KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

San Benito picked up another dominating win Friday night at Brownsville Rivera. With four district games remaining the Hounds are now 6-0 overall and 3-0 in District 32-6A play. San Benito will now prepare for Harlingen South before the final stretch run.

The Hounds’ offense put up 40 points for the fourth time this season and is averaging 39 points per game. San Benito raced to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter as running back Tyrone Harper and Isaiah Trevino both found pay dirt twice.

Harper scored from 46 and 32 yards out followed by Trevino, who scored from 29 and 18 yards. In the second half, San Benito turned to their reserves with the game well in hand.

Cards overcome slow start to down Weslaco: Harlingen won its fifth game in a row Friday night after defeating Weslaco 24-7. Senior quarterback Daniel Ramirez checked in another solid performance by throwing for 241 yards, three scores and one interception. On the night Ramirez completed 15 of 23 passes.

The Cardinals (5-1, 3-0) will now prepare for the meat of their schedule starting with a home game against Weslaco East on Friday. They finish the season against Los Fresnos, Brownsville Hanna and San Benito.

Trailing 7-3 in the final seconds of the second quarter, Ramirez hit Joe Reyna for a 14-yard touchdown that gave Harlingen the lead at halftime and, more importantly, the momentum. In the second half, the Cards’ offense pulled away with 14 more points and the defense pitched the shutout.

Hawks still seeking first district win: Harlingen South (1-5, 0-3) played Brownsville Hanna (5-1, 3-0) tough for four quarters on Friday as the Hawks grabbed an early 14-0 lead thanks to a balanced attack led by sophomore quarterback David Torres.

South’s defense also played well against a Hanna offense that has averaged a little more than 30 points per game. The Hawks’ D held the Eagles to 21 points, which is their second lowest output of the season.

The Hawks will now prepare for San Benito Friday night.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — Brownsville Hanna erased a 14-0 hole in the first half and leaned on running back Cesar Mancias en route to a 21-17 win Friday night, spoiling the homecoming festivities for Harlingen South in the Valley Morning Star’s Game of the Week.

“We played well and the kids played their hearts out,” said Hawks coach Brian Ricci. “We came up a little short tonight. I thought we played well enough to win, but we just came up short. We started protecting the ball and had less self-inflicted wounds but, for the most part, we have been playing cleaner football.”

The Eagles, meanwhile, continued to turn heads in District 32-6A as Friday’s win put them at 5-1 overall and 3-0 in league play, which has them tied with San Benito and Harlingen atop the standings. Hanna will now shift its focus to a red-hot Los Fresnos team, which is currently 2-1 in district play. South is at San Benito next week.

Trailing 14-0 midway through the second quarter, Hanna leaned on its rushing attack led by Mancias. Hanna capped of its drive with a 25-yard touchdown run from Mancias with 3:54 left in the first quarter.

South’s issue in the past has been turnovers, but on Friday the Hawks only turned it over once on a David Torres fumble, which the Eagles took advantage of to tie the game at 14 with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Victor Campos to Rolando Ramirez right before the half.

Entering Friday’s contest, Hanna’s offense was averaging 33 points per game. Their 21-point mark on Friday marked their second lowest output since Week One. In the second half it took just two plays for Hanna to take its first lead of the night. Mancias broke a 51-yard touchdown run to make it 21-14 early in the third quarter.

“They (Hanna) have a great running back in Mancias and they broke it open with a couple of big runs on us. Other than that, our defense played a great game and gave us a chance to win.” Ricci said.

Hanna’s defense buckled down and held the Hawks to just three second-half points.

On South’s final drive of the night, which began at midfield, a false start and a sack put the Hawks in a hole. Hanna’s defense came up with a stop on fourth-and-11 when quarterback Torres hit wideout Derrick Delgado for 10 yards with 2:33 left. Hanna then converted on a third-and-8 with a 9-yard run from Mancias to seal the win.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — The Harlingen South Hawks will look to right their recent wrongs tonight in the Valley Morning Star’s Game of the Week.

Harlingen South has dropped its first two district games (and last four in a row overall) against tough opponents in Harlingen and Los Fresnos. Tonight the Hawks host Brownsville Hanna, which comes in hot at 2-0 in league play.

“The kids understand the situation,” said Hawks head coach Brian Ricci. “We’re in the toughest district in the Valley, for sure, and we started off with two very good teams. We know we have played a couple of tough teams. I thought last week we played better and although the score didn’t reflect it, I was pleased with the way the offense played. The kids are playing hard and that’s all we can ask for.”

Hanna is under second-year head coach Mark Guess and are led by quarterback Victor Campos and running back Joe Cavazos III.

This season the Eagles have seen their offense average 33 points per game. The rushing attack from the Eagles features multiple backs and last week Cavazos broke out with a 181-yard, two-touchdown performance.

After their Week One loss against Edinburg Economedes, Hanna’s offense has scored 30 or more points in each of its last four games. Their season high in points came in a Week Three win over Mission, 45-28.

Torres tabbed South’s QB: For the first three games of the season, the Hawks turned to senior quarterback Dylan Carreon. However, since their district opener against Harlingen, South has gone with sophomore David Torres.

The young gunslinger threw the ball well in his last outing, going 14 for 32 for 171 yards. Torres will start under center against Hanna tonight.

“He is a student of the game,” said Ricci. “Although he is a sophomore, he has a brilliant mind for the game and I thought he played well against Los Fresnos. Our offense did some good things moving forward. One other positive was we didn’t turn the ball over and that has hurt us in the past.”

Hawks look for balance on offense: Senior running back Jorge Alicea will miss his second straight game tonight. Alicea suffered a sprained ankle against Harlingen and missed last week’s game.

Without their feature back, South looks to spread the ball around through the air and on the ground. Last week Emilo Quiroz led the back field with 29 carries for 95 yards. However, look for the speedy Jaime Belmontes to get some touches out of the back field as well.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — The Harlingen Cardinals have won four in a row and have started district play 2-0 with wins over Harlingen South and Brownsville Rivera.

The Cardinals look to keep their winning ways alive Friday when they travel to Bobby Lackey Stadium to take on the Weslaco Panthers.

One key to the Cards’ 2-0 league start has been the play of their defense. The young flock of Red Birds have taken the next step and have stepped up to the challenge each week.

The Cardinals will have to deal with speedy Weslaco running back Matt De Santiago, who has 67 carries for 256 yards and three scores, and wide receiver Devin Dena, who’s hauled in 15 catches and 191 yards. Weslaco is under first-year head coach Michael Salinas, who is implementing a new system from a slot-T to a spread attack.

Battle tested was how Cards head coach Manny Gomez described his defense.

“That’s the process,” said Gomez. “Football is a grind and it’s a process. That’s why you have non-district games to prepare you for district then you have the third phase and that’s the playoffs. We’re a young group of guys and every year we have a group of guys that want to be a part of the system.”

Linebacker Garrison Medley has guided the Cards’ defense with a team-high 68 tackles. Medley also leads the team in sacks with four. The Cards also provide a pass rush with Eladio Flores, Cameron Anderson and Sam Alonzo.

Through five games, Big Red’s defense is yielding just 16 points per game. The Cards have seen multiple formations throughout the season and will be prepared for the Panthers’ spread attack.

“We have seen different personnel groups, we have kind of seen it all,” said Gomez. “But we know Weslaco has a lot of tradition. The kids there have grown up wanting to be Panthers and they have done a great job. We’re excited for the challenge.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

Just four matches remain in the regular season and the time is now for teams to make their push into the postseason. There are still a couple of big matches across District 32-6A with five teams battling for four playoff spots.

Rivera keeps rolling, Los Fresnos match looms: Make no mistake, Brownsville Rivera is the real deal. So far this season the Lady Raiders have dominated 32-6A with a 10-0 record. The senior-heavy group of Stephanie Garza, Mayra Martinez, Victoria Zuniga and Litzy Medina have led an all-out assault on offense.

Rivera made quick work of San Benito Tuesday night in straight sets. The next challenge will be Weslaco and Weslaco East before their showdown with Los Fresnos.

“This district is tough, there are a lot of really good teams,” said Rivera coach Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra. “I keep reminding the girls that any team in this district can beat you if you let your guard down.”

Meanwhile, the Lady Falcons are chopping at the bit with a 9-1 league record. The Lady Falcons’ only blemish came at the hands of Rivera. Their offense is paced by Giselle Ibarra, who leads the team with 356 kills. Los Fresnos will meet Hanna on Saturday. The Lady Eagles are currently sitting on the outside looking in with a 5-5 record.

Lady Hounds, Cards in control of their own destiny: Both the Lady Hounds and Cards are tied with a 6-4 record with San Benito owning the head-to-head tiebreaker. The two will meet in the regular season finale.

On Tuesday night, Harlingen beat Weslaco High in five sets. Yazmine Martinez led the team in kills with 10 and 10 digs followed by Kirsten Kattan, who notched seven kills and 12 digs. Alina Prado checked in 20 assists.

The crucial stretch of matches begins Saturday when Harlingen plays at Weslaco East followed by Hanna, Los Fresnos and San Benito.

“We have East on Saturday then we have our last three games and it’s going to be a challenge,” said Harlingen coach Joslynn Torres on Wednesday. “Even though we beat Hanna once, they are going to come out firing. They (Hanna) are playing for a playoff spot. Today we had a great practice and that’s big going forward.”

San Benito meanwhile will play Harlingen South on Saturday before finishing the regular season against Hanna, Weslaco and Harlingen.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

PROGRESO — La Feria continued its District 32-4A dominance with a 3-0 win over Progreso Saturday afternoon.

Senior Myah Salas led the Lionettes offense with 16 kills, 17 digs and one ace as they improved to 9-0 in league play and extended their win streak to 14 straight matches.

“We have been able to keep our composure,” said La Feria coach Rebea Fraga. “We have been tested before and our girls have responded in each of those games. We had a slow start in the first set, we had some missed serves and that’s what we talk about, that we don’t want to give teams free points.”

La Feria overcame the slow start in the first set by pulling away with a 25-14 win. It was the second set where the Lionettes had to claw their way back.

The Lady Red Ants got off to a quick 7-3 lead by capitalizing on La Feria miscues and had La Feria on the ropes 24-18. However, the Lionettes displayed composer and rallied to tie the score at 24-all.

Each team answered each other’s kills and tied the score five different times until La Feria completed the comeback for the 31-29 Game 2 win.

“We have been down before,” said Salas. “We keep the intensity going in every match and we have been down by 10 before, but I told the girls to keep playing hard and that’s what we did. I’m proud of my team and how they fought back.”

“We have had a lot of close matches where we go above the 25-point mark. Fortunately we have been able to come out on top,” said Fraga. “The girls were not rattled nor did they fold and I applaud them for that. We were able to rally back and win. We have been down two sets before. Our perseverance is what has helped us.”

In the third set, La Feria looked like the team their fans are accustomed to seeing as the Lionettes dominated en route to a 25-11 win to complete the sweep.

Karina Diaz finished with a team-high 16 assists and 13 digs, Destiny Martinez finished with 16 digs, Alyssa Martinez had 10 assists, and Dakota Mosley checked in with 15 digs.

La Feria will now shift its focus to Port Isabel, which is currently in third place. The last time the two met, La Feria took the contest in five sets.

“Port Isabel is a tough team,” Salas said. “We got the win today and it was huge, and now we need to get ready for Port Isabel.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

WESLACO — The San Benito Greyhounds just keep winning.

Against Weslaco East on Friday, the Hounds, led by running back Tyrone Harper, imposed their will with a 44-21 win at Bobby Lackey Stadium in the Valley Morning Star’s Game of the Week.

“We have an experienced football team,” said San Benito offensive coordinator Gilbert Leal. “The kids know each week is a battle and tonight was the next battle on our schedule. Every team in this district is a monster and we come in every Monday ready to work. Weslaco East is a tough team, they’re well coached and that’s what you get in this district.”

San Benito remains the clear-cut No. 1 team in the Valley and now bump its record to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in District 32-6A. Weslaco East, meanwhile, fell to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in league play. The Wildcats will meet Los Fresnos next while San Benito has a date with Brownsville Rivera.

The Hounds set the tone on their opening drive. On third down, Erick Retta went play action and hit a wide-open Ryan Reza for the score. On the next drive, Harper sliced up the Wildcats’ defense with his power running style. Harper capped off the strong drive by giving the Hounds a 15-0 lead on a 25-yard touchdown run with 3:55 left in the opening quarter.

Friday night marked East’s first game minus star running back Roy Pedraza. The Wildcats missed their big playmaker on the ground as the Hounds held East to seven first-half points.

If the momentum was not already in San Benito’s favor, the Hounds’ defense came up with a stop on fourth down at midfield. Already leading 15-0, Harper carried the load and put a stamp on the drive with a 19-yard score making it 22-0 Hounds with 3:53 left in the second quarter.

Harper finished the night with 19 carries for 132 yards and three scores. As the game wore on, Harper got stronger and scored on a 19-yard, 25-yard and a 1-yard runs.

In the second half, senior quarterback Erick Retta added to the lead with a 1-yard touchdown making it 29-7 midway through the third quarter to put the game out of reach.

San Benito’s pass rush constantly put pressure on Wildcats quarterback Richard LeFevre. Reza and Pedro Gomez provided the pass rush with Reza, who plays defensive end, ended the night with a sack and a touchdown.

“They (Weslaco East) have a very experienced defense,” Leal said. “Tonight we tried to come in with a balanced attack, our offensive plan was working tonight and that helped us open some things up. With them throwing the ball a little more, it gave us a few extra possessions we normally have and it worked out for us.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

Week Six of Valley football is here and most eyes will be keeping tabs on San Benito versus Weslaco East. The two powers will meet tonight at Bobby Lackey Stadium in the Valley Morning Star’s Game of the Week

DEFENSIVE KEYS: Both defenses enter tonight’s contest with similar styles as they play hard, fast and physical. Weslaco East is allowing just 12 points per game and is led by their defensive line. Gerald Garza leads the pass rush with 25 tackles and a team-high six sacks. Garza is teamed up with hard hitting linebacker Freddy Cardenas, who is the team leader in tackles with 40.

One key matchup will be San Benito’s wide receiver Isaiah Trevino vs. East‘s Jaime Banuelos.

San Benito is led by defensive end Ryan Reza, who currently has 32 tackles and 13 tackles for loss. Linebacker Pedro Gomez will look to continue his strong start to the season with his team-high 46 tackles.

“We have continued to practice physical and fast,” said Reza. “Weslaco East is a very good football team and we know that it will be a battle. We respect the way they play football and we’re excited for the challenge.”

WHO WILL CARRY THE LOAD FOR EAST: The Wildcats lost their top running back, Roy Pedraza, to a season-ending injury earlier this week. The Wildcats also lost backup running back Freddy Gonzalez to injury. It will be a tall order for the Cats to establish a run game without their two best rushers against a stout Greyhound defense.

JC Vargas is the ultimate utility man for the Wildcats so expect to see his role in the offense increase.

AIR IT OUT LeFEVRE?: East senior quarterback Richard LeFevre will guide his offense into Friday night’s matchup. He is a three-year starter and has command of the offense. If East is looking to open up their passing attack, keep tabs on both Vargas and Hector Saenz, who has good size and could provide LeFevre as a go-to target.

LeFevre currently has 625 yards on 63 attempts this season to go along with 10 touchdowns to just two interceptions.

RETTA AND CO. LOOKING TO STAY HOT: San Benito’s up tempo offense will look to continue racking up the yards. Running back Tyrone Harper continues to punish opposing defenses with 600 yards and seven touchdowns on 84 carries. QB Erick Retta continues to orchestrate the offense with 503 yards through the air with six touchdowns to just one interception.

War Dog’s offense is averaging 35 points per game this season and has scored 30 or more points in three of their four games this season.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

With the second half of district play in full effect, the playoff picture is becoming a bit clearer as the weeks go by and both District 31- and 32-6A are shaping up for a tight race. On Tuesday night, some teams gained steam and now a slate of matches is set for Saturday afternoon.

31-6A RACE HEATING UP: Over the past few seasons, District 31-6A has emerged as one of the tougher volleyball leagues in the Valley. Last year, Edinburg Vela ran the table, but this season Vela is tied with Edinburg High (7-1) and PSJA Memorial (7-1) atop the conference. Meanwhile, PSJA High sits in the fourth spot at 4-4 while Edinburg North remains in the hunt with a 3-5 record.

On Saturday, Vela will travel to Edinburg High, Economedes meets PSJA Memorial and Edinburg North hosts PSJA Southwest.

32-6A SHAPING UP TO BE A DANDY: Much like 31-6A, District 32-6A has shaped up to be extremely competitive. Thus far, perennial power Los Fresnos (7-1) suffered its first conference loss in two years at the hands of Brownsville Rivera, which leads the league at 8-0. Harlingen High (5-3) has emerged as a legit contender after missing the postseason last year.

San Benito (5-3) has been guided by its strong offense and has also made a case for a playoff berth. Brownsville Hanna, meanwhile, is fading in the race for the playoffs with five contenders vying for four spots.

The second half will see multiple marquee matchups beginning with Harlingen at Rivera on Saturday at 3 p.m. while Los Fresnos and Rivera will meet once more down the line in what could determine the district crown.

LADY FALCONS HEATING UP: Sometimes it’s a matter of going to Plan B.

Plan A for the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons involved going undefeated through District 32-6A play for a third consecutive season and winning a school-record fifth straight conference title.

The Lady Falcons had to adjust their plans on Sept. 26 after suffering a 25-14, 25-19, 25-23 loss at Rivera. It was their first district setback since 2014.

Now the plan for Los Fresnos is to keep winning so the Lady Falcons possibly can have a chance to tie Rivera for the district crown when the two teams meet again Oct. 21 in the second round of 32-6A action at Los Fresnos. That’s assuming the Lady Raiders keep winning and maintain the 32-6A lead.

From the Lady Falcons’ perspective, it’s still quite possible to capture a fifth straight district championship, even if it might be shared. They’re thinking Rivera will keep winning, so they have to do the same.

“We have to stay focused and we can’t drop any more matches to anyone,” said Lady Falcons coach Becky Woods after Tuesday’s win at home against the Lady Greyhounds. “We have to come back and beat Rivera on our home court. In order to do that and get a chance at the district title, we can’t lose to anybody. It doesn’t matter who we play.”

Woods said even though the Lady Falcons played with a lot of intensity and showed the ability to stay composed and rally against San Benito, there are still areas to work on.

“Our blocking has to improve,” she said. “We’re working a lot on that.”

LIONETTES STILL ON A ROLL: La Feria is inching closer to a second consecutive District 32-4A title as the Lionettes are a solid 9-0 in league play and are coming off a 3-1 win over Hidalgo on Tuesday night.

The Lionettes are currently on a 13-game win streak with five games remaining. The last time La Feria lost a game was Aug. 12 against Brownsville Pace at the McAllen Tournament.

La Feria puts its win streak on the line this Saturday when they travel to Progreso with the match set to begin at noon.

Roy Hess of the Brownsville Herald contributed to this story

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

Above their practice field, a sign reads “The pride and winning tradition of the Harlingen Cardinals will not be entrusted to the weak nor the timid.”

It’s a powerful statement that exemplifies what Harlingen Cardinals football is all about.

For junior wide receiver Joe Reyna, he knows all about that tradition as he grew up watching Cardinal football and waited for the day he could be a part of the team.

Reyna is a Harlingen product through and through, and saw his older brother, Felix, dominate as a safety.

“It means a lot to be a part of this program,” said Reyna. “My brother played here and I watched him play when I was younger. I remember watching the playoff game in 2011 against San Antonio Warren and I thought to myself, I really want to be a part of this one day. My brother taught me a lot and has always given me advice on how to carry myself.”

Against San Antonio Regan earlier this season, Harlingen saw its top wide receiver Riley Sauceda go down with an injury leaving the Cards in a bind. That is until Reyna stepped in and answered the bell. He finished the Reagan game with six catches for 91 yards and a score, including a 41-yard touchdown before the half that gave the Cards a 20-7 lead.

A star was born and Reyna’s performance helped lift the Cardinals to one of their biggest upsets in recent history.

“I have seen people, not just my brother but others, that have gone through this program and go to college,” Reyna said. “That is something I want to do, play football and go to college and play at the college level. Seeing other people do that has defiantly inspired me. When Riley went down, it hurt us but I knew it was my turn to step up and I have always had confidence in myself to go out and be the best I can be.”

However, Reyna wasn’t done. In Bird Bowl XXV last week, Reyna’s speed, smooth route running and soft hands were on full display. While he finished the night with just three catches, he made his presence known with a pair of touchdowns from 43 and 47 yards out. Reyna currently has 17 catches for 286 yards and four touchdowns on the season.

“Humble” and “heart” were the two words Cardinals head coach Manny Gomez used to describe Reyna.

“He has a humble beginning and he’s ready to step in for his big brother,” Gomez said. “He is a competitor, a quiet assassin, and he doesn’t say much but he leads by example. He is defiantly a humble and respectful kid, and once he gets on that field he has a different identity.

He knows he has big shoes to fill and he’s ready to live up to the family tradition.”