BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

PHARR — Sharyland Pioneer sophomore Daizy Monie and PSJA Southwest senior Diego Treviño did not wake up thinking about breaking records at Wednesday’s 31/32-5A area meet, but that’s exactly what both throwers were able to accomplish.

Monie and Treviño each won the shot put and discus competitions. Monie outpaced the rest of the field in the discus (140 feet, 3 inches), and she set an area round record in the shot put. Her throw of 41-3 was nearly a foot and a half longer than Mission Veterans junior Charlee Salinas (39-10.5).

Joining Monie and Salinas in the shot put at next week’s regional meet in San Antonio are Edcouch-Elsa’s Mackenzie Contreras (39-5) and Rio Grande City’s Iesha Garcia (34-7.5).

“I’ve been practicing all year,” Monie said. “I’ve been lifting and doing what I need to do. Whenever I come to these track meets, I try to relax and focus and put it all in God’s hands. I tend to fall under pressure, so if I’m thinking about everyone else instead of thinking about myself, it can turn into a bad track meet. I have to stay focused on myself so I can have a good meet.”

Bobby Olvera, Monie’s throwing coach, believed she was locked in from the very beginning of the day.

“There’s been a big difference between her last year and this year,” Olvera said. “Even though she threw last year, there were still some things that were new to her. She was in a situation where she needed someone to help her in the middle of the competition. This year, she’s different in that she can go into the ring and she herself can fix her mistakes. That’s a sign of maturity and her hard work and determination to be better.”

This year’s UIL Region IV meet begins April 26 and will be held at Heroes Stadium in Northeast San Antonio, as opposed to the centrally located Alamo Stadium in San Antonio.

Monie competed at Alamo Stadium in 2018.

“In a thrower’s mind, it (a venue change) could affect them,” Olvera said. “My job is to make her (Monie) as comfortable as possible at the new venue. Luckily, I’ve been to Heroes Stadium before. Because of all the cement around, it can be a very hot place. We have to prepare to keep her cool and in the shade. Hopefully, we’ll throw in the morning, so I think that’ll help too.”

“I like new things and the chance to throw at a new ring,” Monie added. “I know that the ring is the same size. I’m just going to go out there and do what I know how to do. I’m going to have a lot of lifting sessions and a lot of work on technique. I just hope it will show at regionals.”

Treviño, a University of Oklahoma signee, etched his name into the history books with a discus throw that went a personal-best 172 feet. Treviño and his throwing coach, Eloy Garza, were jubilant when the official distance was announced.

“The objective has always been to get him to peak in time for state,” Garza said. “We’re still working some things out in the shot put, but this has still been a great year for him. He’s transitioned from not only being talented in the shot put, but also performing in the discus. Most people watching the two events might think they’re the same, but they’re very different. For Diego to have the ability to learn the discus technique better, it shows the caliber of athlete that he is.”

Treviño said his turnaround in the discus begin at the start of the track season.

“Before my senior year, I never had a good throwing method with the disk,” Treviño said. “I had to figure out why, so I switched up my technique at the beginning of the year. I started non-reversing my release, which kept my feet on the ground. It allowed to be more patient and have more time with the discus. The longer you have the discus in your hand, the farther it will go.”

Treviño’s 172-foot throw eclipsed the area round record that previously belonged to Brownsville Veterans alum Andres Bodden, who is now a thrower at the University of Texas. Bodden won the 2017 31/32-5A area meet with a discus throw of 167-4.

Brownsville Pace’s Jose Quintero (170-7), Sharyland High’s Brandon Mireles (162-8) and Mission Veterans’ Alex Galvan (156-7) punched their tickets to the regional meet, as well.

A PHOTO FINISH

The first race of the meet was one of the most heart-stopping from the day’s action. Sharyland High junior Ana Hernandez (11 minutes, 56.56 seconds) edged out Mercedes senior Soledad Cruz (11:56.57) by one one-hundredth of a second in the girls’ 3200-meter run.

In addition to Hernandez, Sharyland High was represented in the top four regional qualifiers by freshman Danielle Salinas (12:01.49) and junior Andrea Gallardo (12:02.79).

“We wanted to go one-two-three, but we were a little off,” Sharyland High girls track coach Melissa Dearth said. “We had Ana, who was sick this week, and I think that’s why she was a little bit conservative to take a big lead. Our other two runners go based on how she leads.”

WILLIAMS MAKES A WAY

PSJA Memorial senior Cruz Gomez heard the final lap flare and cruised to another gold medal in the 3200-meter run. Gomez (9:49.07) was joined as a regional qualifier with sophomore Williams Macias, who took second place (9:52.22).

“I see myself in him (Macias),” Gomez said. “I was like him. I was all about soccer and running came after that, but I told him that his talent is running. This guy is really talented and I’m really proud of him.”

“Williams had just started running with us last week,” PSJA Memorial boys track coach Lee Roy Perez said. “God blessed him with a lot of talent. We’ll see how he does at regionals.”

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VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL SCHEDULE

Monday’s Game

District 32-4A

Rio Hondo 18, Progreso 3, 3 innings

Tuesday’s Games

District 30-6A

McAllen High 6, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 1

PSJA North 6, McAllen Memorial 3

PSJA High 7, Mission High 5, 12 innings

La Joya High 12, McAllen Rowe 8

District 31-6A

Edinburg North 15, Edinburg Economedes 4, 5 innings

Edinburg Vela 12, Edinburg High 5

Weslaco High 9, Weslaco East 2

District 32-6A

Harlingen South 15, Harlingen High 4

San Benito 15, Brownsville Rivera 0

Los Fresnos 3, Brownsville Hanna 1

District 31-5A

PSJA Memorial 10, Mission Veterans 0, 5 innings

Sharyland Pioneer 11, Roma 9

Sharyland High 13, PSJA Southwest 4

Rio Grande City 14, La Joya Palmview 2, 5 innings

District 32-5A

Brownsville Veterans 12, Brownsville Lopez 1, 5 innings

Mercedes 10, Donna High 0, 5 innings

Brownsville Pace 10, Valley View 5

Edcouch-Elsa 4, Brownsville Porter 1

District 32-4A

Zapata 2, Port Isabel 0

Raymondville 18, Hidalgo 7

La Feria 17, Grulla 2, 3 innings

Thursday’s Games

District 30-6A

PSJA North at McAllen High, 7 p.m.

McAllen Rowe at McAllen Memorial, 7 p.m.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at PSJA High, 7 p.m.

Mission High at La Joya High, 7 p.m.

District 31-6A

Weslaco High at Edinburg North, 7 p.m.

Edinburg Vela at Weslaco East, 7 p.m.

Donna North at Edinburg High, 7 p.m.

District 32-6A

Brownsville Hanna at Harlingen South, 6:30 p.m.

Harlingen High at Brownsville Rivera, 6:30 p.m.

San Benito at Los Fresnos, 6:30 p.m.

District 31-5A

PSJA Memorial at Sharyland High, 7 p.m.

Roma at Mission Veterans, 7 p.m.

PSJA Southwest at La Joya Palmview, 7 p.m.

District 32-5A

Brownsville Veterans at Edcouch-Elsa, 7 p.m.

Mercedes at Brownsville Lopez, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Porter at Brownsville Pace, 7 p.m.

Valley View at Donna High, 7 p.m.

Friday’s Games

District 31-5A

Rio Grande City at Sharyland Pioneer, 7 p.m.

District 32-4A

Progreso at Port Isabel, 6 p.m.

Grulla at Hidalgo, 7 p.m.

La Feria at Rio Hondo, 7 p.m.

Raymondville at Zapata, 7 p.m.

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL BOX SCORE

Tuesday’s Game

District 30-6A

LA JOYA HIGH 12, McALLEN ROWE 8

La Joya High 010 038 0 — 12

McAllen Rowe 002 330 0 — 8

WP: Jaretzy Rodriguez 7 innings, 15 hits, 8 runs, 5 earned runs, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, 1 hit by pitch.

LA JOYA HIGH (12): Stef Solis 1 for 4, run; Leslie Ochoa 2 for 4, 2 runs, walk, 3 RBI; Jatzari Resendez 2 for 3, run, walk, stolen base, RBI; Jessica Reyna 1 for 4, double, run, hit by pitch; Kassy Villarreal 2 for 5, 2 runs, double, 2 RBI; Ayleene Salinas 1 for 4, run; Azeneth Alaniz 1 for 3, 2 runs, walk, double; Airam Guzman 2 for 3, 2 runs, walk, RBI; Leezandra Prado 0 for 4; Jameliz Sepulveda 0 for 0, run.

McALLEN ROWE (8): Laurynn Garcia 1 for 4, run, walk, hit by pitch; Destiny Menchaca 4 for 5, 3 runs, 2 doubles, 2 RBI; Ziomara Jasso 2 for 5, 2 RBI; Jackie Rodriguez 0 for 4, walk; Deandra Hernandez 2 for 4; Gabby Vasquez 1 for 4; Gaby Garza 1 for 3, triple; Emily Santos 1 for 4, run, RBI; Ashley Barriero 2 for 4, 2 runs; Cheyenne Garcia 0 for 0, run; Julia Blum 0 for 1.

RECORDS: La Joya High 17-15, 7-6; McAllen Rowe 14-16, 6-7.

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

McALLEN — After four innings, the high-powered La Joya High offense trailed McAllen Rowe by four runs. The four-run deficit, which was tied for La Joya High’s largest of the night, prompted Coyotes coach Carlos Rodriguez to have a talk with his team.

“I was a little concerned at the end of four (innings),” Rodriguez said. “We’re down 5-1, even though we spend 70% of our practices hitting. We had a little pow wow at the top of the fifth and we scored three, but we gave them right back. Then we had that big inning. Some hits and some errors helped, of course, but that’s part of the game.”

The Coyotes put together an eight-run sixth inning to turn their four-run deficit into a four-run advantage. La Joya High held on to its lead for good in a 12-8 over McAllen Rowe on Tuesday night.

The Warriors and Coyotes entered the regular season’s final week tied for the fourth and final playoff spot in District 30-6A with identical 6-6 records. La Joya High won its first 30-6A get-together with McAllen Rowe. A season sweep of the Warriors would eliminate them from playoff contention.

Despite fielding a roster with only one senior on the roster, the Coyotes pulled off the comeback and earned another playoff appearance for Rodriguez.

“It was definitely an enjoyable game for the fans,” Rodriguez said. “We have one senior and eight juniors, so we think we’ll get those eight back next year. But we’re not worried about that yet. We’ll have Mission (High) on Thursday. Every time we step on the field, our goal is to improve.”

The Coyotes (17-15, 7-6) started their sixth with a double from designated player Azeneth Alaniz. After Alaniz, La Joya High sent 11 more players to the plate. Senior Jatzari Resendez’s sacrifice fly brought the Coyotes within 8-7, but a McAllen Rowe error after the fly ball allowed for the tying run to come home.

Errors became a theme for the Warriors (14-16, 6-7) defense during the sixth. A routing pop-up in center field was dropped, opening the door for the Coyotes to take their first lead since the second inning at 9-8. Another errant throw later in the frame helped push La Joya High’s lead to three runs.

La Joya High sophomore pitcher Jaretzy Rodriguez started strong and struggled during the middle three innings, but she found a groove to close the game out. She allowed three hits and no runs in the final two innings.

“She was really good early with her changeup, but then she went on her fastball and they (McAllen Rowe) were able to get some hits,” Rodriguez said. “They weren’t pitches that ended up at the fence, but they were hittable pitches. We helped them with a couple errors, but she pitched well in the sixth and seventh. She hit her spots.”

After the team took group photos for parents, Rodriguez’s players celebrated another postseason berth by dousing their coach with water.

“This team came together slowly,” Rodriguez said. “There were some rough parts, but they really did come together. They root for each other every night.”

Rodriguez then takes a breath to wipe cold water from his forehead.

“I’m just glad it wasn’t Gatorade,” Rodriguez said.

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — David Longoria has seen his share of ups and downs as Mission Veterans’ boys track coach since 2009. He’s coached runners and throwers into the UIL state track and field meet for three consecutive years between 2014 and 2016.

Last year’s District 31-5A track meet, however, had to be one of the lowest points of his tenure. The Patriots hosted the meet on their campus, but the boys team barely made a whimper in the final standings. Mission Veterans’ 36 points tied Roma for seventh place out of 31-5A’s nine teams.

“It’s been a challenge, but it’s been a good challenge,” Longoria said. “We were supposed to qualify in the relays, but we hit the dirt early. In that mile relay (during last year’s district meet), none of those boys were graduating. It was a hard thing to swallow, but the challenge was set right there on that day. The boys responded as a group. They’ve done a great job this season.”

It would have been perfectly normal for Longoria’s Patriots to get flashbacks from their poor showing at districts in 2018 this season. Like 2018, Mission Veterans finished in a tie. This time, though, the Patriots scored 101 points as a team, which tied them with PSJA Memorial in second place behind district champion Sharyland Pioneer.

Mission Veterans will compete in the 31/32-5A area meet today at PSJA Stadium in Pharr.

Mikey Garcia is known more for his 1,977 career receiving yards and 20 career receiving touchdowns in football, but he was in the center of the Patriots’ high scoring at the district meet. Along with Landry Gilpin, Andrew Alvarez, Mike Gonzales and Garcia, the Patriots earned a gold medal in the 400-meter relay.

Garcia, a junior, also won first place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.78 seconds, a personal record. His individual gold medal almost did not take place.

“When Coach (Longoria) first put me in the 200, I wasn’t going to run it because I didn’t think I was ready,” Garcia said. “He asked me, ‘Why are you holding yourself back?’ Because Coach knows when I’m ‘done’ and when I’m ‘done-done.’ He knew I had a little more something in me and he wanted me to let it out in the last race. When you get to that level, you have to just stay tough mentally. You can’t let any of your injuries bring you down. I’ve been injured countless times. You have to grind through it and know that you have your brother and your brother’s got you.”

“One of the bigger parts of being a coach is being somewhat of a psychologist,” Longoria said. “The kids know their bodies are ready to go when they are ready to go. It’s all about getting their mind right. He and Mike Gonzales were getting ready for the 200 and I pulled them aside. ‘Guys, we’ve won as a team. Now this is your opportunity to be the best you can be. Do your best and wherever you fall, you fall.’ Mikey won and he PR’d. It was a good win for us, but the best part is seeing him believe in that now. That’s the best part.”

Alex Galvan doesn’t have the typical height or width of a prototypical shot put or discus thrower. The 5-foot-9, 152-pound junior is, however, tall and heavy on skill. He will compete in the area meet today after placing second in the shot put (49 feet, 9 inches) and third in the discus (147 feet, 8 inches) at the District 31-5A meet.

Galvan often seeks the advice of his older brother, Guillermo, who knows a thing or two about throwing. As a senior in 2014, Guillermo Galvan was a UIL state champion in the shot put at Mission Veterans.

“Everyone tells me that I am the skinniest one, but that honestly gets me excited to face the competition,” Galvan said. “The competition brings out the best in me. It’s not about who the strongest is out there. I feel like it’s more about technique. The competition’s technique is good, too. I just feel like I’m good enough to compete with them.”

“If there’s a student of the game, Alex is it,” Longoria said. “He knows every step, position, arm movement and stance. He’s got great throwing coaches behind him with Simon Mendoza and Isaac Sanchez, but I know a lot of the stuff that comes into his ears comes from his older brother Guillermo. He’s been a big part of helping Alex in the summers and off time. He’s getting great advice from four coaches, essentially. And he soaks it all in. He’s willing to be receptive. That’s what makes Alex unique.”

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

MISSION — One year ago, Sharyland Pioneer clinched a share of the District 31-5A crown on a walk-off grand slam. It was the Diamondbacks’ third title in three seasons.

This season, PSJA Memorial has proven itself as the class of the district. The Wolverines owned a blemish-free 11-0 record. They have not been pushed in their new district until Friday.

Sharyland Pioneer and PSJA Memorial were locked in a scoreless game through five innings, but the Wolverines’ bats were awakened during the final two innings. PSJA Memorial blanked Sharyland Pioneer 7-0 on Friday night.

In a cruel twist of irony, the Wolverines locked up the district championship on the Diamondbacks’ home field.

“I feel like our kids feel like they’re complacent. That’s where they are at right now,” PSJA Memorial interim coach Raquel Barbosa said. “We continue to tell these kids that they can’t be complacent. Once we get into the playoffs, we want to go to the second round and past that, but it’s not going to be easy. Playing a game like this is perfect for us because they (Sharyland Pioneer) are fighting right now in second place because they have other teams fighting after them.”

Jasmine Martinez started the sixth inning with a single for the Wolverines (21-6-1, 12-0). Martinez stole second base, went to third on a fly ball hit by Victoria Maldonado and scored when first baseman Victoria Gonzalez blooped a single to center.

“As a coach, in a tight game like this one, you start to second-guess yourself on certain calls. That’s part of being a coach,” Barbosa said. “I have a lot of confidence in these kids. They still haven’t played their best softball yet.”

Barbosa had plenty of confidence in starting pitcher Chelsea Salinas. Salinas went the full seven frames, allowing four hits and striking out 14 Diamondbacks.

Additionally, she walked six batters. Five of her six walks came during the first three innings.

“When I was warming up before the game, I didn’t feel like I was on,” Salinas said. “We get to the game, and I struggled in the beginning, but I had to make better pitches. It was intense. I knew I put those batters on base and I knew it was my job to leave them there. That’s what I had to do.”

The Sharyland Pioneer (18-10, 9-3) offense left nine players on base. The Diamondbacks left the bases loaded during the first and third innings as well as two runners on during the sixth inning.

“We had one senior on the field tonight, but for us to still be 9-3 (in district) at this stage with this group, is great,” Sharyland Pioneer coach Orlando Garcia said. “We were in a 1-0 in six innings against a team that has dominated the district. We left too many girls on base. Those are things that we have to take advantage of. As time goes on, these players will become seasoned and they’ll be able to take care of that. They came in determined to fight and they did exactly that.”

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VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL SCHEDULE

Friday’s Games

District 30-6A

McAllen Memorial 22, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 0, 3 innings

PSJA High 15, McAllen High 0, 3 innings

PSJA North 6, La Joya High 4

McAllen Rowe 6, Mission High 0

District 31-6A

Edinburg Vela 18, Donna North 3

Weslaco High 8, Edinburg High 3

Weslaco East 10, Edinburg Economedes 0, 5 innings

District 32-6A

San Benito 7, Brownsville Hanna 2

Harlingen South 14, Brownsville Rivera 0

Harlingen High 15, Los Fresnos 13

District 31-5A

PSJA Memorial 7, Sharyland Pioneer 0

Sharyland High 14, Mission Veterans 13, 10 innings

Roma 10, La Joya Palmview 5, 8 innings

Rio Grande City 9, PSJA Southwest 0

District 32-5A

Mercedes 10, Brownsville Pace 0, 5 innings

Donna High 7, Brownsville Lopez 3

Brownsville Veterans 15, Brownsville Porter 1, 5 innings

Edcouch-Elsa 9, Valley View 4

District 32-4A

Grulla 25, Progreso 6

Port Isabel 2, Rio Hondo 1

Zapata 9, Hidalgo 0

La Feria 12, Raymondville 10

Tuesday’s Games

District 30-6A

McAllen High at La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 7 p.m.

McAllen Memorial at PSJA North, 7 p.m.

PSJA High at Mission High, 7 p.m.

La Joya High at McAllen Rowe, 7 p.m.

District 31-6A

Edinburg North at Edinburg Economedes, 7 p.m.

Edinburg High at Edinburg Vela, 7 p.m.

Weslaco East at Weslaco High, 7 p.m.

District 32-6A

Harlingen South at Harlingen High, 6:30 p.m.

Brownsville Rivera at San Benito, 6:30 p.m.

Los Fresnos at Brownsville Hanna, 6:30 p.m.

District 31-5A

Mission Veterans at PSJA Memorial, 7 p.m.

Sharyland Pioneer at Roma, 7 p.m.

Sharyland High at PSJA Southwest, 7 p.m.

La Joya Palmview at Rio Grande City, 7 p.m.

District 32-5A

Brownsville Lopez at Brownsville Veterans, 7 p.m.

Donna High at Mercedes, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Pace at Valley View, 7 p.m.

Edcouch-Elsa at Brownsville Porter, 7 p.m.

District 32-4A

Rio Hondo at Progreso, 6 p.m.

Port Isabel at Zapata, 7 p.m.

Raymondville at Hidalgo, 7 p.m.

Grulla at La Feria, 7 p.m.

Thursday’s Games

District 30-6A

PSJA North at McAllen High, 7 p.m.

McAllen Rowe at McAllen Memorial, 7 p.m.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at PSJA High, 7 p.m.

Mission High at La Joya High, 7 p.m.

District 31-6A

Weslaco High at Edinburg North, 7 p.m.

Edinburg Vela at Weslaco East, 7 p.m.

Donna North at Edinburg High, 7 p.m.

District 32-6A

Brownsville Hanna at Harlingen South, 6:30 p.m.

Harlingen High at Brownsville Rivera, 6:30 p.m.

San Benito at Los Fresnos, 6:30 p.m.

District 31-5A

PSJA Memorial at Sharyland High, 7 p.m.

Roma at Mission Veterans, 7 p.m.

PSJA Southwest at La Joya Palmview, 7 p.m.

District 32-5A

Brownsville Veterans at Edcouch-Elsa, 7 p.m.

Mercedes at Brownsville Lopez, 7 p.m.

Brownsville Porter at Brownsville Pace, 7 p.m.

Valley View at Donna High, 7 p.m.

Friday, April 19

District 31-5A

Rio Grande City at Sharyland Pioneer, 7 p.m.

District 32-4A

Progreso at Port Isabel, 6 p.m.

Grulla at Hidalgo, 7 p.m.

La Feria at Rio Hondo, 7 p.m.

Raymondville at Zapata, 7 p.m.

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL BOX SCORE

Friday’s Game

District 31-5A

PSJA MEMORIAL 7, SHARYLAND PIONEER 0

PSJA Mem. 000 001 6 — 7

Shary Pioneer 000 000 0 — 0

WP: Chelsea Salinas 7 innings, 4 hits, 0 runs, 6 walks, 14 strikeouts.

PSJA MEMORIAL (7): Kristy Alanis 2 for 3, run, walk; Jasmine Martinez 2 for 4, 2 runs, stolen base, RBI; Victoria Maldonado 1 for 3, run, double, 2 RBI; Chelsea Salinas 0 for 3, RBI; Victoria Gonzalez 1 for 4, RBI; Kristin Maldonado 3 for 4, run, stolen base; Elyssa Elizondo 1 for 4, 2 RBI; Jayden Barrientes 0 for 4, run; April Luna 1 for 3, run, stolen base.

SHARYLAND PIONEER (0): Andrea Ortiz 1 for 4; Caitlyn Handy 2 for 3, double, walk; Alexia Hernandez 0 for 2, 2 walks; Arianna Ale 0 for 1; 2 walks; Lexi Bazan 1 for 3, double; Hanna Garcia 0 for 0, walk.

RECORDS: PSJA Memorial 21-6-1, 12-0; Sharyland Pioneer 18-10, 9-3.

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

Rio Grande City was a stone’s throw away from a district title in 2018, finishing a game behind Mission Veterans and Sharyland Pioneer who shared the crown. But things didn’t come as easily to the Rattlers to start this season.

“The girls had all the ability. It was only a matter of, ‘Do they want to compete?’” Rio Grande City coach Nicole Smedley said. “We’ve been working. They had ‘Open Field’ during the offseason. They had to dig deep and learn to be resilient. That’s one of the things that we’ve talked about. Maybe we didn’t start a game off very well or the season off very well. We had to work through injuries and we had to bounce back from that.”

Four weeks ago, Rio Grande City was tied for the last playoff spot, but the Rattlers have been rolling ever since. They’ve won four of their last six games, including an important 8-6 victory over Sharyland High on Tuesday night. Sharyland High and Rio Grande City entered Tuesday tied for third place.

“We’ve had some crazy ballgames in our district,” Smedley said. “And I don’t think that’s just for me. I think it’s happened to a lot of the teams in our district. It’s going to come down to who has the better offense and who makes the (fewest) errors in the field. We’ve had ‘Ws’ that aren’t very pretty, but I’ve told my girls that if an opponent scores nine runs, we have to make sure we have 10 at the end of the ballgame. We’ll take it where we can get it.”

RGC (11-16, 7-4) is the No. 3 seed, thanks in part to wins over Starr County rival Roma and Mission Veterans. The Patriots defeated Sharyland Pioneer on Tuesday, pulling the Rattlers within two games of the Diamondbacks.

Rio Grande City will play at PSJA Southwest at 7 tonight.

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

Donna High doesn’t want the 2019 softball season to end the way 2018 did.

Last season, Donna finished in a two-way tie for fifth place in District 32-5A.

“That kind of lit a fire under our butts,” Donna High coach Adrian Lopez said. “We felt that we had a good enough ballclub (to make the playoffs). Things just didn’t go our way. We started off slow this year. Our outfield was a big question early, but as we’ve gone through the year, our outfield is playing much better.”

Donna’s pitching has come around, as well. During Tuesday’s 10-run win over Brownsville Pace, Donna held the Vikings to just one run.

“Our pitcher, Alexandra Perez, did an outstanding job shutting them down,” Lopez said. “She gave up her only run in the first inning. After that, she was lights out. We also made some plays defensively that got us out of tough situations. It took us a little bit to get used to their (Brownsville Pace) pitcher. Our batters were way ahead of the ball early on, but we waited on it and put the ball in play.”

Donna High (13-13, 5-6) finds itself in a nearly identical situation as it was a year ago. Donna is looking up at Brownsville Lopez, the No. 4 seed in 32-5A, with three games left to play. The difference: Donna is just a game behind the Lobos. The two teams will also tussle at 7 tonight in Brownsville.

Not only will Donna High have a chance to force a fourth-place tie by the end of the night, it will face second-place Mercedes on the road Tuesday.

“We’re going to have to practice hard these next few days and get mentally prepared to go into hostile environments,” Lopez said. “We can’t worry about anything else except playing softball and playing the game to the best of our abilities. It’s catching, throwing and hitting. We have to be able to do all three.”

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RGVSPORTS.COM SOFTBALL TOP 10

Team Record Prev.

1. Brownsville Veterans 22-6-1 3

2. San Benito 19-10 4

3. Edinburg Vela 24-4 2

T-4. Harlingen South 24-6 1

T-4. PSJA Memorial 20-6-1 4

6. PSJA North 19-11 8

T-7. Los Fresnos 18-10 NR

T-7. Rio Hondo 18-8-1 7

9. Lyford 27-0 9

T-10. Edinburg North 21-7 9

T-10. Mercedes 18-9-1 9

District 30-6A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

x-PSJA North 19 11 10 1 —

x-PSJA High 21 7 9 2 1

McAllen Memorial 16 11 8 3 2

La Joya High 16 14 6 5 4

McAllen Rowe 13 15 5 6 5

Mission High 9 15 4 7 6

McAllen High 12 16 2 9 8

La Joya J-L* 1 26 0 11 10

District 31-6A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

x-Edinburg Vela 24 4 8 1 —

x-Edinburg North 21 7 8 2 0.5

Weslaco High 19 11 7 2 1

Weslaco East 15 15 4 5 4

Edinburg High 6 13 4 5 4

Donna North 4 17 1 9 7.5

Edinburg Economedes 3 25 1 9 7.5

District 32-6A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

San Benito 19 10 6 1 —

Harlingen South 24 6 5 2 1

Los Fresnos 18 10 5 2 1

Brownsville Hanna 13 13 4 3 2

Harlingen High** 9 11 1 6 5

Brownsville Rivera* 8 14 0 7 6

District 31-5A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

x-PSJA Memorial* 20 6 11 0 —

x-Sharyland Pioneer 18 9 9 2 2

Rio Grande City 11 16 7 4 4

Sharyland High 13 16 6 5 5

Mission Veterans 9 18 5 6 6

Roma 8 20 5 6 6

La Joya Palmview** 6 12 1 10 10

PSJA Southwest 6 23 0 11 11

District 32-5A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

x-Browns. Veterans* 22 6 11 0 —

Mercedes* 18 9 9 2 2

Edcouch-Elsa 19 9 8 3 3

Brownsville Lopez 14 14 6 5 5

Donna High 13 13 5 6 6

Valley View** 8 17 3 8 8

Brownsville Pace* 4 18 1 10 10

Brownsville Porter — — 1 10 10

District 32-4A

Overall District

Team W L W L GB

x-Rio Hondo* 18 8 11 0 —

x-Zapata 17 5 9 2 2

x-Port Isabel 16 10 9 2 2

Raymondville 12 10 6 5 5

La Feria 18 11 5 6 6

Hidalgo 5 19 3 8 8

Grulla 3 16 1 10 10

Progreso — — 0 11 11

*-amount of ties

x-clinched playoff berth

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BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER

MERCEDES — Both teams did not know it at the time, but the first inning set the tone in another meeting between two of the Valley’s fiercest rivals: Edcouch-Elsa and Mercedes.

The Tigers took advantage of their early chances while the Yellow Jackets could not cash in enough to keep up. Mercedes defeated Edcouch-Elsa 6-1 in a District 32-5A meeting Tuesday at Betty C. Morrell Softball Field.

“Our game plan was to take a lot of pitches and see balls. I think we did a good job of that,” Mercedes coach Kristy Leal said. “We hit the ball very well with a lot of hard hits that made them put the pressure on their defense.”

The biggest hit of the night came from sophomore Reeana De La Torre with two outs during the first inning. As the Tigers trailed 1-0, De La Torre laced a bases-clearing double off E-E starter Ocean Gomez into the left center-field gap to make it 3-1 Mercedes.

The inning ended with De La Torre tried to stretch her double into a triple.

“I was expecting her to throw an outside pitch because that’s what she threw the last time we played them,” De La Torre said. “This time, she threw one inside but we also noticed that she was throwing inside with our bigger hitters. I was just preparing for both pitches. I’m naturally better with inside pitches, so it was easy for me to take advantage with that pitch.”

De La Torre’s clutch hit reminded Leal of how she did as a freshman during last season’s playoff series against Corpus Christi Flour Bluff.

“We brought her up last year and she got two hits for us,” Leal said. “I knew that she was ready to go. She sees the ball well. When she makes contact, she makes good contact. She hits the ball hard.”

Mercedes (18-9-1, 9-2) starting pitcher Mika Vento was shaky to start the game. Edcouch-Elsa’s first three hitters reached base with no one out, but the Yellow Jackets (19-9, 8-3) could only manufacture one run in the frame.

“I think that’s what been happening all year. We’ve been getting people on base and moving them over. Now it just comes down to getting clutch hits,” Edcouch-Elsa coach Ruth Flores said. “Mercedes came up with some clutch hits. We left people on base and made too many errors tonight. That’s very uncharacteristic for us, but that was because Mercedes kept putting the ball in play.”

Following the first inning, Vento allowed only two more hits, walked one batter and struck out seven more Yellow Jackets to end the game.

“Mika pitched a heck of a game in the circle,” Leal said. “She progressed until she was lights out towards the end of the game. She’s a force in there. She’s scary once you see her in the circle. She played her part today and got it done for us.”

The Tigers have now moved into sole possession of second place in District 32-5A behind Brownsville Veterans, which has won all 11 of its district games. The third-place Yellow Jackets still have a two-game lead on fourth-place Brownsville Lopez in the standings.

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