HS Boys Wrestling

District 16-5A Championship

At Edcouch-Elsa

Tournament Results

Team Results

1.Edcouch-Elsa. 226; 2. Sharyland Pioneer, 226; 3. Sharyland High, 185; 4. Rio Grande City, 153; 5. Grulla, 120; 6.PSJA Memorial, 114; 7.Roma, 91; 8. Donna High, 80; 9. Valley View, 75; 10. Mission Veterans Memorial, 42; 11. La Joya Palmview, 39; 12. Vanguard Academy Rembrandt, 33; 13, PSJA Southwest, 18

106 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Abel Alvarado, PSJA Memorial

2nd Place – Albert Mendoza, Sharyland

3rd Place – Derick Arellan, Edcouch-Elsa

4th Place – Austin Saenz, Sharyland Pioneer

5th Place – Jose Nunez, Rio Grande City

113 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Mario Trevino, Edcouch-Elsa

2nd Place – Diego Aguilera, PSJA Memorial

3rd Place – Steve Juarez, PSJA Southwest

4th Place – Jose Brenner, Valley View

5th Place – Osvaldo Luera, Sharyland Pioneer

6th Place – Pal Miranda, Sharyland

120 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Albert Jesus Elizondo, PSJA Memorial

2nd Place – Jesus Cruz, Mission Sharyland

3rd Place – Osvaldo Cuellar, Edcouch-Elsa

4th Place – Noah Rams, Sharyland Pioneer

5th Place – Daniel Olivares, Grulla

6th Place – Christian Salinas, Rio Grande City

126 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Angel Avila, Sharyland Pioneer

2nd Place – Nel Torres, Vanguard Academy Rembrandt – Pharr

3rd Place – Rafael Zavala, Donna

4th Place – Jonathan Castillo, PSJA Memorial

5th Place – Andres Martinez, Rio Grande City

6th Place – Andrick Aldape, Edcouch-Elsa

132 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Rene Trevino, Rio Grande City

2nd Place – Adrian Martinez, Edcouch-Elsa

3rd Place – Kenneth Briere, Sharyland Pioneer

4th Place – Rolando, Flores, Grulla

5th Place – Diego Cantu, La Joya Palmview

6th Place – Justin Perez, Donna

138 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Jseph Zieske , La Joya Palmview

2nd Place – Nathan Vazquez, Sharyland Pioneer

3rd Place – Albert Gonzalez, Pharr Valley View

4th Place – Everard Crispin, Edcuch-Elsa

5th Place – Jonathan Ramirez, Vanguard Academy Rembrandt – Pharr

6th Place – Moises Quintanilla, Sharyland

145 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Daniel Huerta , Sharyland Pioneer

2nd Place – Oziel Guerra, Donna

3rd Place – Eivar ,lres, Valley View

4th Place – Moses Rodriguez, Sharyland

5th Place – Kevin Trujillo, Edcouch-Elsa

6th Place – Christian Ramirez, Rio Grande City

152 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Albert Montalvo, Grulla

2nd Place – Luis a Ramirez , Mission Veterans Memorial

3rd Place – Luis Salazar, Edcouch-Elsa

4th Place – Elibert Munoz, Roma

5th Place – Marcel Navarro, Sharyland

6th Place – Rme Chavez, Pharr Valley View

160 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Felipe Neves, Edcouch-Elsa

2nd Place – Pedro Martinez, Rio Grande City

3rd Place – Leery Villanueva, Mission Veterans Memorial

4th Place – Carols Alaniz, Roma

5th Place – Eleazar Cavazos, Sharyland

6th Place – Macario Solis, Grulla

170 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Joel Garza, Edcouch-Elsa

2nd Place – Santino Pascual, Sharyland

3rd Place – Marc Espinoza , Donna

4th Place – Gregorio Vela, Rio Grande City

5th Place – Jayden Cullen, PSJA Memoirial

6th Place – Pablo Jesus Vela, Grulla

182 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Eresmo Uresti, Edcouch-Elsa

2nd Place – Austin Wynne, Grulla

3rd Place – Andrew Torres, Sharyland Pioneer

4th Place – Santana Gabriel Salyers Garcia, PSJA Memorial

5th Place – Matthew Worthington, Sharyland

6th Place – Rene Alvarez, Rio Grande City

195 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Jonathan Rios, Roma

2nd Place – Roel Resendez, Rio Grande City

3rd Place – Daniel Martinez, Sharyland

4th Place – Daniel Villareal, Sharyland Pioneer

5th Place – Jose Gonzalez, Edcouch-Elsa

6th Place – Armand Gonzalez, Grulla

220 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Ethan Garza, Sharyland Pineer

2nd Place – Gabriel Martinez, Sharyland

3rd Place – David Villareal, Roma

4th Place – Enrique Hernandez, Edcouch-Elsa

5th Place – Derrek Garcia, Grulla

6th Place – Michael Martinez, Donna

285 pounds

Guaranteed Places

1st Place – Orlando Camacho, Sharyland Pioneer

2nd Place – Bobby Gonzalez, Edcouch-Elsa

3rd Place – Antnio Moreno, Roma

4th Place – Aidan Stard, Rio Grande City

5th Place – Moises Aguirre, Pharr Valley View

6th Place – Adrian Delarosa, Grulla

McALLEN — McAllen High’s Ava Alaniz operated the Bulldogs’ offense at midfield, dribbling around her defenders as she looked for an opening to take her shot.

It was the 22nd minute of the first period and the game was still scoreless until Alaniz found teammate Mallory Henderson shooting to an opening deep near the right sideline.

Henderson took the pass from Alaniz and blasted a shot into the net from 20 yards out to give the Bulldogs an early 1-0 lead.

Henderson’s score opened up the flood gates as the Bulldogs (10-1, 1-0) went on to defeat the Warriors (18-1, 0-1) on the road, 6-0.

“Coming in, we were a little intimidated about the rankings, but we really pulled through,” Henderson said. “This district win will really boost our confidence, and it will lead us to a good season.”

Also scoring for the Bulldogs were Westyn Henderson, Sophie Soto, Melanie Saldaña and Bailey Huston with two goals.

Heading into the contest, both teams made the Texas Girls Coaches Association State Soccer Class 6A rankings. Rowe came in No. 4 with its 18-0 record, and McAllen High was No. 15 with a 9-1 record with its only loss coming to the state’s No. 1-ranked team, Katy Tompkins.

“I believe that is the highest we have ever been ranked in school history,” McAllen Rowe head coach John Martinez said. “It’s all nice and dandy, but obviously you have to play the game and we knew that ranking didn’t mean anything coming to play McHi. You want to be the top dog, you have to beat the top dog and it didn’t happen tonight. It’s a good accolade for the girls and for them to get that type of recognition is pretty special here at Rowe.”

McHi took command of the contest early against Rowe, showing off its ball movement across the field as they looked for gaps to score and quickly began taking their shots on goal.

Rowe’s goalkeeper and the defense worked to stop the Bulldogs’ wave of attack beginning with Melanie Saldaña’s and Alaniz’s blitzing shots on goal fired from 25 yards out.

On defense, the Bulldogs went right to work holding off Rowe’s initial attack.

The Warriors never quit.

In the second period, McAllen goalkeeper America Iracheta came off the bench and held on to the Bulldogs shutout as she stopped and scooped up multiple shots on goal late in the second period.

“I think the girls played well; they hustled well, they attacked the net well shooting and I can’t complain,” McAllen High head coach Patrick Arney said. “The girls wanted to make a statement and say hey we’re not too bad, and I think the girls did a great job of showing what they got and what they can do.”

McAllen High Hosts Mission High at home on Feb. 4.

Next up for the Warriors is La Joya Juarez-Lincoln on Feb. 4 in La Joya.

Juarez-Lincoln also made the state ranking at No. 14, and McAllen Memorial landed at No. 9.

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HARLINGEN — The Weslaco East and Weslaco High football coaches felt the winds of change after the release of the UIL district reclassification of schools were announced Monday morning in Harlingen.

Each are set to make new and face old rivalries as they exit District 31-6A.

The changes move the Wildcats down to District 16-5A DI and the Panthers move into District 32-6A.

The Wildcats enter a 10-team district with Brownsville Lopez, Brownsville Pace, Brownsville Porter, Brownsville Veterans, Donna High, La Joya Palmview, McAllen High, McAllen Memorial and McAllen Rowe.

And the Panthers enter an eight-team district alongside Brownsville Hanna, Brownsville Rivera, Donna North, Harlingen High, Harlingen South, Los Fresnos, San Benito.

One thing that won’t change for the Wesalco team’s game schedule is their annual hometown Tinaco Bowl, only this time the game will be at the start of the season instead of near the end.

“ I think the town of Weslaco wanted myself and coach Stroman to keep it,” Wesalco East football head coach Mike Burget said. “We listened to the people who really wanted the game, and it’s good for the town. Now it’s not a district game and we can go in there relaxed and play and let kids have fun and get ready for the district.”

“ We’re excited, but we know we have to get busy because we have nine district games and that is a lot,” Burget said. “It’s going to be very competitive with the McAllens, Donna, Palmview and Brownsville.”

After Week 1, the Panthers will take on the Mission High Eagles, and will face Laredo Nixon in week three heading into district after a bye week.

“ We kind of figured we were going to move to 32-6A,” Weslaco High head coach Roy Stroman said. “32-6A used to be called the SEC of the 6A. They have some great football teams and we have our work cut out for us this year. You have the two Harlingen’s, Los Fresnos and San Benito, and you have Brownsville Hanna, Brownsville Rivera and Donna North.”

Weslaco East is not the only team worried about getting their team ready for a nine-game district schedule.

McAllen Memorial football head coach Bill Littleton was feeling the pinch in Harlingen after the announcement the Mustangs were moved from a seven-team district to 10 teams in the newly formed District 16-5A.

“ In my 44 years of coaching I have never been in a 10-team district,” Littleton said. “We will learn to adjust to it and go forward. The thing about it is it’s all here in the Valley and there is not a whole lot of travel to it and we’re excited about that.

“ Were going to get right to work, you have to get your kids ready get prepared and your spring is going to be very important, and summer strength and conditioning is going to be more important because the kids have to come in shape ready to go because district is right around the corner once you get there,” Littleton said. “We were excited to stay here in the Valley with 10 teams, you have to take it where you land and don’t worry about it, you can’t change this so go forward, get ready to play and get ready to go.”

Staying in District 31-6A were the Edinburg schools. Moving in are La Joya High, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, Mission High, PSJA High and PSJA North from District 30-6A now filled with five Laredo schools, Eagle Pass and Del Rio.

Edinburg Economedes football head coach Gabe Pe ñ a sat in the center of a classroom on Monday with the coaches of District 31-6A with newly added PSJA High football head coach Lupe Rodriguez and Mission High head coach Koy Detmer, their staff and the rest of the nine-team district of coaches as they worked together to iron out their district football schedule.

“ Our new district is very competitive,” Pe ñ a said.

PSJA High head coach Lupe Reyes agreed stepping into District 31-6A is going to be competitive for all the teams.

“ We expected to be back with the Edinburg schools and adding Mission High adds extra excitement,” Reyes said about his alma mater. “It’s always great being around all the coaches around the Valley. It’s like a coaching fraternity.”

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McALLEN — McAllen High’s Ava Alaniz operated the Bulldogs’ offense at midfield, dribbling around her defenders as she looked for an opening to take her shot.

It was the 22nd minute of the first period and the game was still scoreless until Alaniz found teammate Mallory Henderson shooting to an opening deep near the right sideline.

Henderson took the pass from Alaniz and blasted a shot into the net from 20 yards out to give the Bulldogs an early 1-0 lead.

Henderson’s score opened up the flood gates as the Bulldogs (10-1, 1-0) went on to defeat the Warriors (18-1, 0-1) on the road, 6-0.

“Coming in, we were a little intimidated about the rankings, but we really pulled through,” Henderson said. “This district win will really boost our confidence, and it will lead us to a good season.”

Also scoring for the Bulldogs were Westyn Henderson, Sophie Soto, Melanie Saldaña and Bailey Huston with two goals.

Heading into the contest, both teams made the Texas Girls Coaches Association State Soccer Class 6A rankings. Rowe came in No. 4 with its 18-0 record, and McAllen High was No. 15 with a 9-1 record with its only loss coming to the state’s No. 1-ranked team, Katy Tompkins.

“I believe that is the highest we have ever been ranked in school history,” McAllen Rowe head coach John Martinez said. “It’s all nice and dandy, but obviously you have to play the game and we knew that ranking didn’t mean anything coming to play McHi. You want to be the top dog, you have to beat the top dog and it didn’t happen tonight. It’s a good accolade for the girls and for them to get that type of recognition is pretty special here at Rowe.”

McHi took command of the contest early against Rowe, showing off its ball movement across the field as they looked for gaps to score and quickly began taking their shots on goal.

Rowe’s goalkeeper and the defense worked to stop the Bulldogs’ wave of attack beginning with Melanie Saldaña’s and Alaniz’s blitzing shots on goal fired from 25 yards out.

On defense, the Bulldogs went right to work holding off Rowe’s initial attack.

The Warriors never quit.

In the second period, McAllen goalkeeper America Iracheta came off the bench and held on to the Bulldogs shutout as she stopped and scooped up multiple shots on goal late in the second period.

“I think the girls played well; they hustled well, they attacked the net well shooting and I can’t complain,” McAllen High head coach Patrick Arney said. “The girls wanted to make a statement and say hey we’re not too bad, and I think the girls did a great job of showing what they got and what they can do.”

McAllen High Hosts Mission High at home on Feb. 4.

Next up for the Warriors is La Joya Juarez-Lincoln on Feb. 4 in La Joya.

Juarez-Lincoln also made the state ranking at No. 14, and McAllen Memorial landed at No. 9.

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Area swimmers head to regional competition

BY RAUL GARCIA

STAFF WRITER

McALLEN — Area dive and swimming teams are heading today to Brownsville to compete in the UIL Conference 6A-Region VIII tournament.

Participants will compete over the next two days at the Margaret Clark Aquatic Center to qualify for the state meet.

“McAllen Rowe senior David Mondragon, McAllen High sophomore Danielle Park have a good shot at trying to make it to state,” McAllen ISD diving head coach Humberto Patch said about the divers.

But it could be a dog fight as PSJA High’s Julio Gomez, Harlingen South’s Jason Luckey and La Joya High’s Alan Castillo will stand in their way at regionals as the top three seeded boys in the 1-meter diving event, respectively.

“It’s going to be a close dive if they both show up and do their best,” Patch said. “They have to stay relaxed, focused and try to do their best.”

Dive contests begin today and the top three qualifiers advance to state Feb. 14-15 at Lee Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

McAllen Rowe freshman Dulce Rodriguez and McAllen High Madeline Shearer will also be competing in the dive portion of the tournament.

“I always tell them to go for their personal best,” Patch said. “You always want to end your season on a high note. I want them to be positive and enjoy the moment.”

In the swimming competition the top two finishers in each race qualify for state.

The McAllen High girls’ 400-yard freestyle relay team should have their work cut out for them as they enter the tournament seeded No. 4 with a 4:16.54 time. No. 3 Laredo Alexander (4:15.49), Harlingen South (4:14.43) at No. 2 and No. 1 Los Fresnos (4:04.22) are the top seeds in that event.

“We know they can go fast, but we can go fast too,” McAllen High swimming head coach Juan Gutierrez said. “So we are going to go at each other.”

McAllen High’s Jace Lyon and Nilton Dos Santos head into their 100-yard breaststroke and 100-yard butterfly races as No. 1 seeds.

Last year, Lyon passed Shaine Casas’ McAllen High record to reach state in the 100-yard breaststroke, clocking in at 59.44, and Dos Santos is shooting to swim three seconds faster, according to Gutierrez.

“Jace should be good in the 100 breast again,” Gutierrez said. “He’s been working all year for it.”

Dos Santos is two seconds faster than No. 2 seed Laredo United’s David Mendoza, according to the Region VIII 6A Championship 2020 Psych Sheet, which lists the swimming events and swimmers times.

In the boys’ 100-yard backstroke, PSJA High’s Carlo Carranza is seeded third. At No. 4 is Weslaco East’s Nathan Parker.

McAllen Rowe’s No. 4 seed, Nico Acevedo, will be looking to shake things up in the boys’ 100-yard freestyle with a 51.52 time. Brownsville Hanna’s No. 1 seed, Quinten Deysel, leads the pack with a 48.81 time in that event.

And looking to make a move into the top three in the girls’ 50-yard freestyle is No. 4 seed McAllen Rowe’s Kaitlyn Bzibziak. No. 1 seeded Los Fresnos’ Jada Ashford leads at 23.86.

“All the kids are ready to go and we’re excited,” Gutierrez said.

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McALLEN — Four Valley teams made the list of top teams in Class 6A Texas Girls Coaches Association state soccer poll released Tuesday.

Of the teams selected from the area were McAllen Rowe, McAllen Memorial, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln and McAllen High, respectively.

McAllen Rowe was ranked No. 4. The Warriors are currently 18-0 and are set to collide with McAllen High on Friday at home.

McAllen Memorial earned a No. 9 spot. The Mustangs are currently 10-0 and are set to take on the Mission High Eagles at 6 p.m. Friday in Mission.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln took up the 14th ranking position on the coaches poll. The Huskies are currently 10-1-2. Their single loss came at the hands of McAllen High on Jan. 18, during their contest at the McAllen High girls soccer tournament. They are set to play PSJA North at 6 p.m. Friday on the road.

McAllen High earned a No. 15 shared ranking on the coaches poll with three other teams from the Austin and San Antonio areas. The Bulldogs have a 10-1 record. Their only loss came at the hands of Tompkins High, a nationally ranked team out of Katy that took up the top spot on the 6A state coaches poll. The Bulldogs were recently ranked No. 10 nationally on the Top Drawer Soccer website girls soccer poll released Jan. 6. They are set to collide with the McAllen Rowe Warriors at 8 p.m. Friday on the road.

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EDINBURG — Mexico forward Rene Cuellar converted a shot on goal during the 35th minute of the first period of a Group “B” Concacaf Olympic qualifiers contest against Jamaica on Wednesday at H-E-B Park.

That score stood the rest of the way as Mexico went on to beat Jamaica 1-0 in Day 2 of a doubleheader in Edinburg.

Mexico will be back on the field to take on St. Kitts and Nevis at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in the same venue.

Each team had early shots on goal on both sides of the field but could not convert in a game that came down to ball possession. The match started out as a dual as both attempted to execute the cross passing and find gaps to take the upper hand. It was apparent Jamaica looked to secure a draw as the game wound down.

“It was a hard match and they are a great rival,” Mexico head coach Christopher Cuellar said. “They have interesting players with different abilities, but what was most important tonight was to gain the three points.”

Jamaica came out strong in the second period after making tactical adjustments.

“We were tentative in the first half and we responded,” Jamaica head coach Hubert Busby said. “We had some opportunities in front of goal. Goals change games, and if we had taken those it would have been a different story.”

Jamaica’s Tiffany Cameron and Kayla Mccoy took advantage of the team strategy, taking two consecutive shots on goal at the 70-minute mark.

Waving off Jamaica’s strong attack on goal was Mexico goalkeeper Emily Alvarado.

“We have been working on our movement in our front four and being more fluid in getting different looks,” Busby said. “It’s a system we are trying to implement that will allow our players to go out and express themselves within it.”

HISTORIC GOAL

Canada’s Christine Sinclair scored her 185th international goal in Canada’s Concacaf Women’s Olympic qualifiers game against Saint Kitts and Nevis in the first game of the Wednesday doubleheader at H-E-B Park.

Sinclair made history during the 22nd minute of the first period, converting a shot on goal to break the all-time international goals record across men’s and women’s soccer.

It was the first of two goals for Sinclair in a contest that helped lift the Canadian team to an 11-0 victory over Caribbean national team Saint Kitts and Nevis on Wednesday afternoon.

“Before the game, Adri (Adriana Leon) told me, ‘Don’t worry, I got you,’” Sinclair said. “All that was going through my mind was, ‘Don’t miss the net.’ And when it went in, it was a relief in the best possible way. And now I have more things to focus on now.”

Canada will face Jamaica at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

Sinclair’s record goal came off a pass from teammate Leon across the top from the right side to a waiting Sinclair inside a gap where she took her shot on goal a few feet away from the goalkeeper.

Sinclair surpassed US woman’s national team legend Abby Wambach’s 184 goals.

“Congratulations to Christine for this incredible achievement. It is an amazing feat and she deserves all the credit and accolades she will rightly receive,” Concacaf president Victor Montagaliani said. “To play elite football for 20 years at the very top level — in multiple World Cups, Olympic Games and Concacaf Women’s Championships — is remarkable in itself. To have scored an all-time record goal haul, and still going strong, is truly outstanding.”

Canada head coach Kenneth Heiner-Moller had a front row seat as he watched Sinclair etch her name in the record books.

“To be a part of this is history created right in front of your eyes, and something I’m a tiny little part of, is just a great privilege,” Heiner-Moller said. “I know it’s something that has been going on and talked about and to have the pressure off and having the release on this date. I’m so happy for her and proud.”

Sinclair ended the night with a message to kids to dream big and put in the work to realize those ambitions.

“When I first joined the national team, I had goals and dreams and aspirations of passing Mia Hamm one day,” Sinclair said. “Obviously, I should have aimed higher not knowing Abby would have beaten her, but I never could have imagined that I would reach the totals that I have.”

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McALLEN — McAllen High swimming head coach Juan Gutierrez will have to make more room in the trophy case after both the McAllen High boys and girls swim teams clinched the District 30-6A swim and dive championship on Saturday at McAllen Rowe.

“They were ready for today. We had the countdown since we got back from Christmas break. Every kid knew about it and they all pulled through at the best time,” Gutierrez said.

The win for the girls squad ends a long drought without a district title that has eluded them since 1979 when both boys and girls teams last clinched the title 41 years ago together.

“It was the goal all year we wanted to win it together,” Gutierrez said. “It’s been 41 years and we wanted to get it back.”

Team results for the boys are 1. McAllen High 151; 2. McAllen Rowe 137; 3. McAllen Memorial 104; 4. Mission High 81; 5. La Joya High 37; La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 24.

Team results for the girls are 1. McAllen High 165; 2. McAllen Rowe 148; Mission High 104; McAllen Memorial 62; La Joya High 23; La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 14.

The top six swimmers and top six teams in relays advance to the Conference 6A-Region VIII Regional swimming and diving competition that will be held Friday and Saturday at the Margaret Clark Aquatic Center in Brownsville.

Everything fell into place for the Bulldogs on Saturday after the 200-yard medley team shot off their marks and finished the heat in a swift 1 minute 42.72 seconds with Gwanghoon Park, Jace Lyon, Nilton Dos Santos and Ethan Lizzotte setting the tone for what would turn out to be a successful day in the pool on their way to reclaiming the district title after finishing second last year.

Lyon, who finished first in the boys 100 back stroke late in the afternoon, was on the 2017 and 2018 Bulldogs back-to-back championship teams with fellow senior teammates Diego Rodriguez, Gwanghoon Park, and Vidal Saenz.

Lyon said not winning the district last year was a minor setback for the team’s major comeback effort to win district this year.

“I made my comeback with a lot of time in the pool and a lot of faith,” Lyon said. “It feels pretty good wining the district title. We have a really good coach and he pushed us through and helped us achieve it. We all worked together and achieved it together.”

Gutierrez led the Bulldogs back to a district title in his second year as head coach.

For the girls, victory was even sweeter.

“I’m so excited and I’m so proud of everyone here because we have just been working for this for so long and we haven’t won this in 41 years so this is absolutely crazy,” McAllen High swimmer Katie Blackwell said. “I have seen so many people work so hard and left high school without winning one of these titles and now that we have finally had the opportunity to win — we did and I’m just so ecstatic.”

Blackwell finished second in the 100 fly and third in the 100 back.

“Swimming has been a part of my life for so long and to finally accomplish something like this means the world to me,” Blackwell said.

To seal the deal, the Bulldogs made one last splash after each swimmer jumped back into the water following their coach’s championship plunge to celebrate with his swimmers with a team huddle and victory chant.

“It’s a tradition for every coach to jump in the pool with the kids,” Gutierrez said. “It’s what every coach wants to do at the end of the year. When you win any kind of title you jump in with your team and I was looking forward to it all year.”

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MISSION — Edcouch-Elsa rolled past the competition en route to clinching the boys District 16-5A duals wrestling championship Friday at Sharyland Pioneer High School.

The Yellow Jackets defeated Sharyland Pioneer in the final, 48-36.

“We knew we were one of the top teams, and we just had to make it happen,” Edcouch-Elsa senior Mario Treviño said.

Two years ago, the Yellow Jackets finished third at the district duals and they were runner up to Rio Grande City last year.

“I went in there and did my thing, stayed focused, didn’t let the pressure get on me and pulled off the win,” Treviño said. “We did really good, and we pulled together as a full team.”

Treviño, in the 113-pound division, waited and watched his teammate, Derick Arellano, at 106 pin Sharyland Pioneer’s Michael Perales within 40 seconds of the first period of their title match.

“I just knew I had to put pressure, pressure, pressure,” Arellano said. “I was over his head and had my arms around his back and I held him very tight and I knew I couldn’t let go. I felt I had to win for the team and without my win we probably couldn’t have won district.”

Treviño finished the day 3-0 against his competition and defeated Osvaldo Luera in the final by pin.

Leading right up to their matches they had seen their team’s momentum fade when heavyweights Bobby Gonzalez (285) and Enrique Hernandez (220) went down at the hands of their Sharyland Pioneer opponents Orlando Camacho Ethan Garza, respectively.

E-E’s Kevin Trujillo (152), Felipe Neves (170), Joel Garza (182) and Ross Uresti (195) each pinned their opponents to take the quick lead over the Diamondbacks in the title round.

“The kids wrestled great and this is one of the goals we have been training for all year,” Edcouch-Elsa head coach Sam Mangum said. “As a team, I had not seen them wrestle that good, that sound and it’s very impressive. I feel like it’s a good win and a good way to take the momentum to the district tournament.

Teams competing included Donna High, Edcouch-Elsa, Grulla, La Joya Palmview, Mission Veterans, PSJA Memorial, PSJA Southwest, Rio Grande City, Roma, Sharyland High, Sharyland Pioneer and Valley View.

“It was good for us, we are real young, and we are rebuilding from last year when we won the district title last year,” Rio Grande City head coach Ronald Pratt said. “We only had five kids who wrestled in this tournament last year and they did well. We were seeded fifth, we placed fourth and I’m pretty happy with that.”

Sharyland High defeated Rio Grande City 66-15 for third place.

“We are peaking at the right time and we are going to do and get what we can get it,” Pratt said. “I thought Peanut (Andres Martinez) did very well, Rene Treviño came back from injury and he did really well also. He’s been out since December with an elbow injury. A couple of my guys got beat up and Roel Resendez did well also.”

The number-one seeded Yellow Jackets started off with a bye on their way to the title match. They defeated Grulla 76-3 and Rio Grande City 66-18 leading up to the championship.

“I always love a dual title, but the big show is going to be at the district championship,” Mangum said.

The District 16-5A Tournament is a two-day consecutive wrestling championship beginning at 8 a.m. Feb. 5 and will be held at Edcouch Elsa.

DONNA — “Boom baby,” Sharyland High head coach James Penbrook shouted with enthusiasm soon after the final match that secured the championship for the Rattlers on Thursday at the District 16-5A Girls Duals.

His wrestler, 165-pound Kiarra Suelto, had defeated Donna High’s Amaya Guerra by major decision, worth four points, that broke a 24-24 tie to clinch the Rattlers’ 28-27 victory over the defending duals champions Donna High.

The match ended a full day of competition between 11 teams that included Donna High, Edcouch-Elsa, Grulla, La Joya Palmview, Mission Veterans, PSJA Memorial, PSJA Southwest, Rio Grande City, Sharyland High, Sharyland Pioneer and Valley View.

To reach the finals, Donna High defeated Rio Grande City while Sharyland High beat PSJA Memorial.

“All four teams who made the semifinals were tough,” Penbrook said. “It was a hard fought battle, and we were glad to come out on top.”

Suelto’s final win against Guerra didn’t come easy.

Heading into the match, the Rattlers were down a wrestler after Mary Jane Sustita ended the day with an arm injury during her semifinals match.

It turned out to be the fire needed to motivate the Rattlers and redeem themselves from their third-place finish last year.

Late in the second period, Guerra slammed Suelto into the mat driving her shoulder down as she crashed on to her body. It looked as if the match would end there, as trainers and coaches huddled over Suelto, assessing any possible injuries.

Minutes later, Suelto rose from the mat and assured the referee she wanted to continue.

“I didn’t want to suffer another injury for my team, so I just pushed through it to win for our team and Mary Jane,” Suelto said. “Our team is outstanding and today we proved that.”

Had Suelto not been able to continue, it would have cost the Rattlers the title, and Donna High would have won.

Leading up to the tie-breaker, Sharyland High’s Jerylin Peralez, ranked No. 20 in the state in the 95-pound weight class according to wrestlingtexas.com, faced Donna High’s Nelly Gutierrez. Peralez wrapped her arm around Gutierrez’s head and slammed Gutierrez to the ground in a violent jolt to the mat that ended in a loud slam.

The power move led to Peralez pinning Gutierrez 53 seconds into the second period.

“All of us decided we wanted to win this for her (Mary Jane Sustita) and hopefully she will come back and start wrestling again,” Peralez said. “Her opponent arm chopped her (Sustita) and dislocated her elbow.”

“It came down to that final match and she won by four points and we ended up winning by one,” Penboook said. “I told the girls earlier we have to win it for Mary Jane Sustita.”

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