen-sively we got off to a strong start and we passed the ball well and attacked the basket and made our layups

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

SAN BENITO — It’s round three of the Texas high school playoffs and four Valley teams remain in the playoff picture. San Benito is one of those four and senior defensive end Ryan Reza has had a strong senior season for the Hounds.
Last season, as a junior, Reza collected 13 sacks, this season Reza has be-come a sack master with a team high 20 sacks.
Reza and the Hounds will meet San Antonio O’Connor in the class 6A Regional Quarterfinal Friday at 7:30 at Buccaneer Stadium in Corpus Christi. The Valley Morning Star had a chance to catch up with Reza.
Q: There are four teams left in the playoffs, San Benito is one of them how special is it to be one of the last teams standing?
REZA: Anytime we have an opportunity to play the game of football it is al-ways special. This Friday we have another opportu-nity.
Q: Three of the four teams are out of 32-6A, is that a testament to how tough your district was?
REZA: RGV football is tough football. It’s made up of tough athletes and good coaching staffs. You better be well prepared to face any team from the RGV.
Q: San Antonio O’Connor is also 12-0, what are some challenges they may present to you? REZA: It’s very difficult to reach a record of 12-0. O’Connor is 12-0 and we are 12-0 so the challenges we will face are familiar ones. Two good teams battling out to be 13-0 in Texas high school football.
Q: You have 20 sacks this season, what were some things you did over the offseason to raise your game?
REZA: I committed my-self to our summer work-outs , sharpened my tools at a couple of camps and devoted hours to film.
Q: You carry the axe pre game what does the axe represent?
REZA: The axe repre-sents our hard work throughout our offsea-son,summer, two a days and in season practices. Coach Gomez took it from Abraham Lincoln’s quote” if given 6 hours to chop a tree down I would sharpen the axe for 4 of those hours”. It’s what our pro-gram is built on “hard work and preparation “.
Q: What is the best part on being able to sack the quarterback?
REZA: The best part is the feeling it helps my team knowing that it’s always for a loss. It’s a longer distance for them to get a first down.
Q: Who is your favorite NFL pass rusher and why?
REZA: J. J Watt because he’s one of the best pass rushers of all time. He also sets a good example on and off the field.
Q: We have seen you line up on offense and catch a few touchdowns what is that like being able to score touchdowns?
REZA: Scoring touch-downs always feels great. But knowing that I con-tributed to pointing six points on the board to contribute with a win for my team is an awesome feeling.
Q: If you can have din-ner with anyone in history who would it be and why? REZA: Coach Dan Gomez, because I love him more than a coach.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

SAN BENITO — Trailing by four with 1:04 left to play and its season on the line, San Benito‘s senior quarterback Erik Retta stepped up big time on Friday.

The senior orchestrated a seven-play, 78-yard drive with mastery and capped it off with a 1-yard go-ahead touchdown run to give the Hounds a seven-point lead over the McAllen Memorial Mustangs.

With just seconds left, the Mustangs tried some late-game heroics that ended in a turnover and another Hounds TD as San Benito walked away with a 44-35 area-round win.

With the victory, the Hounds punched their ticket to the Class 6A Division I regional round where they’ll face San Antonio O’Connor next Friday in Corpus Christi.

“Nothing went through my mind. I just wanted to focus and execute the plays that the coaches gave us,” Retta said of the final drive. “My offensive line protected me and my receivers made big plays. It’s special to win a game like this. From our offensive line to our defense, it was an amazing win.”

The game was tight throughout and with 9:52 left, San Benito’s defense stopped the Mustangs on the 1-yard line and gave the ball back to the offense. A 68-yard run from Tyrone Harper set up an Abraham Porras field goal that gave the Hounds a slim 31-28 lead.

On the next drive, McAllen Memorial quarterback Sean Skaugen drove the Mustangs down the field and hit Josh Sanchez on a third-and-eight that set up Memorial inside the 10-yard line. Skaugen gave the ’Stangs a 35-31 lead on a 2-yard score.

“I told the kids to keep pushing after we hit the field goal,” said San Benito coach Dan Gomez. “The challenges were something we had been wanting and our kids stepped up to the challenge tonight and I’m proud of their effort.”

The Hounds are back in the third round of the playoffs for the first time since 2015 when they fell to Schertz Clemens 41-15.

“We have to check some film out. They (O’Conner) are not in the third round and 12-0 for nothing,” said Gomez. “This has been a special group. They have worked hard for everything they have earned. Nothing was given to them and they put in all the work in the offseason, and they deserve this.”

Trevino caps off emotional night: San Benito senior wide receiver Isaiah Trevino was a part of the game-winning drive and hauled in a 33-yard pass from Retta that helped set up the go-ahead score.

With the season on the line, Trevino made a pivotal play and it meant a lot since he dedicated his senior season to his late grandfather.

“This win means so much to me and I know my grandpa would be proud of me,” Trevino said. “I know he’s looking down and watching me right now.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

SAN BENITO — There will be no shortage of star power Friday night when the San Benito Greyhounds host the McAllen Memorial Mustangs tonight.

Both San Benito and Memorial boast some of the best athletes in the Valley and both squads had strong seasons that led them to tonight’s Class 6A Division I area-round game.

The two Valley powers will lock horns at 7:30 today from Bobby Morrow Stadium with a trip to the regional round on the line.

THE REMATCH: Tonight’s game is a rematch from earlier this season when the Hounds rolled to a 31-7 win on Sept. 15 at McAllen.

After Memorial fell to San Benito, the Mustangs dropped their next game against Los Fresnos, but went on to win seven in a row along with a district and bi-district title. Memorial enters tonight’s game riding high after a 44-6 beat down of Laredo United South.

San Benito, meanwhile, rolled on to a perfect 10-0 season after its win over Memorial and come into today’s contest red hot after a 50-7 win against Edinburg North.

“Anytime you play a district championship team, it’s always difficult,” said San Benito coach Dan Gomez. “No matter if you have played them once or twice, this is the challenge that’s been put in front of us and we’re going to go out there, and get to work and play as hard as we can.”

BAGSTAD, GOMEZ HIGHLIGHT DEFENSIVE PLAYMAKERS: Fans of old-school, hard-hitting linebackers should enjoy to-day’s game since it will feature two of the top linebackers in the Valley in Memorial senior Jacob Bagstad and San Benito sen-ior Pedro Gomez.

Bagstad has 107 total tackles and 11 tackles for loss while Gomez has amassed 94 total tackles and has eight tackles for loss. Fellow linebacker Ryan Castillo also has a nose for the ball with 13 tackles for loss.

Ryan “The Hammer” Reza has also provided the heat off the edge for the Hounds with a team-high 19 sacks.

Meanwhile, Memorial safety Kelechi Kwachuku has provided a spark for the ‘Stangs with 145 total tackles on the season.

“They (Memorial) have a tremendous deal of talent and for us this is the only game on the schedule,” Gomez said. “We’re not promised another game and in order to have the next one we have to win the first one. It’s going to be a battle against a very good team. Coach (Bill) Littleton has over 20 years of coaching experience success, playoff wins and has an established program.”

SPEIGHTS, HARPER PRIMED TO SHINE: The star power continues on the offensive side and features two of the Valley’s best running backs. One is at the end of his high school career while the other is just beginning to write his own legacy.

McAllen Memorial’s Campbell Speights and San Benito’s Tyrone Harper will face off one final time.

Campbell, who is a sophomore, has run for 1,506 yards on 201 carries and has found the end zone 20 times this season. Meanwhile, Harper has rushed for 1,397 yards on 172 carries and has scored 20 touchdowns on the ground.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

SAN BENITO — The San Benito Greyhounds defense has been one of the most physical units in the Valley this season and senior linebacker Ryan Castillo has been one key reason for its success.

Castillo has 77 total tackles and has 13 tackles for loss this season.

Castillo and the Hounds host McAllen Memorial in a Class 6A Division I area-round playoff game at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Bobby Morrow Stadium.

—

Q: You are a part of a special group. Talk about your relationship with your fellow seniors?

A: Me and my fellow seniors are like brothers to me, as well as the whole team. A lot of these guys I’ve played ball with since I was a little kid and we all have a history. I always do what I can for my team on and off the field, and I know they would do the same for me.

Q: As a linebacker, what are the toughest challenges you face?

A: Challenges that I have are making sure that my alignments and communication are on point throughout practice and on game day.

Q: You and fellow linebackers Pedro Gomez and Payne Guajardo are a strong linebacking corps. How have you three become so good?

A: Coach (Dan) Gomez and Coach (Michael) Mull make sure we stay fast-paced throughout practice and that we focus on what our jobs for our position are so that way when game day comes we will be ready.

Q: In the last two games, the defense has only allowed seven points. What has been working for you all?

A: I feel like we’ve just been getting better as a whole unit as we’ve gone through the season. Our alignments are more on point and our communication on the field is great. Those two things help us out a lot.

Q: McAllen Memorial is up next. What challenges do they present to you as a defense?

A: They give different looks so we just need to make sure that we recognize them and that we adjust to them correctly.

Q: How are you taking this season all in? With an undefeated season, a district title and now a playoff run, just how much fun is it?

A: I’m enjoying every moment of it. The whole coaching staff and team put in a lot of hours to earn the season that we have right now and seeing how proud they are… I couldn’t ask for anything better. I’m proud to play for this town and I love the energy that our fans show week in and week out.

Q: Do you have a pre-game meal?

A: Yes, the coaches serve us spaghetti before the game to make sure that we don’t play on an empty stomach.

Q: What is your game day routine?

A: We report to the sports complex in the morning, we go over our plan for the game, we go to school, and then we come back and get ready for the game.

Q: Who is your favorite NFL LB and why?

A: Lawrence Taylor. That man had energy to spare. Every game, he’d go all out from start to finish and he was great at penetrating the pocket and he was just a complete nightmare for whoever had to block him.

Q: It’s Thanksgiving. What are you most thankful for?

A: I’m thankful for the people that make me happy in my life. My family and friends are the people that keep me going.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

Both Rio Hondo and Lyford are alive and well in the state playoffs. The two teams won in convincing fashion in the opening round and will now make trips to the Costal Bend this weekend.

Lyford won its second consecutive bi-district title after a strong 44-8 win over Jourdanton this past Saturday. The Dogs will now face Edna in a Class 3A Division I area round game at 7 p.m. Friday at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi.

Edna, meanwhile, won its bi-district contest against Lago Vista 33-21. The Cowboys are led by junior running back Kenny Haynes, who is fresh off a 100-yard, four-touchdown performance. On the season, Haynes has rushed for 1,715 yards.

Lyford has its own set of power running backs in Frank Moreno and Javier Gonzalez. Moreno and Gonzalez ripped through the Indians defense for a combined 242 yards and three scores.

Bobcats set for Navarro: Rio Hondo shook off a rusty first half and blew past Aransas Pass 42-13 last week. The win marked the Cats’ first bi-district title since 2011.

The Bobcats will now face Geronimo Navarro at 7 p.m. Friday back at Wildcat Stadium in Calallen. Navarro beat Devine 42-7 in round one to advance to meet Rio Hondo. The Panthers also present the traditional Slot T offense. It will be the second week in a row the Bobcats will face the Slot T.

The Cats’ defense forced five turnovers in the win over AP and used a strong second half offensively to seal the win. Quarterback Tyler Bush finished the night going 14 of 29 for 280 yards and two touchdowns and two interceptions. Bush also ran for a team-high 164 yards on 19 carries and one score.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

McALLEN — After trailing by as many as 10 in the second quarter, Harlingen South used a strong third quarter behind Sean Turrubiates to soar past McAllen High 58-52 on Tuesday afternoon at the Bulldogs’ gym.

The Hawks trailed 32-24 at the break, but Tuesday’s contest was indeed a tale of two halves.

The Hawks began the third quarter on a 9-2 run that gave them a 35-34 advantage via the three ball from Grant Lowery. The one-point lead was the first one the Hawks held since the opening minutes of the game.

“We gave up a lot of dribble penetrations in the first half,” said Hawks coach Brian Molina. “They (McHi) were attacking the basket well in the first half and they were quick off the dribble, and we needed to give them some room and take away the paint and force them to take tough shots.”

In the third quarter, South outscored McHi 17-8 and got its offense into gear by controlling the boards offensively, which gave the Hawks’ shooters second-chance opportunities.

Turrubiates hit another three pointer late in the third period that pushed the Hawks lead to 46-42.

In the fourth period, the Hawks continued to knock down shots and stretched a three-point lead late and got some timely free throws from Mark Becerra that helped put the game on ice at 57-52 in the final minute.

“I challenged the kids at halftime and I told them to find a way to come out strong in the third period and they did. We knew they were bigger than us and they rely on their size so we tried to be more aggressive to the basket, and they did that and it paid off for us,” said Molina.

Turrubiates finished with a team-high 20 points.

The win Tuesday came at a good time for the Hawks, who were coming off a tough loss to Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial last Friday. The win puts South back at the .500 mark with a 2-2 record on the young season.

The tough non-district schedule continues as the Hawks host Edinburg Economedes next Tuesday.

“This win helped us because we need all the confidence we can get,” said Molina. “I think this win gave us confidence moving forward against a very good team like McHi, who we lost to last year in the playoffs. Right now, I told our kids we need to continue to get better as a team and fix the things we can fix.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

JOURDANTON — The Lyford Bulldogs added another back-to-back title to their 2017 resume.

After winning their second straight district title, Lyford won its second consecutive bi-district title in dominating fashion on Saturday.

Senior quarterback Chase Hinojosa directed the Bulldogs’ offense to a 44-8 win over Jourdanton in a Class 3A Division I bi-district playoff game at Indian Stadium in Jourdanton.

Lyford will now face Edna in the area round next Friday at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi.

“We have been riding some momentum and it carried over into today’s game,” said Lyford coach Israel Gonzalez. “We got a little sloppy in the fourth quarter, but we will tie up those loose ends and today was a great win for us.”

Hinojosa and the Bulldogs’ offense got to work quickly and grabbed a 16-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Hinojosa hit Joaquin Gonzales to open up the scoring followed up by a Frank Moreno 15-yard score in the final seconds of the first period.

Lyford scored 16 points in the first quarter and added 14 more in the second to boast a 30-0 halftime lead.

Hinojosa finished the afternoon with three scores – two through the air and one rushing. He wound up 11 of 17 for 116 yards and he spread the ball around by hitting five different receivers.

“He (Chase) is a great leader; we knew they would try and stop our run game so we set up plays for Chase, and he executed it and it led us to a big first half.” Gonzalez said.

In the second quarter, Hinojosa hit Layne Klostermann over the middle for a score that made it 23-0 with 5:58 left in the half. And on the next drive, Hinojosa took it in himself for the score that put Lyford ahead 30-0 at the break.

Klostermann finished the day with four catches for 44 yards and a score while fellow wideout Gonzales hauled in four catches for 39 yards and one score.

“This win is special. It’s my senior year and I wanted to make it past the second round,” Hinojosa said. “The coaches put together a great game plan and we all executed. I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and overall it was a team win, and we’re ready for the next round.”

Lyford’s rushing attack was also on full display as both Javier Gonzalez and Frank Moreno each rushed for more than 100 yards. Gonzalez ripped off 116 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown while Moreno carried the ball 17 times for 126 yards and a pair of scores.

“Javier runs the ball hard every play; we call him ‘The Mule,’” Coach Gonzalez said. “He’s a workhorse, he plays all three phases of the game and he is a great kid that gives us his best every single day. I couldn’t be more proud to have a kid like him on my team.”