By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Every basketball season has a starting point.

It all began for two Brownsville teams at the Rivera gym on Tuesday night as the Lady Raiders and Pace Lady Vikings played their regular-season opener.

Pace came out on the winning end 26-22.

The Lady Vikings jumped out to a 6-0 advantage and never trailed, although the Lady Raiders pulled to within one point twice in the final four-plus minutes only to see the Pace girls hold on for the victory.

“For us, the only thing that was good tonight was maybe our free throws (11 of 19),” Lady Vikings coach Eddie Lozano said. “That might have been the only good thing. Our defense was strong, but we definitely need to work on our shooting and our rebounding. I guess you could say our defense and free-throw shooting were our strong points tonight.”

Pace led 6-3 after one quarter and 17-9 at intermission. The Lady Vikings took a 20-16 advantage into the final period before the Lady Raiders attempted to rally.

Lady Raiders coach Willie Brown was disappointed with his team’s season debut.

“It’s the same as last year — sloppy play,” he said. “We weren’t focused and zeroed in. We do one thing in practice and in the ball game we play totally different.

“I guess it’s just nerves and jitters (to start the season),” Brown added. “We had some players in there to start the game who had no varsity experience. Then we played some who had experience from last year, but they weren’t in condition yet, so it’s just a tough pill to bite.

“We had 31 turnovers in the first half and you can’t win doing that.”

Kryssie Rivera and Lexy Arce led Pace with nine and seven points, respectively. Rivera made a pair of 3-pointers and Arce had one. Teammates Jenny Oliveira and Rosa Salinas added six and four points, respectively.

Mayra Martinez led Rivera with nine points, including a 3-pointer. Susan Baez added three points on a 3-pointer, while teammates Victoria Zuniga, Kaylyn Samano, Ashley Hinojosa, Desiree Perez and Roxana Rodriguez each contributed two points.

The Lady Raiders pulled to within 17-13 of the lead early in the third quarter and could have gone ahead during the next couple of minutes, but they missed five straight free throws before Kryssie Rivera converted a three-point play with 1:45 left in the third period to make it 20-13.

Martinez brought the Lady Raiders to within 21-20 by scoring in the lane on an inbounds play at the 4:10 mark of the final period. A jump shot from the side by Arce made it 23-20 for Pace before Rodriguez sank two free throws with 3:03 to go as the Lady Raiders came within one point for the final time at 23-22.

A free throw with 47 seconds remaining by Kryssie Rivera and a fast break layup by Oliveira with 32 seconds left enabled Pace to seal the 26-22 victory.

The season continues for both ballclubs on Thursday at the La Joya ISD Pack Tournament.

By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald

DONNA — Another visit to Bennie LaPrade Stadium, another fantastic finish for the Pace Vikings.

The Vikings clinched a spot in the playoffs with Friday’s come-from-behind 35-31 District 32-5A road victory over the Donna High Redskins, who were celebrating homecoming.

Pace (5-4 overall, 4-2 district), which trailed 21-6 midway through the second quarter, went ahead for the first time with only 1:35 remaining when quarterback Randy Aguilar bulled his way up the middle from 1 yard out and made it across the goal line with a little help from his friends in the offensive line, putting the Vikings in front to stay 34-31.

Jonathan Mendoza added the extra point to provide the Vikings with a four-point advantage, 35-31.

Donna High (4-5, 2-4) returned the ensuing kickoff to the Pace 38-yard line with 1:24 to go. But the Redskins’ offense stalled after three incomplete passes thrown deep from the 33 and Donna High had to surrender the ball to Pace, which ran out the final 48 seconds to claim the playoff-clinching victory.

“It was going through my head the whole game (that we were going to come back and win),” said Aguilar, who threw for a touchdown and rushed for another score. “I have these guys’ backs and they have my back, and we were going to fight through it (and prevail).

“Making it to the playoffs is great,” Aguilar added. “It’s exciting for everybody.”

Two weeks ago, Pace played Donna North in a 32-5A game at Bennie LaPrade Stadium and didn’t lead until 10 seconds remained when the Vikings pulled out a 34-27 triumph. Friday’s game followed the same type of scenario for the Vikings.

“I’d rather come over here and win like this than lose at home,” Pace coach Danny Pardo said. “This was a great, great win.

“Our guys work very hard, and maybe somebody upstairs is helping us (pull out these wins),” the Pace coach added. “We just kept on playing and didn’t ever quit. Donna High is a great running team and they gave us trouble from the start. We had some defensive issues, but I think we came up with some stops at crucial times (near the end).”

The Redskins led 14-6 after one quarter and 24-21 at halftime. Donna High took a 31-28 advantage into the final period.

It became 14-0 for Donna High thanks to first-quarter scoring runs of 4 and 1 yards by QB Alex Sanchez. Pace’s Dylan Barron broke loose on a 40-yard scoring run on the final play of the opening period to make it 14-6 as the extra point was blocked.

In the second quarter, a 5-yard run by Eliseo Alvarado gave Donna High a 21-6 advantage.

A 5-yard run by Pace’s Brandon Zapata plus a two-point conversion run by Aguilar pulled the Vikings to within 21-14 with 2:43 left before intermission. After that, Geronimo Fragoso’s 44-yard field goal aided by a strong wind boosted Donna High’s lead to 24-14 with 1:07 left before the break.

But the first-half scoring was not over. A 4-yard swing pass to the left side from Aguilar to Barron with just seven seconds remaining in the half allowed the Vikings to again stay close at 24-21.

Alvarado, who led all rushers in the game with 198 yards on 28 carries, scored his second TD on the night with 1:47 left in the third quarter to give the Redskins a 31-21 edge. It came on a 13-yard run.

Then with 24 seconds to go in the third period, Zapata tallied his second TD on an 8-yard scamper making it 31-28 and setting the stage for another fantastic finish by Pace.

It didn’t immediately appear that Pace would come back again as the Vikings ran out of downs and had to give up possession with 4:30 to go at the Donna High 26. But the Redskins fumbled the ball away on the next play — their only turnover of the night — and the Vikings took over to drive 36 yards in eight plays for their game-winning score.

Before Pace’s go-ahead scoring drive, Vikings standout receiver Gabriel Zapata was injured early in the fourth quarter, was carted off the field and did not return. His condition was not immediately known.

Pardo said he is glad to see his team going to the postseason.

“It feels great to be in the playoffs,” Pardo said. “I’ve been there, and a lot of our coaches have been in the playoffs. I now feel even better because our players get to experience it. I’m proud and happy for them. They’re in the (postseason) dance now.”

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

CORPUS CHRISTI — The volleyball season came to a finish all too soon for the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons on Thursday.

Laredo United eliminated the Lady Falcons 25-10, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19 in a Class 6A area-round playoff match at Corpus Christi Ray.

The District 29-6A champion Lady Longhorns (31-5) now advance to the third round next week to play Saturday’s area winner between San Benito and McAllen Rowe. The season is over for District 32-6A runner-up Los Fresnos (27-12).

United’s tall and active front-line players Lauren Arzuaga (19 kills, three blocks), Gabriela Canavati (19 kills, two blocks) and Carolina Medellin (14 kills, two blocks) were just too much for the Lady Falcons to handle, although the Los Fresnos girls made plenty of standout digs to keep the ball alive.

But in the end, it was just not enough against the hard-hitting team that knocked the Lady Falcons out of the playoffs last year in the second round.

“We started off slow (losing the first set 25-10) and we should have picked it up sooner,” said Emma Stambaugh, a junior outside hitter for the Lady Falcons. “We started playing (better) a little too late.

“I’m proud of the girls and everything we’ve done to this point,” Stambaugh added. “We’re going to miss the seniors. The good thing is a lot of our starting lineup is coming back. We’re going to be ready for next year.”

The Lady Longhorns went three rounds in the playoffs last season. Their goal is to advance even farther this time around.

“We’re very happy and very blessed to be going to the third round (again) so we can continue representing our school and our city,” United coach Leticia I. Longoria said. “Our girls have a lot of heart and they have a lot of drive. They’re young (for the most part with only two seniors on the roster), but their heart is just beautiful. They really wanted to make it happen tonight. I’m a lucky coach to be part of this.

“Los Fresnos has a great team,” Longoria added. “It was a great team effort from both teams.”

The Lady Falcons came alive in the second game after trailing early 9-4 and 11-6. They went ahead for good, 15-14, when the Lady Longhorns hit a ball too long. Los Fresnos turned things around and held leads of 19-14, 21-16 and 22-17 before winning the second set 25-22 on a strong hit by Giselle Ibarra that went off a United player and traveled out of bounds.

After Los Fresnos won the second game, it became an even more closely contested battle as the Lady Longhorns quickly realized they weren’t going to be breezing to a sweep. Yet, the Lady Falcons got off to another slow start in the third set and trailed 10-2 and 11-3 before pulling to within 18-14 of the lead.

From there, United pulled away to win the third game 25-18 and go up 2-1 in the match.

There were 11 ties in the fourth game with the last one coming at 15-15. Los Fresnos came within one point twice near the end at 19-18 and 20-19, but then the Lady Longhorns finished with a flourish to win 25-19 and take the match as Medellin recorded a back-line kill and a block on the final two points.

Ibarra, a senior outside hitter, led Los Fresnos with 15 kills and 17 digs. Teammates Stambaugh and Sarah Villarreal each had 10 kills and Villarreal contributed 27 assists. Also for the Lady Falcons, Isis Delgado had 27 digs and 41 service receptions.

By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald

District 32-6A volleyball teams came close to pulling off a sweep in the Class 6A bi-district playoffs earlier this week.

The 32-6A squads triumphed in three of four matches Monday and Tuesday against their District 31-6A counterparts as Rivera, Los Fresnos and San Benito emerged on the winning end of things and Hanna came up short.

Los Fresnos is accustomed to advancing beyond bi-district competition nearly every year, and the Lady Falcons are eager for what comes next.

“We’re a family and we’re all excited to be in the second round,” said Los Fresnos’ Giselle Ibarra, a senior outside hitter. “I love my team. We all play for God and we’re ready.”

Added teammate Emma Stambaugh, a junior outside hitter, “We know every match is up to us and how we do. It’s not what happened in the past (if we’ve played a team before), it’s the present that counts. We just need to work hard and focus on the match that we’re playing. We’ve worked very hard for this and we’re ready to offer tough competition (to our playoff opponents).”

In bi-district, Los Fresnos defeated Edinburg High 25-17, 25-17, 23-25, 25-22; Rivera downed Edinburg North 27-25, 25-19, 25-22; and San Benito triumphed over Edinburg Vela 25-21, 23-25, 25-16, 25-20.

Hanna put up quite a strong effort, especially in the third and fourth games, but eventually fell to 31-6A champion PSJA Memorial 25-20, 25-21, 14-25, 25-20.

Now it’s on to the area round of the playoffs.

District 32-6A runner-up Los Fresnos (27-11) plays District 29-6A champion Laredo United (30-5) at 7 p.m. today at Corpus Christi Ray.

Rivera (29-10), the 32-6A champion, goes against 30-6A runner-up Laredo Alexander (22-12) at 7 p.m. Friday in Rio Grande City.

Also, San Benito (27-10), the 32-6A third-place team, goes against District 30-6A champion McAllen Rowe (33-7) at noon Saturday at the Lady Greyhounds’ gym.

32-5A TEAMS SWEPT

District 32-5A teams were all eliminated in the Class 5A bi-district action earlier this week.

Brownsville Veterans Memorial, the 32-5A champion, lost to District 31-5A fourth-place Sharyland High in a bit of a surprise result 25-23, 23-25, 25-18, 25-20, 15-12, while Lopez, the 32-5A fourth-place playoff qualifier, was ousted 25-9, 25-14, 25-16 by 31-5A champion Mission Veterans, the Valley’s top-ranked team.

Edcouch-Elsa and Donna High, the other two playoff qualifiers from 32-5A, were eliminated in bi-district by 31-5A’s Sharyland Pioneer and Laredo Nixon, respectively.

SEASON OVER

Port Isabel achieved its goal of returning to the playoffs this season after missing out on the postseason last year, but the Lady Tarpons ran into a tough West Oso squad on Tuesday in the Class 4A bi-district playoffs.

West Oso eliminated Port Isabel 25-16, 25-18, 18-25, 25-21. The match was played in Riviera.

The Lady Tarpons finished third in District 32-4A this year, while West Oso was the District 31-4A runner-up.

Also from 32-4A, district champion La Feria advanced to the 4A area round, but Raymondville and Rio Hondo were eliminated.

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

ALAMO — The Halloween spirit was on full display thanks to the PSJA Memorial Lady Wolverines prior to their Class 6A bi-district volleyball playoff victory at home Tuesday over the Hanna Lady Golden Eagles.

The Lady Wolverines came out and lined up on the court at the PSJA Memorial gym wearing black plastic masks. They then threw candy to the cheering PSJA Memorial crowd as each of the players was introduced.

After that, it was time to get down to business and play volleyball as the District 31-6A champion Lady Wolverines (26-10) prevailed over a determined Hanna squad 25-20, 25-21, 14-25, 25-20 and advanced to the area round of the playoffs later this week against McAllen Memorial.

“It’s very exciting because we’re making history with every match that we play,” Lady Wolverines coach Angie Gonzales said. “I’m just excited for our girls. They came through for us today.

“Brownsville Hanna did a great job also,” Gonzales added. “Their girls played phenomenal defense and did really well (overall). We’re excited to get this win.”

PSJA Memorial had beaten Hanna earlier this season in three straight games in non-district action. The Lady Eagles gave a much better showing of themselves in Tuesday’s rematch, although it wasn’t the best of starts. They fought from behind most of the way in the first two games in losing 25-20 and 25-21.

District 32-6A fourth-place Hanna (24-13) came alive in a big way during the third set to win 25-14. The Lady Eagles carried their momentum into the fourth game, leading by as many as four points twice, 12-8 and 14-10, before the Lady Wolverines came on strong at the end to take the fourth set 25-20 and clinch the match after some untimely hitting errors and lineup miscues by Hanna.

It was tied for the last time in Game 4 at 17-17, and from there, the Lady Wolverines went ahead for good, 18-17, on a serving ace by Kristi Gomez, who led her team with a double-digit total of kills. Teammate Deserey Gomez was also a standout performer at the net.

Before long, PSJA Memorial was up 24-19 when a Hanna serve went out. After a Hanna serving ace to close the gap to 24-20, the Lady Eagles had a serve carry too far, providing the Lady Wolverines with the final point they needed to capture the match victory.

“We came out with momentum in the fourth set, but then we ended up giving it away,” Hanna coach Ansgar Hagemann said. “We should have started off (the match) playing like we did in the third game.

“We were close,” Hagemann added. “It seems we’re always close. We want to have a bi-district win one of these days. We’re going to keep on coming back and trying.”

Odalys Gonzalez, Ryann Wood and Nataly Davila were standouts at the net for Hanna.

By ROY HESS | Staff Writer

Even though Los Fresnos won the first two games, it was never an easy match for the Lady Falcons as they prevailed at home against the Edinburg High Lady Bobcats 25-17, 25-17, 23-25, 25-22 on Monday night in the Class 6A bi-district playoffs.

District 32-6A runner-up Los Fresnos (27-11) advances to an area-round matchup against Laredo United or Mission High later this week. The volleyball season came to a close for the DIstrict 31-6A third-place Lady Bobcats (21-14).

“The team has worked really hard all season, and to get this win feels very good,” said Los Fresnos’ Emma Stambaugh, a junior outside hitter. “We’re going to work even harder now.”

Added teammate Giselle Ibarra, a senior outside hitter, “It’s amazing. We haven’t really been playing our game and today we played really well. We’ve been picking it up, so I’m really glad.

“We knew Edinburg High was going to get stronger with each game, so we just had to work together, build the chemistry and play as a team,” Ibarra added.

Ibarra and Stambaugh finished with 21 and 11 kills, respectively.

The Lady Bobcats were ahead by as many as six points, 20-14, on their way to winning the third game 25-23.

It became an even closer battle in the fourth game as there were 10 ties with the last deadlock coming at 16-16. It remained close until the very end as the Lady Falcons held on to leads of 22-21, 23-22 and 24-23 and recorded two of the last three points on miscues by the Lady Bobcats.

“Los Fresnos is a heck of a team, they are every single year,” Lady Bobcats coach Deanna Dominguez said. “(Los Fresnos) Coach (Becky)

Woods does an amazing job. Their No. 5 Giselle (Ibarra) was a great attacker and all the rest of her teammates did a really good job of blocking and serving and helping her out.

“I thought we had a fighting chance, but we missed four serves in one set (the fourth one) and it’s like impossible to finish the game (with a win) when you do that,” Dominguez added. “Those missed serves were very critical for us because it was a close match. We’re a young group, and I think more than anything else, we were a little nervous (at the start). With the exception of my two middle blockers (seniors Tianna Howard and Natalie Martinez) everyone else is pretty young.

“I’m excited and proud of our girls. We weren’t supposed to do much this year, so this was a great learning experience because most of these players will be back for us next season.”

Howard and Martinez were a handful for the Lady Falcons as they recorded 29 and 17 kills, respectively. Martinez had seven bocks and Howard four.

Also for Edinburg High, Maria Reyes had 11 digs, eight kills and one block, while Lorissa Gonzalez and Renee Ponce had 24 and 13 digs, respectively. Ponce also contributed 53 assists and two serving aces.

For Los Fresnos, Ibarra had 21 digs and four blocks to go with her 21 kills. Teammate Sarah Villarreal contributed 26 assists, 14 digs and nine kills, while Natalie Leal added 19 assists and seven digs. Isis Delgado had 24 digs.

RIVERA DEF. EDINBURG NORTH

District 32-6A champion Rivera (29-10) opened the 6A bi-district playoffs with a 27-25, 25-19, 25-22 victory at home against District 31-6A fourth-place Edinburg North (12-25) on Monday.

Stephanie Garza, a senior outside hitter for Rivera, sparked the Lady Raiders with 16 kills and seven digs, while teammate Victoria Zuniga had 13 kills. Also for Rivera, Maddie Blanco had 22 digs and Mayra Martinez had nine kills.

The Lady Raiders next face McAllen High or Laredo Alexander in the second round of the playoffs later this week.

SHARYLAND HIGH DEF. BRO VETS

The season came to a premature close for Brownsville Veterans Memorial on Monday as the District 32-5A champion Lady Chargers lost to District 31-5A fourth-place Sharyland High 25-23, 23-25, 18-25, 25-20, 15-12.

The Lady Chargers ended the season with a 25-8 record. Sharyland High moves on to play San Antonio Harlandale or Flour Bluff later this week.

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

PORT ISABEL — Some volleyball teams just seem destined to play five-set matches against one another.

The Port Isabel Lady Tarpons and the Progreso Lady Red Ants are two of those teams.

When they played each other a month or so ago in Progreso during the opening round of District 32-4A action, the Lady Red Ants won the first two games and the Lady Tarpons wound up prevailing in the next three games to take the match in five sets.

Just the opposite happened Saturday in the district’s second round at Port Isabel as the Lady Red Ants lost the opening two games decisively before rallying to defeat the Lady Tarpons 13-25, 10-25, 25-15, 25-17, 15-10.

“Yes, our girls definitely came back to life,” Progreso coach Jackie Gonzalez said. “They started off slow, but then again, they always seem to start off slow. I guess it’s nerves at the beginning. Once we’re able to settle down, we’re able to play with anybody.

“I’m very proud of them,” Gonzalez added. “They didn’t give up and they fought the entire way. Hopefully a win like this will encourage our girls and we can finish the regular season strong. We still have hopes for postseason play.”

Despite Saturday’s setback, Port Isabel remains at least tied for third place in 32-4A at 6-6, depending on the result of Zapata’s district match on Saturday. La Feria and Raymondville are the top two teams in 32-4A. Progreso improved to 4-8.

Port Isabel next plays host to Zapata on Tuesday as 32-4A play continues and will attempt to get back on track. Progreso is at home against Grulla the same night.

“We’re just going to get back out there, regroup and go hard on Tuesday against Zapata,” said Lady Tarpons coach Julie Breedlove, who is trying to guide her squad back to the playoffs after a one-year’s absence. “We just need to come back, refocus and finish off strong (in district).

“We knew Progreso was going to come over here and give us a very good match — they always do,” Breedlove added. “We came out and played really hard in the first two sets, but we’ve just got to be more consistent. We made too many errors — service reception errors and hitting errors, especially in the third set (in a 25-15 loss).

“We knew Progreso was going to come out and play we everything they’ve got and then we didn’t capitalize on some things (when we were up 2-0 after the first two games), so we’ve just got to refocus now.”

The Lady Tarpons were cruising early with a 16-0 lead in the first game before winning it 25-13. They broke open the next game and led 21-9 after winning six straight points, including four of the six points on service aces by Carolina Guevara, en route to taking the second set 25-10.

From there, the Lady Reds Ants came alive, played with more composure and team chemistry and dominated the third game in winning 25-15. The Lady Tarpons again fell behind in the fourth game and pulled to within 14-12 of the lead but came no closer as the Lady Reds Ants triumphed 25-17.

Once in the fifth set, Progreso broke out of a 3-3 tie to go up 12-6. Moments later, a block by Progreso’s Kim Perez put her team ahead 14-10, and when the Lady Tarpons hit into the net on the next point, the Lady Red Ants won 15-10 to capture the five-game match.

Olivia Soliz, a senior middle blocker, was a standout for the Lady Tarpons with double-digit kills.

By ROY HESS | Staff Writer

Rematches are scheduled for several Metro-area volleyball teams as the UIL state playoffs begin this week.

Rivera, Los Fresnos and Brownsville Veterans Memorial have bi-district matches on tap today and each faces an opponent it went against earlier this season.

Hanna, Lopez and Port Isabel play their bi-district matches Tuesday, all on the road.

In the Class 6A playoffs, Rivera and Los Fresnos are playing at home at 7 p.m. today in rematches against Edinburg North and Edinburg High, respectively, while in the Class 5A playoffs, Brownsville Veterans has a rematch as well and plays at 6:30 p.m. today at Weslaco High against Sharyland High.

District 32-6A runner-up Los Fresnos defeated District 31-6A third-place Edinburg High in a tournament at McAllen Memorial back in early September.

“Whatever happened in the preseason was a long time ago,” Los Fresnos coach Becky Woods said. “We just need to show up and play our game. I’m sure both teams have improved dramatically since the beginning of the season.

“Communication will be a big factor in winning these playoff games plus the desire to want to win,” Woods added. “My girls know it’s one loss and you’re out, so let’s make the best of it.”

Rivera, the 32-6A champion, goes against an Edinburg North squad, the No. 4 playoff seed from 31-6A, that it defeated in three games in non-district action back in late August.

District 32-5A champion Brownsville Veterans lost to District 31-5A fourth-place Sharyland High in two games at the Mission Veterans Tournament in mid-August.

On Tuesday, 32-6A fourth-place Hanna plays at 31-6A champion PSJA Memorial at 7 p.m. Hanna lost to the Lady Wolverines in three games in an Upper Valley tri-match that included McAllen Rowe in early September.

Lopez, the 32-5A fourth-place team, plays at 31-5A champion Mission Veterans at 7 p.m. Tuesday, while Port Isabel, the third-place team from District 32-4A, goes against District 31-4A runner-up West Oso at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Riviera.

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

They never seem to take an easy path to get there, yet the Lopez Lady Lobos are returning to the state playoffs in volleyball for the second straight season.

To clinch this year’s playoff berth, the Lady Lobos prevailed over Mercedes 25-23, 25-19, 23-25, 25-18 on Saturday at the Lopez gym in a District 32-5A “play-in” match to determine the district’s fourth-place qualifier for the postseason.

Lopez’s reward for winning Saturday is a Class 5A bi-district matchup against District 31-5A champion Mission Veterans, the Valley’s top-ranked team. The Lady Lobos and Lady Patriots will play Monday or Tuesday in Mission.

There were smiles all around for the Lady Lobos on Saturday when the final point had been recorded and the Lopez players realized they were moving on to the postseason.

“It feels great to make it to the playoffs because our team has put in so much hard work every single day throughout the whole season, and it took a lot of hard work to get this far,” said Lopez’s Jennifer Cisneros, a junior outside hitter who was one of her team’s standouts at the net against the Lady Tigers. “It feels great to see a good outcome come out of it.

“We were playing for each other,” Cisneros added. “For example, we didn’t want this to be the last match for our seniors. We just found a way to fight back and win the fourth set (after dropping the third game 25-23) because we didn’t want our season to end.”

For the most part, the Lady Lobos displayed more consistency than their opponents and kept the ball alive in tough situations by making some diving digs and saves.

“We came into the match very pumped up and wanting to play as consistently as we could,” said Lopez’s Amanda Parra, a junior outside hitter who finished as a leader for her team with a double-digit total in kills. “We tried to play our best and we executed very well.

“Last year we went into the playoffs (by winning a ‘play-in’ match with Pace) and this year it was the same thing (as we had another ‘play-in’ match),” Parra added. “We had to fight and play hard for our (postseason) spot, and we did it. Now we’re going to the playoffs again.”

After taking the first two games 25-23 and 25-19, things became considerably more difficult for the Lady Lobos in the third game. The Lady Tigers surged to leads of 13-6 and 17-7 before Lopez battled back to tie the third game at 22-22 and 23-23.

From there, Mercedes went up 24-23 when a Lopez block went out of bounds and then won the third set 25-23 on a kill by Roslynn Rodriguez.

It remained close much of the way in the fourth game and the score was deadlocked 14-14 before the Lady Lobos broke away to capture the match. A serving ace by Parra gave Lopez the lead for good, 15-14.

Parra had multiple kills in the final set to make sure the Lady Lobos would win. Her kills gave Lopez advantages of 18-14, 21-14 and 24-16. But a pair of unforced hitting errors by Lopez brought Mercedes to within 24-18. The Lady Tigers then had a serve carry too far and sail out of bounds on the final point of the fourth game to lift the Lady Lobos to the match victory.

“It was all the girls, it was all them,” said Lopez coach Jacquelynn Touchet, who now has guided her team to the playoffs three times during her six-year tenure as the Lady Lobos’ head coach. “These girls pulled through when they needed to, and I’m so proud of them.”

Lopez, Pace and Mercedes finished in a three-way tie for fourth place in 32-5A with 6-8 records last Tuesday, creating the scenario of having two “play-in” matches to figure out which of the three teams would go to the postseason as the district’s No. 4 playoff seed.

Mercedes defeated Pace 15-25, 25-18, 22-25, 26-24, 19-17 on Thursday in the first 32-5A “play-in” match to gain its spot opposite Lopez on Saturday.

By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

MERCEDES — The Mercedes Tigers won for the fourth time in five District 32-5A outings while clinching a playoff spot Friday at home against the Lopez Lobos.

Mercedes’ 34-7 victory against the Lobos at Tiger Stadium keeps the Tigers (6-2 overall, 4-1 district) just one game behind undefeated 32-5A leader Brownsville Veterans Memorial (7-1, 5-0) in the conference standings and also keeps the Tigers in the hunt for the district title or maybe a share of it.

“We felt both teams really play aggressive defense, so it was going to be a toe-to-toe dogfight against Lopez,” Mercedes coach Roger Adame Jr. said. “We challenged our defense and the guys really stepped up to the plate tonight and took care of what they needed to do. Offensively, we made some adjustments at halftime and we were able to put some more points on the board (in the final two quarters).

“We feel our guys are playing really good football at the right time,” Adame added. “That’s just what you want from your team. You want them to be playing good football like this towards the end of the season. Hopefully, we still have a chance at the district title, but (at least) we know we’ll be in the playoffs. Goal No. 1 for every program is to clinch a playoff spot, and we did that tonight.”

Lopez slipped to 6-2, 3-2 and suffered its second straight setback, having lost to Brownsville Veterans 35-21 last Saturday.

The Tigers now have topped Pace (61-21), Edcouch-Elsa (34-14) and Lopez in successive weeks since losing at home 24-17 to Brownsville Veterans on Oct. 6.

On Friday, Mercedes led 7-0 at the end of one quarter and 13-0 at intermission. The Tigers were up 27-0 by the end of three periods and led 34-0 before the Lobos scored on a 1-yard run by Jose Echevarria with 1:12 remaining.

For the Tigers, quarterback Marc Ledesma and running back Alex Ramos each scored twice. Ledesma scored on a 1-yard keeper in the second quarter to make it 13-0 and added a 13-yard scoring scamper in the third quarter for a 27-0 lead.

The Tigers’ QB also threw a 14-yard TD pass to twin brother Matthew Ledesma with just 4 seconds left in the opening period for Mercedes’ initial 7-0 score.

Ramos had a 10-yard TD run to cap Mercedes’ opening drive of the second half as the Tigers led 20-0 and then tallied on a 34-yard run with just 16 seconds gone in the final quarter to make it 34-0.

Mercedes finishes the regular season against Porter next Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium and at home against Donna North on Nov. 10.

“I’m a sophomore and it means a lot to me to get a win like this (and clinch a playoff spot),” said Mercedes’ Sunny Vela, a running back who led his team with 72 yards rushing against the Lobos. “Growing up with these guys (my teammates) day in and day out really means a lot.

“Now we’re in the playoffs and it feels very good,” he added.

Lopez plays its final two regular-season games at Sams, going against E-E next Thursday and facing Pace on Nov. 9.