By ROY HESS | Staff Writer

Kryssie Rivera reached a milestone last week in her soccer career.

The Pace senior scored her 100th career goal in the first half of Friday’s 5-0 District 32-5A victory at Mercedes.

Rivera netted No. 100 during the 27th minute when she scored from the left side about 25 yards away. It was her second goal of the match and it increased the score to 4-0 for the Lady Vikings as they stayed tied for the 32-5A lead with Donna North. Each team now has a 3-0 district record.

The Lady Vikings play the Lady Chiefs tonight at 5:30 in Donna in a match that could eventually decide the 32-5A championship.

Rivera described scoring her 100th goal as an exhilarating experience.

“For a start, it felt awesome,” she said. “I had been thinking about it.”

“I feel that I’ve come such a long way since my freshman year when I only scored nine goals,” added Rivera, who now has tallied 29 goals this season. “I’ve scored so many my senior year, and it’s just the beginning.”

UIL girls soccer came to the Rio Grande Valley in 1997. Since then, it is believed only one other Brownsville female has reached 100 career goals in varsity competition. That girl is Yesenia Ortiz, who graduated from Rivera in 2016.

Ortiz finished her high school career with 147 goals.

Pace’s standout senior scorer appreciates all the support she’s received from her teammates, her coaches and especially her mother, Rosario Rivera.

It’s been a group effort, she said.

“(In particular) I’d like to thank my teammates,” Rivera said. “I wouldn’t be here (celebrating my 100th goal) without them. Getting to 100 actually gives me a boost of confidence for what is ahead of us. We have the playoffs and then hopefully regionals and state.

“I hope I get to score a lot more goals and contribute to my team,” she added. “We have some very good competition in our district and I’m just looking forward to that.”

Jesus O. Villarreal has coached Rivera since she was a freshman for the Lady Vikings.

“It means a lot (to see her reach 100 goals),” Villarreal said. “There are a lot of (emotional) feelings (involved). I’ve seen Kryssie play throughout her four years and I know how hard she works, how focused she is and the sacrifices she’s made, so yes, there are a lot of feelings.

“I’m happy for her and I’m happy for the whole team,” Villarreal added. “It’s not just what she accomplished. The entire team wanted this for her. They all know how difficult it is and they all are happy for her just as I am. We’re doing very well this season and I’m happy for the whole team.

“Kryssie’s healthy this year, and that’s the most important thing. Having her in the lineup and playing (injury free) is a big plus.”

As the Lady Vikings continue 32-5A action, Rivera’s journey in soccer continues as well.

“My teammates, my coaches and my mother have really supported me a lot the past four years throughout this (soccer) journey,” Rivera said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better team.”

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

St. Joseph Academy’s improvement in soccer this season can be measured by the Bloodhounds’ results against highly regarded Central Catholic (San Antonio).

Central Catholic is considered one of the top high school teams in San Antonio this year among public and private schools. The Buttons are reportedly ranked No. 22 in the country in at least one national high school poll.

The Bloodhounds played host to the Buttons and suffered a 1-0 loss Saturday at Canales Field. The Buttons’ lone score came in the second half on an Olympic goal off a corner kick taken from the right side by Angel Bacho. The ball came in and the St. Joseph goalkeeper was unable to make a play on it before it went into the net. The score came in the 53rd minute.

Even though it was a setback, the result was not at all like the final score the first time the two teams met this season in San Antonio. In that match played Dec. 9, Central Catholic routed the Bloodhounds 9-1.

The Bloodhounds definitely have shown improvement this year. They lost nine of their first 10 games before winning seven of the last 10 matches, including a tie.

Central Catholic is now 3-0 in TAPPS district play, while St. Joseph is 0-3.

Each team has one district game remaining and both are expected to advance to the TAPPS playoffs.

The Buttons next play at TAPPS district foe Antonian Prep (San Antonio) on Wednesday, while the Bloodhounds play at Antonian Prep next Saturday.

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

In the biggest meets, the best swimmers always step up.

That was the story for Los Fresnos during Saturday’s Region VIII-6A meet at Margaret M. Clark Aquatic Center in Brownsville.

All school year, the Falcons have nurtured their goal of advancing a relay to the UIL state meet. They made it happen in two relays Saturday and set a pool record in the process.

At the regional meet, the top two boys and girls swimmers in individual events and relays qualify for state along with the top three divers. The state meet is scheduled Feb. 16-17 in Austin.

The Los Fresnos boys won the 400 freestyle relay, the last event of the meet, with a pool-record time of 3 minutes, 14.71 seconds. Swimming on the relay for the Falcons were Danny Escamilla, Will McKinney, Carlos Paredes and Luis Osuna.

In the 400 freestyle relay, the Falcons finished eight seconds ahead of runner-up PSJA Southwest (3:22.71).

Those same four Los Fresnos swimmers took second place in the 200 freestyle relay behind McAllen High to earn a trip to state as well.¬

“Ever since I started swimming, it’s always been a goal to go to state, and I did it three times in the meet today, so it means the world to me,” said Paredes, a senior. “It means everything since the time I first jumped into the pool.
“It’s something I couldn’t have done without the help of Luis, Will or Danny,” Paredes added. “It’s a feeling I really can’t explain because it’s so exhilarating. Being able to break the pool record was just something amazing and something I would have never thought we would be able to do. We couldn’t do it individually, we had to do it all together.”

Paredes is going to state in three events — the two relays and in the 500 freestyle, where he placed second behind Osuna. Actually, Osuna, a junior, won the 200 and 500 freestyles Saturday and is going to state in four events, including the two relays.

“It’s just an amazing feeling (to make it to state),” said Osuna, who advanced to Austin in the 500 freestyle as a sophomore. “When you work hard and go for your goals, (it pays off). I work hard every day in practice and it’s just beautiful when the results (like this) come to you.”

Los Fresnos also had a state qualifier in Sarah Villarreal, a junior who won two events (200 individual medley and 500 freestyle) in the girls division.

“I’ve been working hard for a really long time and I think that it was my time to shine today,” said Villarreal, who went to state on a relay for the Lady Falcons as a freshman. “I’ve worked so hard for this — two practices a day — and I finally did it.”

Regional meet team champions McAllen High for the boys and McAllen Memorial for the girls successfully defended their titles from a year ago.

For the boys, McAllen High won with 289 points, while second-place Laredo United had 282. Rounding out the top five team finishers for the boys, it was Los Fresnos in third with 210 points, Laredo Alexander in fourth with 162 and PSJA Southwest in fifth with 151.

“All my boys scored points — all of them,” said McAllen High coach Albino Cisneros, who won a regional title with the Los Fresnos girls a few years ago. “It’s just amazing that our boys have won the regional meet three years in a row. We’re taking a good group (of boys and girls) to state.”

One of the main point-producers for the Bulldogs was Shaine Casas, a senior who won two events (100 butterfly and 100 backstroke) in addition to swimming on two first-place relays. The Texas A&M-bound swimmer was named the outstanding boy of the meet.

McAllen Memorial’s Stacia Benitez, a junior, was chosen the meet’s outstanding girls performer. She won the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke and swam on two first-place relays for the Lady Mustangs.

The McAllen Memorial girls won their division with 317 points, comfortably outdistancing second-place McHi with 236 points. Laredo Alexander was third with 212, Los Fresnos fourth with 208 and Laredo United fifth with 178.

Besides Osuna and Casas, other double-winners at the meet for the boys were PSJA Southwest’s Joseph Velasquez (200 individual medley and 100 breaststroke) and McHi’s Maximo Saenz (50 and 100 freestyles), who also swam on two first-place relays.

For the girls, the only other double-winner besides Villarreal and Benitez was McAllen Memorial’s Avia Guerra (200 freestyle and 100 freestyle).

2018 Region VIII Championship – 2/2/2018 to 2/3/2018
Women
Team Rankings
Through Event 24
1, McAllen Memorial, 317. 2, McAllen High, 236. 3, Laredo
Alexander, 212. 4, Los Fresnos, 208. 5, Laredo United, 178. 6, Harlingen
South, 176. 7, Nikki Rowe High School, 151. 8, Hanna, 141. 9, Harlingen High, 105. 10, PSJA Bears, 100. 11, Edinburg , 74. 12, Rivera HS, 69. 13, Laredo United South, 58. 14, Weslaco High, 52. 15, Mission High, 38. 16, Edinburg Vela, 33. 17, Laredo Johnson, 28. 18, San Antonio Southwest, 25. 19, PSJA North, 17. 20, PSJA Memorial, 14. 21, Del Rio, 5. 22, Edinburg North, 2.

Men
Team Rankings
Through Event 24
1, McAllen High, 317. 2, Laredo United, 314. 3, Los Fresnos, 250. 4, PSJA Southwest, 185. 5, Laredo Alexander, 184. 6, McAllen Memorial, 180. 7, Weslaco High, 120. 8, Rivera, 99. 8, Harlingen South, 99. 10, Hanna, 83. 11, Del Rio, 80. 12, Nikki Rowe High School, 73. 13, Harlingen High, 63. 14, Edinburg High, 58. 15, PSJA Bears, 56. 16, Lajo, 37. 17, Edinburg Vela, 30. 18, Mission High, 23. 19, PSJA Memorial, 13. 20, Edinburg Economedes, 9. 20, San Antonio Southwest, 9. 22, Weslaco East, 8. 23, Edinburg North Cougars, 6. 24, Laredo United South, 4.

Girls 200 Yard Medley Relay
(A – Final) 1, McAllen Memorial ‘A’ (Benitez, Stacia A 11, Salvo, Sofia 09, Guerra, Avia 12, Blevins, Megan 12), 1:56.76. 2, McAllen High ‘A’ (Rodriguez, Lauren 11, Crocker, Courtney 12, Blackwell, Katie 9, Swanson, Shelby 12), 1:58.46. 3, Laredo Alexander ‘A’ (Alvarado, Nana N 09, Mohammed, Ani C 12, Fierro, Kenya 11, Fuentes, Chelsea A 11), 1:59.98. 4, Los Fresnos ‘A’ (Osuna, Rebeca 09, Villareal, Sarah 11, Manongas, Maria 10, Rodriguez, Emily 10), 2:01.40. 5, Harlingen South ‘A’ (Lizada, Camille C 09, Garza, Lola D 11, Duncan, Catherine 10, Saenz, Victoria 10), 2:02.73. 6, PSJA High ‘A’ (Esparza, Kaylan 11, Davila, Jordan 10, Ruiz, Isela 9, Campos, Carina 9), 2:08.52. 7, Rivera ‘A’ (Martinez, Azul 10, Gonzalez, Sofia 11, Gonzalez, Ximena 12, Errizuriz, Korinna 11), 2:12.40. 8, Edinburg Vela ‘A’ (Benevente, Ashley 11, Alanis, Grace 10, Guerra, Christa 12, Leal, Caroline 10), 2:14.45.

Boys 200 Yard Medley Relay
1, McAllen High S’A’ (Casas, Shaine 12, Lyon, Jace 10, Saenz, Maximo 12,
Park, Gwanghoon 10), 1:36.65. 2, PSJA SW ‘A’ (Mejia, Juan 12, Velasquez, Joseph 12, Singh, Luke 11, Garza, Zack 12), 1:39.99. 3, Laredo Alexander ‘A’ (Lee, Kevin 12, Chun, David 11, Pineda, Fernie M 10, Trevino, Antonio A 12), 1:41.29. 4, McAllen Memorial ‘A’ (Rodriguez, Richard 11, Vazquez, Jorge 12, Gates, Cooper K 11, Garcia Sandoval, Humberto 12), 1:42.91. 5, Laredo United ‘A’ (Mendoza, David E 10, Martinez Jr., Oscar J 09, Mata Saldivar, Emilio 10, Chavana, Diego 09), 1:47.27. 6, Rivera ‘A’ (Shea, Kyle 10, Urteaga, Alan S 11, Shea, Ryan 12, Perez, Rudy 12), 1:50.13. 7, McAllen Rowe ‘A’ (Baltodano, Richardo 11, Chimely, Cody 10, Mendiola, Noah 11, Acevedo, Nico 10), 1:50.58.

Girls 200 Yard Freestyle
1, Guerra, Avia, MCME, 2:01.34. 2, Perales, Danielle E, Laredo United, 2:03.86. 3, Lizada, Camille C, Harlingen South, 2:04.25. 4, Estrada, Mariam, McAllen Rowe, 2:10.26. 5, Tedesco, Mariella R, Laredo Alexander, 2:13.30. 6, Ponce, Mariana B, Laredo United, 2:13.33. 7, Moreno, Alanah, McAllen High, 2:13.50. 8, Stock, Mckenna, Harlingen High, 2:13.61.

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle
1, Osuna, Luis, Los Fresnos, 1:45.55. 2, Moore, James, McAllen High, 1:47.00. 3,
Pineda, Fernie M, Laredo Alexander, 1:47.03. 4, Gates, Cooper K, McAllen Memorial, 1:48.08. 5, Paredes, Carlos, Los Fresnos, 1:48.83. 6, Wells, Daryl L, Weslaco High, 1:49.70. 7, Gonzalez Jr., David, Laredo United, 1:52.65. 8, Hurtado, Andrik A, Laredo United, 1:54.76.

Girls 200 Yard IM
1, Villareal, Sarah, Los Fresnos, 2:20.26. 2, Mohammed, Ani C, Laredo Alexander,
2:21.76. 3, Fuentes, Chelsea A, Laredo Alexander, 2:24.18. 4, Orta, Gloria, Hanna,
2:25.95. 5, Bradford, LiLi, McAllen Memorial, 2:33.18. 6, Manongas, Maria, Los Fresnos,
2:33.33. 7, Barrales, Citabria, Los Fresnos, 2:33.98. 8, Hernandez, Mahali v,
Laredo United, 2:38.63.

Boys 200 Yard IM
1, Velasquez, Joseph, PSJA SW, 1:59.64. 2, Diaz, Justin, HASO, 2:02.21. 3,
Bloomquist, Brock A, Weslaco High, 2:02.59. 4, Muniz Jr, Israel, Laredo United,
2:06.09. 5, Vazquez, Jorge, McAllen Memorial, 2:06.63. 6, Martinez Jr., Oscar J, Laredo United, 2:07.53. 7, Morris, Nick C, Laredo Alexander, 2:11.84. 8, Shea, Kyle, Rivera, 2:15.74.

Girls 50 Yard Freestyle
1, Rodriguez, Alijah, Laredo United, 25.84. 2, Salvo, Sofia, McAllen Memorial, 25.95. 3,
Fierro, Kenya, Laredo Alexander, 26.79. 4, Garcia, Ashley, Laredo United South, 27.04. 5,
Canales, Kiki, Laredo United, 27.09. 6, Villarreal, Carolina, McAllen Rowe, 27.52. 7,
Rodriguez, Emily, Los Fresnos, 27.72. 8, Ramos, Jacqueline, Laredo United, 27.79.

Boys 50 Yard Freestyle
1, Saenz, Maximo, McAllen Memorial, 21.37. 2, Mejia, Juan, PSJA SW, 21.91. 3, Escamilla,
Danny, Los Fresnos, 22.01. 4, Lee, Kevin, Laredo Alexander, 22.58. 5, McKinney, Will,
Los Fresnos, 22.66. 6, Deysel, Quinten, Hanna, 22.95. 7, Anaya, Matthew,
Edinburg High, 23.87. 8, Rivera, Justice, Vela, 23.98.

Girls 1 mtr Diving
1, Rocha de Murga, Patricia, McAllen Memorial, 324.30. 2, Warner, Amber, Harlingen High, 312.30. 3, De Leon, Katherine, McAllen Memorial, 309.66. 4, Kennedy, Mae, Harlingen South, 286.68. 5, Garcia, Italy, Hanna, 256.23. 6, Borrego, Madeline, Harlingen, 253.62. 7, Riggs, Journey, PSJA Southwest, 194.43. 8, Anaya, Emily, Edinburg High, 181.05.

Boys 1 mtr Diving
1, Barrera, Eddie, La Joya High, 342.24. 2, Rios, Jose, La Joya High, 324.36. 3, Luckey,
Jason, Harlingen South, 302.16. 4, Plummer, Ethan, McAllen Memorial, 288.21. 5, Mondragon, David, McAllen Rowe, 276.30. 6, Anorga, Andres, Hanna, 258.15. 7, Lorenz, Quintin, McAllen Rowe, 249.12. 8, Maldonado, Jaime, Edinburg High, 236.97.

Girls 100 Yard Butterfly
(A – Final) 1, Benitez, Stacia A, McAllen Memorial, 1:01.44. 2, Lizada, Camille C, Harlingen South, 1:01.45. 3, Fierro, Kenya, Laredo Alexander, 1:04.44. 4, Alvarado, Nana N, Laredo Alexander, 1:07.09. 5, Blackwell, Katie, McAllen, 1:07.17. 6, Gallegos, Aztridt L, Johnson, 1:08.48. 7, Ruiz, Isela, PSJA High, 1:09.03. 8, Blevins, Megan, McAllen Memorial, 1:12.94.

Boys 100 Yard Butterfly
1, Casas, Shaine M, McAllen High, 47.99. 2, Wells, Daryl L, Weslaco High, 51.48. 3, Singh,
Luke, PSJA SW, 55.30. 4, McKinney, Will, Los Fresnos, 55.38. 5, Shea, Ryan, Rivera, 56.67. 6, Von Aspe, Erich T, Del Rio, 56.95. 7, Mendoza, David E, Laredo United, 57.40. 8, Hurtado, Andrik A, Laredo United, 59.29.

Girls 100 Yard Freestyle
1, Guerra, Avia, McAllen Memorial, 56.06. 2, Rodriguez, Alijah, Laredo United, 57.53. 3,
Garcia, Ashley, Laredo United, 57.92. 4, Estrada, Mariam, McAllen Rowe, 57.94. 5, Gutierrez, Nadia, Hanna, 58.71. 6, Canales, Kiki, Laredo United, 59.01. 7, Osuna, Rebeca, Los Fresnos, 59.77. 8, Stock, Mckenna, Harlingen, 1:00.69.

Boys 100 Yard Freestyle
1, Saenz, Maximo, McAllen, 47.66. 2, Moore, James, McAllen, 47.79. 3, Escamilla,
Danny, Los Fresnos, 48.24. 4, Gates, Cooper K, McAllen Memorial, 48.36. 5, Pineda, Fernie
M, Laredo Alexander, 49.44. 6, Bloomquist, Brock A, Weslaco High, 50.03. 7, Muniz Jr,
Israel, Laredo United, 50.86. 8, Sanchez, Ervey, PSJA High, 50.91.

Girls 500 Yard Freestyle
1, Villareal, Sarah, Los Fresnos, 5:36.73. 2, Fuentes, Chelsea A, Laredo Alexander,
5:45.56. 3, Moreno, Alanah, McAllen, 5:51.00. 4, Moore, Madison R, McAllen Memorial, 6:11.44. 5, Ponce, Mariana B, Laredo United, 6:12.73. 6, Aune, Megan, Harlingen South, 6:20.01. 7, Curley, Ruth, Rivera, 6:20.97. 8, West, Gillian, McAllen High, 6:26.60.

Boys 500 Yard Freestyle
1, Osuna, Luis, Los Fresnos, 4:54.49. 2, Paredes, Carlos, Los Fresnos,
4:57.19. 3, Pandal Ledezma, Rodrigo, Laredo United, 5:04.66. 4, Gonzalez Jr.,
David, Laredo United, 5:06.51. 5, Diaz, Justin, Harlingen South, 5:10.58. 6, Park, Gwanghoon, McAllen Memorial, 5:16.36. 7, Garza, Zack, PSJA SW, 5:16.99. 8, DE Leon, Mario, Mcallen High 5:23.83.

Girls 200 Yard Freestyle Relay
1, McAllen High ‘A’ (Swanson, Shelby 12, Moore, Haidee 9, Seal, McCoy
10, Rodriguez, Lauren 11), 1:47.88. 2, McAllen Rowe ‘A’ (Estrada, Mariam 10, Villarreal, Carolina 11, Bzibziak, Kaitlyn 09, Reyes, Shaena 12), 1:48.48. 3, Los Fresnos ‘A’ (Alaniz, Alex 12, Barrales, Citabria 09, Seanz, Kally 09, Villareal, Sarah 11), 1:50.41. 4, Edinburg High ‘A’ (Salinas, Brianna 11, Garza, Samantha 11, Anaya, Emily 10, Zea, Yvette 11), 1:52.94. 5, Hanna ‘A’ (Gomez, Destiny JR, Deysel, Naquita SR, Larson, Annika JR, Gutierrez, Nadia SO), 1:55.17. 6, Laredo Alexander ‘A’ (Alvarado, Nana N 09, Tedesco, Mariella R 10, Quintanilla, Sarah P 10, Gomez-Salinas, Natalia 11), 1:56.79. 7, Harlingen High ‘A’ (Stock, Mckenna 10, Ramos, Ana 11, Salas, Makaya 11, Cumpian, Melanie 11), 1:57.81. 8, McAllen Memorial ‘A’ (Bradford, LiLi 10, Moore, Madison R 10, Garza, Vanessa 12, Hernandez Balleza, Luisa 12), 1:58.40.

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle Relay
1, McAllen High ‘A’ (Casas, Shaine 12, Park, Gwanghoon 10, Moore, James
11, Saenz, Maximo 12), 1:27.99. 2, Los Fresnos ‘A’ (Escamilla, Danny 12,
Paredes, Carlos 12, Osuna, Luis 11, McKinney, Will 12), 1:28.59. 3, Laredo
Alexander ‘A’ (Lee, Kevin 12, Pineda, Fernie M 10, Trevino, Antonio A 12,
Morris, Nick C 09), 1:32.63. 4, Laredo United ‘A’ (Muniz Jr, Israel 12,
Mendoza, David E 10, Salomon Sevilla, Brian A 11, Gonzalez Jr., David 12),
1:33.31. 5, Weslaco High ‘A’ (Bloomquist, Brock A 11, Valadez, Noah 09,
Parker, Nathan 09, Wells, Daryl L 11), 1:34.46. 6, Rivera ‘A’ (Shea, Ryan
12, Perez, Rudy 12, Gayosso, Claudio 12, Shea, Kyle 10), 1:35.98. 7, Hanna ‘A’ (Santos, Jose JR, Garza, Justin JR, Lovett, Matthew SO, Deysel, Quinten FR), 1:36.18. 8, Del Rio ‘A’ (Rios, Joseluis X 11, Gonzalez, Franky F 12, Garcia, Martin E 12, Von Aspe, Erich T 11), 1:39.69.

Girls 100 Yard Backstroke
1, Benitez, Stacia A, McAllen Memorial, 59.90. 2, Perales, Danielle E, Laredo United, 1:02.44. 3, Rodriguez, Lauren, McAllen High, 1:05.02. 4, Gallegos, Aztridt L, Johnson, 1:06.11. 5, Gutierrez, Nadia, Hanna, 1:08.15. 6, Bradford, LiLi, McAllen Memorial, 1:09.23. 7, Manongas, Maria, Los Fresnos, 1:09.65. 8, Alvarado, Nana N, Laredo Alexander, 1:09.99.

Boys 100 Yard Backstroke
1, Casas, Shaine M, McAllen High, 47.52. 2, Mejia, Juan, PSJA SW, 53.47. 3, Lee,
Kevin, Laredo Alexander, 54.33. 4, Lovett, Matthew, Hanna, 58.18. 5, Rodriguez,
Richard, McAllen Memorial, 59.70. 6, Mendoza, David E, Laredo United, 1:00.18. 7, Garcia,
Martin E, Del Rio, 1:01.39. 8, Salomon Sevilla, Brian A, Laredo United HS, 1:01.42.

Girls 100 Yard Breaststroke
1, Garza, Lola D, Harlingen South, 1:12.65. 2, Crocker, Courtney, McAllen High, 1:12.86. 3,
Mohammed, Ani C, Laredo Alexander, 1:14.04. 4, Orta, Gloria, Hanna, 1:16.40. 5, Davila, Jordan, PSJA High, 1:17.01. 6, Salvo, Sofia, McAllen Memorial, 1:17.36. 7, Hernandez, Mahali v, Laredo United, 1:17.78. 8, Arredondo, Denssy I, Laredo United South, 1:18.74.

Boys 100 Yard Breaststroke
1, Velasquez, Joseph, PSJA SW, 59.73. 2, Lyon, Jace B, McAllen High, 1:00.31. 3, Vazquez, Jorge, McAllen Memorial, 1:00.38. 4, Martinez Jr., Oscar J, Laredo United, 1:04.26. 5, Davila, Diego, McAllen High, 1:05.09. 6, Sanchez, Ervey, PSJA High, 1:05.59. 7, Chun, David, Alexander, 1:05.62. 8, Rodriguez, Diego, McAllen High, 1:06.13.

Girls 400 Yard Freestyle Relay
1, McAllen Memorial ‘A’ (Blevins, Megan 12, Salvo, Sofia 09, Guerra, Avia 12, Benitez, Stacia A 11), 3:49.65. 2, McAllen High ‘A’ (Swanson, Shelby 12, Moore, Haidee 9, Seal, McCoy 10, Rodriguez, Lauren 11), 3:58.75. 3, Harlingen High ‘A’ (Lizada, Camille C 09, Garza, Lola D 11, Saenz, Victoria 10, Duncan, Catherine 10), 4:06.86. 4, McAllen Rowe ‘A’ (Estrada, Mariam 10, Lum, Mariana , Bzibziak, Kaitlyn 09, Reyes, Shaena 12), 4:08.80. 5, Hanna ‘A’ (Gomez, Destiny JR, Zamora, Paulina SR, Orta, Gloria SR, Gutierrez, Nadia SO), 4:10.96. 6, PSJA ‘A’ (Campos, Carina 9, Pineda, Anna 12, Davila, Jordan 10, Ruiz, Isela 9), 4:19.98.

Boys 400 Yard Freestyle Relay
1, Los Fresnos ‘A’ (Escamilla, Danny 12, McKinney, Will 12, Paredes, Carlos 12, Osuna, Luis 11), 3:14.71. 2, PSJA SW Javelinas ‘A’ (Mejia, Juan 12, Garza, Zack 12, Singh, Luke 11, Velasquez, Joseph 12), 3:22.71. 3, Laredo United ‘A’ (Muniz Jr, Israel 12, Hurtado, Andrik A 10, Salomon Sevilla, Brian A 11, Gonzalez Jr., David 12), 3:25.43. 4, McAllen Memorial ‘A’ (Cortez, Alan 11, Rodriguez, Richard 11, Vazquez, Jorge 12, Gates, Cooper K 11), 3:27.31. 5, McAllen High ‘A’ (Moore, James 11, Davila, Diego 11, Park, Gwanghoon 10, Rodriguez, Diego 10), 3:28.40. 6, Weslaco High ‘A’ (Wells, Daryl L 11, Valadez, Noah 09, Parker, Nathan 09, Bloomquist, Brock A 11), 3:30.43. 7, Harlingen South ‘A’ (Davila, Patrick 10, Ibarra, Brandon 11, Velarde, Erick 11, Diaz, Justin 09), 3:34.80. 8, Laredo Alexander ‘A’ (Trevino, Antonio A 12, Morris, Nick C 09, Quiroqa, Mando R 10, Martinez, Joel 09), 3:36.46.

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Adrian Fierro, a senior from Brownsville Veterans Memorial, was the only swimmer from Brownsville to advance to state from Saturday’s Region VIII-5A meet at the Corpus Christi ISD Natatorium.

The top two boys and girls swimmers in individual events and relays, along with the top three divers qualified for the UIL state meet, Feb. 16-17 in Austin.

Fierro, who already has signed a scholarship agreement to swim in college, set personal bests in winning the 100 freestyle and placing second in the 50 freestyle. He won the 100 freestyle in 46.66 seconds and took second in the 50 freestyle in 21.28 seconds.

“Our athletes did well,” Brownsville Veterans coach Frank Sanchez said. “The competition was pretty stiff.

“We have basically a young group (of swimmers and divers),” Sanchez added. “Even though they might not make it to state, getting the exposure to a meet like this helps us a lot. It’s really beneficial.”

Also for the Brownsville Veterans boys, diver Nico Alvarez finished fifth in his event.

For the Brownsville Veterans girls, Daniela Chapa, a freshman, set personal-best times by finishing fifth in the 200 individual medley and the 500 freestyle.

“I think Daniela had a 5:51 in the 500,” Sanchez said. “She dropped 14 seconds or so off her previous personal best, so that was a pretty dramatic improvement.”

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Three games into the District 32-6A boys soccer race, the Rivera Raiders are still undefeated and leading the competition.

The Raiders have a 3-0 record with eight points after defeating San Benito 3-0 Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium. The Greyhounds are now 1-2 with three points.

It was a successful night for both home teams at Sams as the Rivera girls rallied to win 3-1 against the Lady Greyhounds in the nightcap of the 32-6A doubleheader.

A light drizzle fell throughout both matches and made field conditions wet.

Yet, Rivera boys coach Salvador Garcia had no complaints about the weather. He and his team like the view from atop the 32-6A standings.

“Right now, we’re in the driver’s seat, and that’s where we want to be,” Garcia said. “We don’t want to depend on anyone else.

“I felt that we played our best second half of the season tonight,” Garcia added. “If we can continue taking baby steps and getting better, I’ll take that.”

The outcome of the match was pretty much decided with just under seven minutes left in the first half. That’s when the Raiders scored a pair of goals within a 25-second span to lead 2-0 at intermission.

The Greyhounds were giving a strong effort and keeping the Raiders off the scoreboard until Rivera’s Julian Espinoza received a pass, dribbled down the middle, broke away from two defenders and beat the San Benito goalkeeper with a one-on-one shot from about 12 yards out for a 1-0 lead.

Just 25 seconds later, still with a little more than six minutes to go before intermission, Rivera’s Edgar Salazar blasted in a shot from about 30 yards away on the right side to make it 2-0.

“Thank God we got the win tonight, but we have to learn from our mistakes and keep getting better every game,” said Espinoza, a senior midfielder who now has scored 17 goals this season. “We have to play with teamwork every time. If we play that way, we’ll get better and better.”

Rivera’s Jose Muniz sealed the victory by scoring from the left side with just under 17 minutes remaining to increase the lead to 3-0.

The Raiders had a shot go off the crossbar with nine minutes left, but by then, it didn’t matter.

Meanwhile, the Rivera girls quickly found themselves down 1-0 following an early goal by the Lady Greyhounds. The Lady Raiders tied it 1-1 early in the second half on a goal by Alexis Sayas.

The Rivera girls scored two goals in the final 10 minutes to win 3-1.

First, Leslie Pena rocketed a shot into the goal from about 20 yards away to make it 2-1 as the clock ticked under 10 minutes. Then, with just under a minute left, Sayas took a corner kick from the left side and Pena headed it in for the 3-1 final score.

“It was a difficult game despite the weather,” Rivera girls coach Peter A. Rodriguez said. “San Benito was playing a very good defensive game. We just needed to shoot the ball a lot more. That’s what we tried to do in the second half.

“We got a little more confidence as the second half started going,” Rodriguez added. “Our girls knew they needed to win. Hopefully this win will bring us some momentum for the games that are ahead.”

The Lady Raiders improved to 2-1 with five points, while the Lady Greyhounds slipped to 1-2 with three points.

District competition continues next Tuesday for both schools. Harlingen South’s boys and girls will be at San Benito and Rivera’s teams will be at Weslaco High.

By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald

Qualifying from a district meet to regional competition for swimmers and divers is relatively easy compared to the next step, which is making it to the UIL state meet.

Last week at the district level, the top six finishers in individual events and relays earned trips to this week’s regional competition. From there, only the top two swimmers and top three divers in their individual events go on to the state meet Feb. 16-17 in Austin. Only the top two relays at regionals go to state as well.

That said, the competition figures to be at quite a high level today and Saturday at the Region VIII-6A meet at Brownsville’s Margaret M. Clark Aquatic Center and at the Region VIII-5A meet at the Corpus Christi ISD Natatorium.

At the Clark Center, swimming prelims are scheduled today starting at noon. Diving begins at 9 a.m. Saturday with swimming finals to follow at 10 a.m. The schedule is similar at the Class 5A regional meet in Corpus Christi.

Last Friday, Los Fresnos’ boys and girls again captured team titles at the District 32-6A meet at the Clark Center. It was the ninth straight district crown for the Los Fresnos boys and the fifth time in six years to win it for the Lady Falcons.

“I’m very proud of our student-athletes (who swim and dive) for setting goals and working hard to achieve them,” Los Fresnos coach Jaime Perez said. “They have high expectations for themselves. Having our new indoor pool has allowed us to practice and better prepare to do well regardless of what the weather may be like outdoors.

“I’m looking forward to the regional meet,” Perez added. “I have confidence in our student-athletes. As their coach, all I can ask of them is to swim their hearts out and leave it all in the pool.”

The Falcons have a swimmer who went to state last year in Luis Osuna, now a junior. He qualified again for regionals by winning the 200 and 500 freestyles at district. He’s also is a member of the Falcons’ district-winning 200 and 400 freestyle relays along with Will McKinney, Carlos Paredes and Danny Escamilla.

“Luis is our hardest worker and a team captain,” Perez said. “He leads by example.”

For the Los Fresnos girls, Sarah Villarreal is a standout. She won the 200 individual medley and 500 freestyle in decisive fashion at the 32-6A meet.

McAllen High’s boys and McAllen Memorial’s girls are defending team champions of the Region VIII-6A meet.

Also last Friday at the Clark Center, the Brownsville Veterans Memorial boys and girls successfully defended their championships at the District 32-5A meet.

Now their regional competition has arrived as well.

“I think our swimmers and divers are pumped up,” Brownsville Veterans coach Frank Sanchez said. “Winning district (again) really increases their confidence level. And now, looking at the times from other regionals and maybe having a chance to go to state is getting them excited. We’re excited about what could happen at the regional meet.”

Adrian Fierro is a Brownsville Veterans senior and is perhaps one of the city’s best hopes to make it to state. At the 32-5A meet, he was a double-winner in the 50 and 100 freestyles and he also swam on a pair of first-place relays.

“We’re really happy because we wanted to defend our district titles,” Fierro said. “I’m glad that we’re all going to the regional meet together, like in the relays, where we all help each other out. We’re united. It was a good job by everyone (to do so well at district).

“It’s a good boost for us going into regionals, and especially for me in the 50 (freestyle where I set a Brownsville ISD record at the district meet),” he added.

Other swimmers to watch from Brownsville Veterans include Daniela Santillana (girls 50 and 100 freestyles), Daniela Chapa (girls 200 individual medley and 500 freestyle), Javier Garcia (boys 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke), Jenna Saldivar (girls 100 butterfly) and Kevin Borsani (boys 200 individual medley).

Lopez has a pair of standout boys in district winners Daniel Gamez (500 freestyle) and Jocsan Camacho (100 breaststroke).

Another local swimmer to watch from 32-6A is Hanna’s Nadia Gutierrez (girls 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke).

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Change came to soccer just as it did to football and other high school sports Thursday as the UIL’s biennial district realignment was announced.

Just as in football, boys and girls soccer in Districts 32-6A and 32-5A was affected.

The new realignment of districts will go into effect when the 2018-19 school year begins next August.

The biggest news for the Brownsville teams in soccer was the addition of Valley View to District 32-5A. The Tigers will be coming to 32-5A from District 31-5A.

For soccer, 32-5A will remain an eight-team district since Donna North is moving from 32-5A and joining District 31-6A with the Edinburg and Weslaco schools.

The teams staying in 32-5A for soccer will be Brownsville schools Veterans Memorial, Pace, Porter and Lopez plus Edcouch-Elsa, Mercedes and Donna High.

The addition to 32-5A of Valley View, a UIL state tournament qualifier in 2013 and 2014, makes the already ultra-competitive boys race in the district even more of a battle.

“Valley View is considered a powerhouse in soccer, so this means that our district will get tougher and that we must work even harder to advance to the playoffs,” said Lopez boys coach Amadeo Escandon, whose Lobos advanced to state in 2014, 2016 and 2017 plus two other times before that. “One thing is for sure, the teams that advance to the playoffs from our district will be very well prepared and should advance far.”

Valley View boys coach Damian Magallan welcomes the opportunity to compete in the Tigers’ new district. He also knows it will be quite a challenge.

“Due to the realignment, we’re going to have a lot of tough competition (in 32-5A),” Magallan said. “I think the games will be very close. It’s going to be an even bigger motivation for our players to be in a district with teams that are very good and with such close competition.”

The Brownsville boys teams see the addition of Valley View as a big challenge as well.

“We lost Donna North and gained Valley View,” Brownsville Veterans boys coach Alberto Vasquez said. “For us (Brownsville schools), it just made things a lot more interesting.”

Porter boys coach Jose Espitia agreed.

“It’ll be tough (with the addition of Valley View),” Espitia said through a text message. “As it is, 5A teams are always some of the toughest in the Valley. Now with Valley View playing with us, it’ll make our district way more interesting because they have been very competitive in recent years and have gone to state twice.

“Being in our district will take their program to a new level and that’s not good (news) for us, lol,” Espitia added.

District 32-6A, which will be composed of the same teams for football and soccer plus other sports, will go from eight schools to six because Weslaco High and

Weslaco East will be in 31-6A beginning next school year.

The 32-6A teams next school year will be Hanna and Rivera plus Harlingen South, Harlingen High, Los Fresnos and San Benito.

“Without the Weslaco schools, competition (in 32-6A) will be tougher with the six schools that are left,” Rivera girls coach Peter A. Rodriguez said. “Fighting for a playoff spot will be more difficult considering the limited (district) games and everyone trying to beat each other. The six schools left in 32-6A are all playoff contenders. Even San Benito has improved over the years.”

Rivera boys coach Salvador Garcia sees playing in a six-team 32-6A as creating some issues regarding team schedules.

“I think planning will be a big factor because now instead of 14 district games we will have only 10,” he said. “Therefore, the non-district games and tournaments will have to fit in according to the start of district competition. You do not want to have a long off period between a tournament and the first district game, but at the same time, you don’t want to start district competition right after a tournament.

“Even though we are going to be be only six teams, as far as soccer, our district is still going to be super tough,” Garcia added.

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

It’s probably safe to say that no one team appears likely to pull too far away from the others in the District 32-6A boys soccer race in 2018.

The 32-6A race began last Friday, and just two games into district, only one boys team is 2-0, and that is Rivera. All the others are 1-1, except for 0-2 Harlingen South. The six teams at 1-1 are Hanna, Los Fresnos, Harlingen High, San Benito, Weslaco High and Weslaco East.

Under the district’s point system, which is what will determine playoff qualifiers, Rivera has five points, Hanna has four, and all the others have three except for South with zero.

“It’s going to be a good (close) district race the whole way,” Hanna coach Reyes Prado said after his team’s 4-1 win against Weslaco High on Tuesday. “It’s going to go right down to the end. As far as places in the playoffs are concerned, who knows? That’s the kind of race it’s going to be.”

Rivera started off 32-6A action with a 3-2 win on penalty kicks against Hanna last Friday before routing Harlingen High 6-0 on Tuesday.

While Rivera coach Salvador Garcia sees plenty of promise with his team, he’s very much aware of the parity that exists in 32-6A this season.

“Thank God for the 2-0 start,” he said. “But I have to admit that we got a little lucky in both games. Believe it or not, we are playing very inconsistently in our system. If you are a new player (for us), it’s going to take time and mistakes to learn the responsibilities of each position. But I feel that with every game the players are adapting very well to the system.”

One of the key players with varsity experience for the Raiders is senior midfielder Julian Espinoza, who already has 16 goals on the season. Even though Espinoza missed some significant time last year with an injury, he was named overall MVP in 32-6A as a junior, so he’s a valuable player to have in the lineup.

“It’s no secret that Julian is not 100 percent due to the injuries he suffered during the preseason (and last year), but he has been scoring for us, which is always a good sign for an offensive player,” Garcia said.

The Raiders will try to improve to 3-0 against San Benito at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium.

KRYSSIE WATCH
Pace’s Kryssie Rivera, a senior forward, is close to scoring 100 goals over her four-year career for the Lady Vikings. She had one goal Tuesday during Pace’s 4-0 win at home against Porter to bring her career total to 98.

Teammate Alexis Guajardo had a hat trick to highlight the scoring against the Cowgirls.

The Pace girls are 2-0 in District 32-5A, and one of the best things that can be said about the Lady Vikings this season is they don’t have to rely exclusively on Rivera for goals. She has talented teammates all around her to give Pace hopes of a season to remember.

The Pace girls enjoyed their all-time best season in 2017 when they advanced three rounds in the playoffs for the first time. They want to equal or better that showing in 2018.

Rivera’s next chance to reach 100 goals comes at home at 5:30 p.m. Friday when the Lady Vikings play Mercedes.

32-6A GIRLS UPDATE
The 32-6A girls race appears it will be every bit as close as the race for the 32-6A boys.

After two games, Harlingen South is the only undefeated team at 2-0 with six points. Behind the Lady Hawks are Hanna (1-1, four points), Los Fresnos (1-1, three points), Harlingen High (1-1, three points), San Benito (1-1, three points), Weslaco High (1-1, three points), Rivera (1-1, two points) and Weslaco East (0-2, zero points).

“I think it’s going to be a very close race,” Hanna girls coach Eliseo Guzman said after his team’s 2-1 come-from-behind victory against Weslaco High on Tuesday. “All the teams seem to be pretty tough. We haven’t seen the Harlingen schools yet, but I think it’s going to be a pretty close race.”

In one of the key matchups at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Hanna plays South at Harlingen’s Boggus Stadium. The 32-6A doubleheader begins at 5:30 p.m. with the boys teams from the two schools playing each other.

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

The Hanna boys and girls soccer teams captured their first District 32-6A wins of the season Tuesday at Sams Memorial Stadium.

Both Hanna squads are now 1-1 in district with four points apiece.

Going against Weslaco High, each of the Hanna teams had to overcome a 1-0 deficit before winning. In Tuesday’s 32-6A doubleheader, the Hanna boys triumphed 4-1 before the Hanna girls pulled out a 2-1 victory in the nightcap.

For the Hanna boys, who were coming off a 3-2 loss to Rivera on penalty kicks last Friday in their 32-6A opener, Tuesday’s 4-1 triumph felt pretty good.

“It’s good, it’s nice and it’s something we’ve been working for,” Hanna boys coach Reyes Prado said of the victory. “We’re lucky we came out with three points (for the win) tonight.

“(Coming back from an early 1-0 deficit) shows that we have good character on our team,” Prado added. “It’s good when you can come back. We were down by a goal against Rivera, too, and we came back (to send the match to PKs and eventually earn one point).

“It shows the resilience of our guys and that they want to win. They’ve been working hard to achieve goals like this. Little by little, we’ll get into a rhythm, I guess.”

Things didn’t start off very well for the Eagles.

Just two minutes into the match, the Eagles didn’t clear the ball properly and Weslaco High’s Eduardo Palacios made them pay. His close-range goal made it 1-0 for the Panthers.

But the Hanna players soon settled down and offensive opportunities started coming their way.

In the 17th minute, a shot by Hanna’s Adrian Rodriguez bounced off a Weslaco High defender and came right back to him. Rodriguez didn’t miss on his second-chance rebound shot and sent the ball on a low trajectory into the left corner of the goal to tie the score at 1-1.

The Eagles controlled the second half as Jose Pompa scored goals during the 63rd and 75th minutes while teammate Daniel Rivera added a tally during the 66th minute.

“It’s going to be a good district race the whole way,” Prado said. “It’s going to go right down to the end. As far as places in the playoffs are concerned, who knows? That’s the kind of race it’s going to be.”

The Hanna girls trailed 1-0 when the Lady Panthers sent a high ball toward the left post that the Lady Eagles’ goalkeeper couldn’t handle with nine and a half minutes left before intermission. It went into the net and Weslaco High’s one-goal advantage lasted until the 56th minute. That’s when Hanna’s Sytlaly Loyde drilled a 40-plus-yard free kick into the goal to give her team an impressive equalizer.

Then in the 64th minute, a Hanna corner kick taken from the left side by Loyde was put in from about five yards out by teammate Linda Zacharias, giving the Lady Eagles a 2-1 edge they didn’t relinquish.

“It was a great goal by Sytlaly, our captain,” said Lady Eagles coach Eliseo Guzman, whose team was coming off last Friday’s 2-1 penalty-kicks setback against Rivera. “We knew we were playing better than our opponent since the first half, and I told our girls we just needed to score the goals.

“I think our girls did pretty awesome,” he added. “They all were thinking about winning, and thanks to God, it came out our way.”

Hanna’s boys and girls continue 32-6A action at Harlingen South on Friday. Weslaco High’s teams play host to Harlingen High the same night.

By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald

PROGRESO — The St. Joseph Academy soccer team always seems to have a strong showing in the Progreso Tournament, particularly in recent years.

The Bloodhounds won the event last year and finished as the runner-up in 2016.

Their participation in 2018 as the defending champions of the three-day, 12-team tournament was no exception.

SJA gave another strong showing in Saturday’s championship match against Boerne High, even though the Bloodhounds came out on the short end of a 1-0 score to finish with the runner-up trophy.

“We’re very appreciative that Progreso organized this tournament and allowed us to play in it,” SJA coach Edgar Tovar said. “It was three days with a lot of soccer and we’re very pleased about that. Our players put in a lot of effort and desire to reach the final. We faced a very good team for the championship and it was a tough game.

“We’re definitely improving,” Tovar added. “Our objective is clear. We want to play better in every game. We feel more confident in each match and we enjoyed playing in the final today. We thank Progreso for having this tournament.”

The title match, played with 30-minute halves, was tied 0-0 and appeared to be heading to penalty kicks until Boerne High’s Tyler Hudson sent a crossing shot from the left side into the right corner of the net with 13 minutes remaining. Hudson’s tally provided the Greyhounds with the only goal they needed to win.

Boerne High coach Martin Codino said his team has enjoyed playing in the Progreso Tournament now for two seasons.

“Coming to this tournament is important to us because we love to play Progreso,” Codino said. “We know the regional tournament (and the route to state from Region IV-4A) goes through Progreso (a UIL state tournament qualifier the past two seasons).

“(Progreso) Coach (Margarito) Jimenez and I are good friends,” Codino added. “To be honest, we think it’s going to be us or them going through (and making it to state), so we enjoy playing these guys. Progreso plays in our tournament, and two weeks later, we play in theirs. We love the way they play.”

Four teams qualified for Saturday morning’s semifinals after pool play on Thursday and Friday.

The Greyhounds edged Progreso 1-0 in one semifinal, while SJA won 4-2 in the other semifinal against Hidalgo as Jose Luis Almazan netted three goals and Miguel Guerra added one for the Bloodhounds.

In Saturday’s third-place game against Hidalgo, Progreso led 3-0 at halftime and eventually won 5-1. Scoring goals for the Red Ants were Nico Lopez, Eduardo Bahena, Matthew Perez, Fabricio Gonzalez and Adrian Mendoza.

“We’re just a week away from the start of District (32-4A), and this type of competition in our tournament really prepares us for it,” Progreso coach Margarito Jimenez said. “We’re ready to play (in district), and hopefully this year will be a chance for us to do something special again (and make it back to state).”

Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess