For the first time, Bert Ogden Arena will host a girls high school basketball game.

The UIL girls Region IV-6A quarterfinal is set for 6:30 tonight between Harlingen High (22-2) and Edinburg High (21-4). The winner advances to the Sweet 16.

Edinburg ISD athletic director Roy Garza said 1,000 tickets will be sold at $5 each for the game on a first-come, first-serve basis for the mega matchup.

This will be the second time in the past three years that Edinburg and Harlingen will meet in the third round. Edinburg defeated Harlingen 54-34 in 2019.

The Bobcats defeated San Antonio Warren 67-64 to advance, while Harlingen moved on with a 62-54 win over San Antonio Harlan.

Thursday, Aug. 29

Non-District

Sharyland High at Brownsville Pace, 7 p.m.

Corpus Christi Flour Bluff at PSJA High, 7 p.m.

Edinburg Vela at Laredo United, 7 p.m.

Friday, Aug. 30

Non-District

Mission High at Mission Veterans Memorial, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Hanna at McAllen Memorial, 7:30 p.m.

Edinburg North at Mercedes, 7:30 p.m.

Donna North at Donna High, 7:30 p.m.

McAllen Rowe at Weslaco High, 7:30 p.m.

PSJA North at PSJA Memorial, 7:30 p.m.

PSJA Southwest at Edinburg Economedes, 7:30 p.m.

Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial at Edcouch-Elsa, 7:30 p.m.

Valley View at Hidalgo, 7:30 p.m.

La Joya Palmview at La Joya High, 7:30 p.m.

Roma at Rio Grande City, 7:30 p.m.

Harlingen High at Sharyland Pioneer, 7:30 p.m.

Edinburg High at Harlingen South, 7:30 p.m.

Corpus Christi Calallen at San Benito, 7:30 p.m.

Brownsville Rivera vs. Brownsville Veterans Memorial, 7:30 p.m. at Brownsville Veterans’ field

Port Isabel at Brownsville Porter, 7:30 p.m.

Grulla at Brownsville St. Joseph, 7:30 p.m.

El Paso Montwood at Los Fresnos, 7:30 p.m.

La Feria at Raymondville, 7:30 p.m.

Lyford at Santa Rosa, 7:30 p.m.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln at Rio Hondo, 7:30 p.m.

MMA at Santa Maria, 7:30 p.m.

Progreso at La Villa, 7:30 p.m.

Premont at Monte Alto, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Aug. 31

Non-District

Weslaco East at Manor, 1 p.m.

McAllen High at Brownsville Lopez, 7 p.m.

BY MARK MAY | SPECIAL TO THE MONITOR

SAN JUAN – With edge-of-your-seat drama, the PSJA Bears were down a run with the bases loaded with two out in the bottom of the seventh inning Thursday night in Game 1 of a bi-district playoff.

Cesar Cantu’s long flyout to Julio Taboada in center field ended the game and the Laredo United Longhorns had a come-from-behind 4-3 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series.

Two batters earlier, pinch hitter Noah Herrera nearly won it for the Bears with a deep ball to left center field that bounced off the wall for a double. The hit moved Jacob Sanchez to third base. The Longhorns (17-14-1) intentionally walked Juan Zambrano to load the bases, setting up Cantu’s opportunity.

Game 2 will be at 7 tonight at Laredo United’s Uni-Trade Stadium. Game 3, if necessary, will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at Roma High School. Right-hander Juan Zambrano will pitch for the Bears while the ‘Horns counter with left-hander Oscar Cuello tonight.

The Bears (22-6-1) came in ranked 53rd in the state but saw their 11-game win streak come to an end. They stranded 10 runners and had two runners thrown out at the plate in tight plays in the fourth and sixth innings.

“They were aggressive,” United coach Rudy Saldivar said. “(Both times) It’s a bang-bang play that goes our way.”

Bears’ coach Marco Guajardo lamented the missed opportunities.

“We left some runners on base, which we shouldn’t have done,” he said. “We had a runner on third (a lead-off triple in the third inning by Devon De Leon) which we couldn’t bring in. There’s no excuses. We just couldn’t come through with our sticks.”

PSJA senior Trey Guajardo (1 for 4, 3 RBIs) slammed a three-run double in the second inning to put the Bears in front 3-0. However, the ‘Horns scored one run in the fourth and three in the sixth to overtake PSJA, 4-3, and hold on for the dramatic win.

“When we get a three-run double, usually, we don’t lose,” coach Guajardo said.

“The key for us was staying with it,” Saldivar said. “We were making good contact and it was just a matter of time.”

Bears’ starter Ezequiel Marroquin pitched 5 2/3 innings, giving up eight hits, four runs and four walks while striking out six batters. Elian Gonzalez relieved Marroquin in the sixth and pitched 1 1/3 innings of hitless ball.

United pitcher Adrian Castillo got the win by tossing six innings, giving up eight hits, three runs and four walks while fanning three.

A throwing error proved crucial for United in the sixth inning. With two runners on base, Cuello, batting in the DH spot, bunted the ball toward the pitcher but ended up at third on the error with two runners scoring to tie the game 3-3. Cuello scored the winning run two batters later on Alan Villarreal’s blooper to left field.

The Bears managed to get the potential tying run to third base in the sixth and seventh innings but could not bring him home either time.

RGVSPORTS.COM BASEBALL TOP 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pvs.

1. Edinburg Vela 22-4 1

2. Sharyland High 27-4 2

3. PSJA High 22-6 4

4. Brownsville Vets 23-5 5

5. Sharyland Pioneer 29-5 3

6. Brownsville Rivera 22-8 8

7. McAllen High 23-8 7

8. Rio Grande City 19-9 9

9. Weslaco High 24-6 10

10. Los Fresnos 21-10 NR

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL STANDINGS

DISTRICT 30-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-PSJA High 22 6 12 2

x-McAllen High 23 8 10 4

x-PSJA North 16 13 9 5

x-La Joya High 17 11 9 5

Mission High 12 15 7 7

McAllen Memorial 10 18 5 9

McAllen Rowe 11 17 2 12

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 3 24 2 12

DISTRICT 31-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Edinburg Vela 22 4 12 0

x-Weslaco High 24 6 9 3

x-Edinburg High 14 14 7 5

x-Edinburg North 10 15 5 7

Edinburg Economedes 5 19 3 9

Weslaco East 8 16 3 9

Donna North 7 18 3 9

DISTRICT 32-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Brownsville Rivera 22 8 11 4

x-Harlingen High 17 15 10 5

x-Los Fresnos 21 10 10 5

x-Harlingen South 18 9 9 6

San Benito 11 19 5 10

Brownsville Hanna 5 26 0 15

DISTRICT 31-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Sharyland High 27 4 12 2

x-Sharyland Pioneer 29 5 11 3

x-Rio Grande City 19 9 10 4

x-La Joya Palmview 19 10 9 5

Mission Veterans 12 18 6 8

PSJA Memorial 8 21 3 11

Roma 7 18 3 11

PSJA Southwest 9 19 2 12

DISTRICT 32-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Brownsville Veterans 23 5 13 1

x-Valley View 13 12 10 4

x-Brownsville Lopez 17 6 9 5

x-Edcouch-Elsa 12 19 7 7

Brownsville Pace 11 13 6 8

Brownsville Porter 12 16 6 8

Mercedes 5 15 3 11

Donna High 6 21 2 12

DISTRICT 32-4A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Zapata 19 8 11 3

x-Hidalgo 12 12 10 4

x-Progreso 15 7 10 4

x-Rio Hondo 14 13 8 6

Grulla 11 15 7 7

Raymondville 10 12 7 7

La Feria 7 15 3 11

Port Isabel 1 22 0 14

y-clinched district

x-clinched playoff berth

RGVSPORTS.COM BASEBALL TOP 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pvs.

1. Edinburg Vela 20-4 1

2. Sharyland High 25-4 3

3. Sharyland Pioneer 28-4 4

4. PSJA High 21-6 2

5. Brownsville Vets 18-5 5

6. Harlingen High 17-13 6

7. McAllen High 22-7 7

8. Brownsville Rivera 20-8 10

9. Rio Grande City 18-8 8

10. Weslaco High 22-6 9

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL STANDINGS

DISTRICT 30-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-PSJA High 21 6 11 2

x-McAllen High 22 7 9 4

x-PSJA North 16 12 9 4

La Joya High 16 11 8 5

Mission High 12 14 7 6

McAllen Memorial 9 18 4 9

McAllen Rowe 11 16 2 11

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 3 23 2 11

DISTRICT 31-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Edinburg Vela 20 4 10 0

x-Weslaco High 22 6 7 3

x-Edinburg High 14 14 6 4

Edinburg North 10 15 4 6

Weslaco East 8 14 3 7

Edinburg Economedes 5 18 3 8

Donna North 7 17 3 8

DISTRICT 32-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

x-Harlingen High 17 13 10 3

x-Brownsville Rivera 20 8 9 4

x-Los Fresnos 19 10 8 5

Harlingen South 16 9 7 6

San Benito 11 17 5 8

Brownsville Hanna 5 24 0 13

DISTRICT 31-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

x-Sharyland High 25 4 10 2

x-Sharyland Pioneer 28 4 10 2

x-Rio Grande City 18 8 9 3

La Joya Palmview 17 10 7 5

Mission Veterans 11 17 5 7

PSJA Memorial 8 19 3 9

Roma 6 17 2 10

PSJA Southwest 9 17 2 10

DISTRICT 32-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Brownsville Veterans 20 5 11 1

Valley View 11 12 8 4

Brownsville Lopez 16 5 8 4

Edcouch-Elsa 11 18 6 6

Brownsville Pace 11 11 6 6

Brownsville Porter 11 15 5 7

Mercedes 5 13 3 9

Donna High 5 20 1 11

DISTRICT 32-4A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

y-Zapata 18 7 10 2

Hidalgo 10 12 8 4

x-Progreso 13 7 8 4

Rio Hondo 13 12 7 5

Grulla 10 12 6 6

Raymondville 9 11 6 6

La Feria 7 13 3 9

Port Isabel 1 20 0 12

y-clinched district

x-clinched playoff berth

RGVSPORTS.COM BASEBALL TOP 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pvs.

1. Edinburg Vela 19-4 1

2. PSJA High 20-5 2

3. Sharyland High 23-4 3

4. Sharyland Pioneer 26-4 4

5. Brownsville Vets 18-5 6

6. Harlingen High 16-12 9

7. McAllen High 21-6 5

8. Rio Grande City 17-7 10

9. Weslaco High 21-5 7

10. Brownsville Rivera 18-8 NR

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL STANDINGS

DISTRICT 30-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

PSJA High 20 5 10 1

McAllen High 21 6 8 3

PSJA North 14 12 7 4

La Joya High 15 10 7 4

Mission High 10 14 5 6

McAllen Memorial 9 16 4 7

McAllen Rowe 11 14 2 9

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 2 22 1 10

DISTRICT 31-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Edinburg Vela 19 4 9 0

Weslaco High 21 5 6 2

Edinburg High 12 14 4 4

Edinburg North 10 14 4 5

Donna North 7 15 3 6

Edinburg Economedes 5 16 3 6

Weslaco East 6 14 1 7

DISTRICT 32-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Harlingen High 16 12 9 2

Brownsville Rivera 18 8 7 4

Los Fresnos 17 10 6 5

Harlingen South 15 8 6 5

San Benito 11 15 5 6

Brownsville Hanna 5 22 0 11

DISTRICT 31-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Sharyland High 23 4 8 2

Sharyland Pioneer 26 4 8 2

Rio Grande City 17 7 8 2

La Joya Palmview 16 9 6 4

Mission Veterans 9 17 3 7

PSJA Memorial 8 17 3 7

Roma 6 15 2 8

PSJA Southwest 9 15 2 8

DISTRICT 32-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Brownsville Veterans 18 5 9 1

Valley View 10 11 7 3

Brownsville Lopez 15 4 7 3

Edcouch-Elsa 11 16 6 4

Brownsville Porter 10 14 4 6

Brownsville Pace 9 11 4 6

Mercedes 4 12 2 8

Donna High 5 18 1 9

DISTRICT 32-4A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Zapata 16 7 8 2

Hidalgo 9 11 7 3

Progreso 11 7 6 4

Grulla 10 12 6 4

Rio Hondo 11 12 5 5

Raymondville 8 10 5 5

La Feria 7 11 3 7

Port Isabel 1 18 0 10

RGVSPORTS.COM BASEBALL TOP 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pvs.

1. Edinburg Vela 17-4 2

2. PSJA High 18-5 1

3. Sharyland High 21-4 8

4. Sharyland Pioneer 22-4 6

5. McAllen High 20-5 7

6. Brownsville Veterans 16-5 5

7. Weslaco High 21-4 9

8. Los Fresnos 17-8 10

9. Harlingen High 14-12 NR

10. Rio Grande City 15-7 4

VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL STANDINGS

DISTRICT 30-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

PSJA High 17 5 8 1

McAllen High 20 5 7 2

PSJA North 13 11 6 3

La Joya High 13 10 5 4

McAllen Memorial 9 14 4 5

Mission High 8 14 3 6

McAllen Rowe 11 12 2 7

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln 2 20 1 8

DISTRICT 31-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Edinburg Vela 17 4 7 0

Weslaco High 21 4 6 1

Edinburg North 10 12 4 3

Edinburg High 10 14 2 4

Donna North 6 14 2 5

Edinburg Economedes 4 15 2 5

Weslaco East 6 13 1 6

DISTRICT 32-6A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Harlingen High 14 12 7 2

Brownsville Rivera 17 7 6 3

Los Fresnos 17 8 6 3

Harlingen South 14 7 5 4

San Benito 9 15 3 6

Brownsville Hanna 5 20 0 9

DISTRICT 31-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Sharyland High 21 4 6 2

Sharyland Pioneer 23 4 6 2

Rio Grande City 15 7 6 2

La Joya Palmview 14 9 4 4

Mission Veterans 9 15 3 5

PSJA Memorial 6 16 3 5

Roma 6 13 2 6

PSJA Southwest 9 13 2 6

DISTRICT 32-5A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Brownsville Veterans 16 5 7 1

Brownsville Lopez 14 3 6 2

Valley View 8 11 5 3

Edcouch-Elsa 9 16 4 4

Brownsville Pace 9 9 4 4

Brownsville Porter 9 13 3 5

Mercedes 4 10 2 6

Donna High 5 16 1 7

DISTRICT 32-4A

Over Dist

Team W L W L

Zapata 15 6 8 1

Hidalgo 8 11 6 3

Rio Hondo 11 11 5 4

Progreso 10 7 5 4

Grulla 9 12 5 4

Raymondville 7 10 4 5

La Feria 7 10 3 6

Port Isabel 1 17 0 9

RGVSPORTS.COM BASEBALL TOP 10

Rank/Team Rec. Pvs.

1. PSJA High 17-4 1

2. Edinburg Vela 16-4 2

3. Brownsville Rivera 17-5 4

4. Rio Grande City 15-5 6

5. Brownsville Veterans 15-4 9

6. Sharyland Pioneer 21-4 3

7. McAllen High 18-5 7

8. Sharyland High 20-4 8

9. Weslaco High 19-4 10

10. Los Fresnos 15-8 NR

By CLAIRE CRUZ | Special to the Star

The win-or-go-home nature of a playoff game brings about many emotions, that was evident on Thursday night as San Benito and Donna North battled in a bi-district contest.

Both teams started a bit slow and things got rowdy late, but the experienced Chiefs handled the pressure better and went on to earn a 3-0 victory.

“ We were a little bit nervous at the beginning, the kids were having a hard time controlling the possession of the ball,” Donna North head coach Andres Sanchez said. “San Benito was very physical and very fast, so it made it hard on our defense for several moments. But at the end we were able to handle the ball better and once we did that we were okay.”

The Chiefs missed high on several goal attempts early on before finding the net with 10:16 remaining in the first half. Senior striker Luis Olivas drove to the goal and scored from just left of the penalty mark, past the prematurely diving arms of San Benito senior goalkeeper Gonzalo Villarreal.

San Benito almost tied things up just before halftime as Senovio Cerdan used his speed to break away and sent a hard kick to the net, but Donna North junior keeper Diego Preciado dove to his right for a save.

Donna North came out in the second half determined to build its lead. The increase in tempo caused the young Greyhound squad to start racking up penalties, which gave the Chiefs’ offense opportunities it took advantage of.

“ We discussed it in halftime, not to wait and to attack them,” Sanchez said. “That’s what we do best, go and look for opportunities. We were not going to stay with one goal.”

At the 28:40 mark, junior defender Alex Flores took a penalty kick and Villarreal made an impressive diving stop, but the rebound went right back to Flores and he scored. Less than two minutes later, Olivas recorded his second goal of the night to build the Chiefs’ lead to 3-0.

The young Greyhound squad started to lose its composure as time ran down. They had some good shot attempts, but an abundance of penalties and yellow cards helped seal the Chiefs’ win.

“ I’m proud of my kids, we’re a young team and I couldn’t ask for anything more than they did, they gave it their all,” San Benito head coach William Huerta said. “We made our mistakes and they capitalized.”

Valley HS Baseball Schedule 2019
Wednesday’s Games
District 31-6A
Edinburg Vela 19, Donna North 0, 3 innings
Edinburg Economedes 14, Weslaco East 10
District 32-6A
San Benito 7, Harlingen High 5
District 32-4A
Rio Hondo 7, Progreso 5

Friday, March 29
District 30-6A
McAllen High at PSJA North, 7 p.m.
La Joya High at Mission High, 7 p.m.
McAllen Memorial at McAllen Rowe, 7 p.m.
PSJA High at La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, 7 p.m.
District 31-6A
Edinburg Vela at Edinburg High, 7 p.m.
Edinburg Economedes at Edinburg North, 7 p.m.
Weslaco High at Weslaco East, 7 p.m.
District 32-6A
Harlingen High at San Benito, 6:30 p.m.
Los Fresnos at Harlingen South, 6:30 p.m.
Brownsville Hanna at Brownsville Rivera, 6:30 p.m.
District 31-5A
Sharyland Pioneer at Sharyland High, 7 p.m.
Roma at Rio Grande City, 7 p.m.
Mission Veterans at La Joya Palmview, 7 p.m.
PSJA Memorial at PSJA Southwest, 7 p.m.
District 32-5A
Brownsville Veterans at Brownsville Lopez, 7 p.m.
Valley View at Brownsville Pace, 7 p.m.
Mercedes High at Donna High, 7 p.m.
Brownsville Porter at Edcouch-Elsa, 7 p.m.
District 32-4A
Rio Hondo at La Feria, 7:30 p.m.
Grulla at Hidalgo, 7:30 p.m.
Port Isabel at Progreso, 7:30 p.m.
Raymondville at Zapata, 7:30 p.m.