By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Consistency means everything, especially in volleyball.

Lopez coach Jacquelynn Touchet said her team played one of its most consistent matches of the season Saturday in winning at Pace 25-22, 25-18, 25-19.

The Lady Lobos, trying to reach the playoffs for the third time in six years under Touchet, completed the first round of District 32-5A competition in fourth place with a 4-3 record thanks to Saturday’s win.

Pace ended the first round of district in fifth place at 3-4.

Lopez and Pace tied for fourth place in 32-5A a season ago and the Lady Lobos won a “play-in” match against the Lady Vikings to reach the postseason.

Touchet is well aware that getting a victory over Pace on Saturday may come in quite handy down the road in qualifying for the playoffs again.

“Playing against Pace is always a battle for us,” the Lady Lobos coach said. “It’s one of the rivalry matches we look forward to during our district season. This was a big win for our district record and also considering the pride and rivalry involved.

“I’m really proud of the way our girls played today,” she added. “We’ve been preaching a lot to them about playing with confidence and being consistent throughout our matches. I feel that today they really showed us that. I believe having the right mentality is a big reason we win or we lose. This match really showed me that our team has the right mentality.”

The memory of what happened last season hasn’t been forgotten by the Lady Lobos.

“Last year we weren’t fortunate enough to get this win (over Pace during the first round of district) and it kind of put us in a bind at the end of the (regular) season, so we really wanted to secure this match,” Touchet said. “I told the team, ‘I don’t want to be stressing about playing catch-up (to make the playoffs) later in the season.’”

Lopez led by as many as eight points, 11-3, early in the first game before the Lady Vikings battled back to tie it and even go ahead 15-14 when the Lady Lobos hit a volley into the net. It soon became 22-22 before the Lady Lobos went up 24-22 on a block by Carla Lopez and a cross-court kill by Jennifer Cisneros.

The Lady Lobos then took the first set 25-22 when a volley by Pace sailed out of bounds.

It was tied 9-9 in the second game before the Lady Lobos surged to a 10-point lead, 22-12, and eventually won 25-18 when a volley went off a Pace player and carried out of bounds.

The Lady Vikings twice led by seven points, 11-4 and 12-5, in the third game, but could not fend off the determined Lady Lobos, who snapped a 17-17 deadlock and went ahead for good 18-17 on another Pace ball that sailed long.

On the final point that helped Lopez win the third set 25-19 and sweep the match, Desirree Castillo scored on a well-placed cross-court tip from the left side that caught the Lady Vikings out of position.

“This was a big accomplishment because we always have a big battle with Pace,” said the Lady Lobos’ Carla Lopez, a senior middle blocker who led her team with double-digit kills and a number of blocks. “We knew we had to play hard and beat them today because last year it was a little bit difficult (getting past Pace and reaching the playoffs).

“A win like this puts us out there and lets the other teams (in 32-5A) know that we’re good competition for them,” she added. “They shouldn’t feel that just because we’re Lopez they’re going to beat us.”

Noemi Gallardo, the Lady Lobos’ junior setter, credited her team’s steady play as being the difference Saturday.

“We were real consistent compared to other matches we’ve played,” said Gallardo, a team captain. “We had a lot of chemistry and we played as a team. It was a lot of fun.

“I feel we’ve gotten better as we’ve gone along,” she added. “A win like this pumps us up. We’re already thinking ahead to playing the other teams (in the second round of district) because now we know what they’ve got.”

District 32-5A’s second round begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday as Brownsville Veterans Memorial visits Pace and Lopez plays host to Porter.

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

With Friday’s 35-7 victory over Porter in the 20th “Battle of Southmost,” the Lopez Lobos remained undefeated at 4-0 and continue to journey down a path taken by only a few unbeaten football teams at their school.

The win at Sams Memorial Stadium gave the Lobos a 1-0 record in District 32-5A as they seek to return to the playoffs for the second straight season. Porter slipped to 0-4 overall and 0-1 in 32-5A.

Lopez wants to duplicate or surpass the showing of its 2001 team that started 8-0, won a district title and finished the season 9-2 under former head coach Valentin Montemayor.

The Lobos now hold an 11-9 lead in the overall series with their Southmost rival that began in 1996. They won against the Cowboys 39-10 last season after Porter triumphed 21-16 in 2015. The two teams didn’t play in 1998 and 1999.

It was all Lopez on Friday as the Lobos led 7-0 after one quarter, 14-0 at halftime and 21-0 going into the final period.

“It feels amazing (to be undefeated) because this school hasn’t done that in many years,” said Damian Zuniga, a junior offensive left tackle for the Lobos. “People may doubt us, but we just keep on bouncing back.”

Sparking the Lobos on offense were quarterback Alex Ramirez and running backs Christian Gamez and Jose Echavarria.

Ramirez threw touchown passes of 16 yards to Sebastian Mujica in the first quarter and 40 yards to Johnny Ibarra in the final period.

Gamez rushed for 106 yards and scored TDs on runs of 55 and 23 yards in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, while Echavarria recorded a game-high 149 yards rushing and had a scoring run of 24 yards around right end in the second quarter.

Trailing 21-0, Porter got on the scoreboard early in the final period when Ramiro Martinez broke loose on a 24-yard TD run around the left side of the line.

The Lobos had a 34-yard field-goal attempt sail wide early in the second quarter.

“This feels great because it’s a win,” Zuniga said. “We didn’t play pretty. We could have dominated if we had executed our plays better, but a win’s a win, right?”

Echavarria was grateful for all the fans who were on hand Friday at Sams.

“A lot of people came out to support us today, and for Porter, too,” he said. “We haven’t seen something like that in past years, so it felt pretty good having that type of attention. I thank my family, my girlfriend and everybody who came out to support us.

“It’s been a while now since we’ve started undefeated like this,” Echavarria added. “We’re just going to keep it rolling.”

District 32-5A action continues next week as Lopez plays host to Donna North on Thursday and Porter goes against Pace on Oct. 7. Both games are at Sams.

By ROY HESS | Staff Writer

The Rivera Lady Raiders played about as well as their coach could expect Tuesday in taking over sole possession of first place in the District 32-6A volleyball race.

The Lady Raiders (6-0) won at home against defending 32-6A champion Los Fresnos 25-14, 25-19, 25-23. The Lady Falcons, trying for a school-record fifth straight district title in volleyball, are now alone in second place at 5-1.

The win snapped Los Fresnos’ 33-match district winning streak that dated back to a loss against Brownsville Veterans Memorial in District 32-5A in 2014 when the Lady Falcons and Lady Chargers shared the conference title, each with one loss.

Everything seemed to click offensively and defensively for the Lady Raiders on Tuesday.

“It wasn’t just one person, it was really a team effort,” Rivera coach Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra said. “Everyone contributed and it was a great job by all of our girls.

““Hopefully a win like this one gives us some momentum and gives our girls more confidence,” Avelar-Guerra added. “They need to get out there and play hard without any fear, one point at a time, like they did against Los Fresnos. I always tell them to play without fear, so I hope this will give them more confidence as we get ready to go into the second half of district.”

Leading the way for the Lady Raiders on Tuesday was outside hitter Stephanie Garza, a senior team captain who stands barely 5-foot-5. Garza, who frequently goes against players at the net who are 4 to 5 inches taller than she is, displays a unique ability to leap high into the air and send thunderous, well-placed kills into the opposite court. She had 17 of them against Los Fresnos.

Garza and her teammates repeatedly made timely plays to stay in front whenever Los Fresnos threatened to take the lead.

“Stephanie played well, Litzy (Medina) played well, Mayra (Martinez) and Victoria (Zuniga), my two middle blockers, played well, my setter (Kourtney Shears) and my libero (Madelaine Blanco) and all my diggers — they all did a great job,” Avelar-Guerra said. “It was just an awesome effort by everyone.”

The final matches in the first round of district are scheduled at noon Saturday with Rivera at Harlingen South (2-4), Los Fresnos at Weslaco High (1-5), Weslaco East (0-6) at Hanna (2-4) and Harlingen High (4-2) at San Benito (4-2).

32-5A UPDATE

Thanks to Tuesday’s 25-10, 25-17, 25-9 win at Donna North, Brownsville Veterans remained the District 32-5A leader at 6-0.

Edcouch-Elsa and Donna High each won Tuesday as well to stay close behind the Lady Chargers in the league standings at 5-1. Lopez and Pace are tied for fourth place with 3-3 records followed by Porter at 2-4.

The Cowgirls defeated Mercedes 25-22, 27-25, 19-25, 25-23 on Tuesday.

Mercedes and Donna North are each 0-6 in the standings.

District 32-5A also completes its first round of conference play on Saturday. In those matches, it’s Lopez at Pace, Porter at E-E, Donna High at Brownsville Veterans and Mercedes at Donna North.

The match at Pace between the Lady Lobos and Lady Vikings is scheduled to start at 11 a.m.

32-4A SHOWDOWN

There was another showdown for first place Tuesday in the Lower Valley as undefeated District 32-4A co-leaders Raymondville and La Feria squared off in La Feria.

La Feria prevailed 18-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-19 to improve to 7-0 in 32-4A. Raymondville is 6-1.

Port Isabel, trying to get back to the playoffs after a one year’s absence, is in third place at 4-3.

The Lady Tarpons next play host to Raymondville at 2 p.m. Saturday.

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 night clearly belonged to the Rivera Lady Raiders.

Make no mistake, Los Fresnos never made it easy, yet Rivera seized the momentum from the very beginning and swept past the Lady Falcons 25-14, 25-19, 25-23 in Tuesday’s showdown at Rivera between undefeated co-leaders in the District 32-6A volleyball race.

It was Los Fresnos’ first loss in district in more than two years. The Lady Falcons won the 32-6A title during each of the past two seasons with a 14-0 record.

“Rivera was ready for us,” Lady Falcons coach Becky Woods said. “We came out too nonchalant and started out the whole match wrong. You could tell that from the very first point (when we served into the net). From there, it just went downhill.

“I give Rivera credit,” Woods added. “They were ready for us tonight. We’ll see them again at our place (in the second round of district).”

Across the gym, the Rivera players, coaches and fans were in full celebration mode.

“Our girls played awesome tonight. They did a fantastic job,” Lady Raiders coach Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra said. “They were talking to each other and communicating, they were playing strong defense and they were hitting well.

“They played together like a real team,” she added. “I haven’t seen them play that well for quite awhile. They really came together tonight.”

With one match left on Saturday to complete the first round of 32-6A, Rivera owns sole possession of the conference lead with a 6-0 record, while Los Fresnos is alone in second place at 5-1.

It was a fairly close match for the most part, except for the opening game when Rivera was up 16-12 before pulling away to win the first set 25-14.

Los Fresnos led 13-12 and 14-13 in the second game only to see the Lady Raiders go ahead for good, 15-14, on a kill by Stephanie Garza and eventually take the set 25-19.

In the third game, Los Fresnos pulled to within one point, 24-23, thanks to a block by the Lady Falcons’ Giselle Ibarra. From there, however, another kill by Garza gave the Lady Raiders the point they needed to take the set 25-23 and sweep the match.

Garza sparked Rivera with 17 kills and eight digs. Litzy Medina added seven kills, six digs and an ace. Also for Rivera, Kourtney Shears had 33 assists, 13 digs, four kills and four aces, while libero Madelaine Blanco had 22 digs and an ace.

Also contributing to the winning effort for the Lady Raiders were Mayra Martinez with eight kills, two blocks and two digs, and Victoria Zuniga with six kills, two blocks and one dig.

Ibarra led the Lady Falcons with 13 kills. Sarah Villarreal added 11 assists, two kills and four aces, while Martha Ramirez had 11 assists and libero Isis Delgado had 24 digs and 24 service receptions. Sandra Salazar contributed four blocks and one kill, while Emma Stambaugh had two kills and one block.

District action continues at noon Saturday in 32-6A as Rivera visits Harlingen South and Los Fresnos plays at Weslaco High.

By ROY HESS, THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

This season’s first key showdown for first place in District 32-6A volleyball takes place at 6:30 p.m. today as the Rivera Lady Raiders play host to the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons.
Both teams enter the match with 5-0 records.
District 32-6A completes its first round of conference action later this week.
Tonight’s winner still will be far removed from any claims to the district title, which was won last year by Los Fresnos with a 14-0 record. But gaining sole possession of first place in a district that so far has been quite competitive would be a definite boost for tonight’s winner.
“I think we’re pretty evenly matched, at least that’s the way it looks,” Rivera coach Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra said. “It’ll be a fight both ways and the winner will have an advantage with some momentum going into the second round (of district next week).
“Our girls have come together and they’re playing united,” Avelar-Guerra added. “Our defense has improved and we’ve just been playing well (overall). It should be a good one (against Los Fresnos).”
Los Fresnos coach Becky Woods sees tonight’s matchup in much the same way with the team playing its best coming away victorious.
“It’s going to be whoever shows up (to play well) on that particular night,” she said. “Either team can win. Whoever wants it most will be the one who comes away with the win.
“We are ready for the showdown,” Woods added. “We played very well against Harlingen High on Saturday (to improve to 5-0). Physically, we are very ready. It’s the mental game that has to come through for us.
“Our girls are hungry for that (school-record) fifth straight district title. If we can keep that motivation and be confident in our mental attitude going into the match, we will be fine. The bottom line is we just need to play our game.”
Los Fresnos won at home against Harlingen High 25-8, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20 on Saturday. The same day, Rivera improved to 5-0 by triumphing at Weslaco East 25-18, 25-20, 25-13.
The first round of district concludes at noon Saturday as Los Fresnos visits Weslaco High and Rivera plays at Harlingen South.
A year ago, the Lady Falcons were repeat district champions, while the Lady Raiders were 32-6A’s runner-up team. The other two teams advancing to the playoffs from 32-6A last season were Hanna and San Benito.

By ROY HESS, THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD

Winning on the road this season in the balanced District 32-6A volleyball race is quite a feat, especially when the victory comes against another conference contender.

The San Benito Lady Greyhounds captured such a win Saturday at Hanna by slipping past the Lady Golden Eagles 25-18, 22-25, 25-21, 25-19.

“I told our girls if they wanted to win, they needed to stay on their toes and do everything right because Hanna’s always tough to beat,” San Benito coach Ruby Medina said. “Hanna has some good hitters, but our defense played together, played well and read where the ball was going. Also, our hitters played smart today. It’s not always about just hitting the ball, it’s about how smart you play the game (and make your hits count).

“This was a match that our girls actually showed what I’ve been coaching them to do,” Medina added. “It’s a very tough district, so we need to win as many of these matches as we can.”

With the victory, the Lady Greyhounds (3-2) stay within striking distance of 32-6A frontrunners Rivera and Los Fresnos, who are both 5-0 after their wins Saturday. Los Fresnos visits Rivera at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday for the district’s first big showdown of the season.

San Benito is now tied for third place in 32-6A with Harlingen High (3-2), a 25-8, 25-20, 19-25, 25-20 loser at Los Fresnos on Saturday. San Benito is at home against Weslaco High (1-4) on Tuesday, the same night Hanna (2-3) visits Harlingen High.

Rivera improved to 5-0 with Saturday’s 25-18, 25-20, 25-13 win at Weslaco East (0-5).

Along with Medina, Hanna coach Ansgar Hagemann also sees the 32-6A race is a tight one this season with San Benito being one of the teams challenging for a top spot along with his squad.

“It was pretty even today,” Hagemann said. “I think San Benito had just a little more consistency than we did, maybe like 10 percent (more than us). We need to be ahead of the other team (in consistency if we want to win).

“The district this season is probably one of the toughest (races) we’ve had in a couple of years,” Hagemann added. “Everyone has a good team, and that’s what makes it such a difficult district. It’s the little things that decide these matches. Sometimes things go in our favor and sometimes they don’t.

“I think overall we just need to be a little more consistent on some of our plays.”

The Lady Greyhounds held lead of 9-3, 14-8, 17-11, and 21-14 in the opening game before winning it 25-18. In the second game, the Lady Eagles broke out of ties at 15-15, 16-16, 17-17, 18-18 and 19-19 before winning 25-22 on an ace by Elyani Perez.

The third game was Hanna’s chance to take the upper hand in the match. The Lady Eagles led by eight points twice, 14-6 and 19-11, but couldn’t distance themselves from the determined Lady Greyhounds. San Benito evened the score at 19-19, 20-20 and 21-21 before tallying the final four points of the set to gain a 2-1 edge in the match.

Inspired by their come-from-behind victory in Game 3, the Lady Greyhounds went up by as many as nine points, 20-11, in the fourth game. The Lady Eagles rallied and pulled to within 22-19 when San Benito sent one of its volleys out of bounds. From there, the Lady Greyhounds recorded the next three points to take the match 3-1. On the final point, Hanna misplayed the ball on a volley and failed to get it back over the net.

Hanna was led by Ryann Wood with 10 kills and three blocks. Also for Hanna, Odalys Gonzalez had five kills and seven blocks, while Nataly Davila had four kills and three blocks, and Xitlali Montes de Oca had five kills. Teammates Melina Morales, Elyani Perez and Tabitha Fernandez contributed 21 digs, 14 assists and 14 assists, respectively.

For San Benito, Kayleen Reyes and Alysa Naranjo led the way with 15 and 14 kills, respectively. Naranjo had four blocks and Reyes had three, while teammate Crystal Ibarra added 11 kills and three blocks.

Also for San Benito, Arlene Lucero had eight kills and three blocks, while Sarah Garcia had 51 digs and Ariel Garcia contributed 21 assists.

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 | Staff Writer

There’s something to be said for living in the moment.

No one can blame the Rivera Lady Raiders and Los Fresnos Lady Falcons for focusing solely on their next volleyball matches and not looking ahead.

Understandably, at this point, neither team’s coach wants to say all that much about next Tuesday’s District 32-6A showdown between Los Fresnos and Rivera.

That’s because the Lady Falcons and Lady Raiders first have to win matches on Saturday if they want to go into their anticipated confrontation at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Rivera with 5-0 district records.

The focus for both teams remains on winning Saturday as neither coach wants her squad to get caught looking ahead.

That goes for Becky Woods at Los Fresnos and Elizabeth Avelar-Guerra at Rivera.

“I’m thinking,” Woods said when asked for her thoughts about Tuesday, but then opted not to comment further. Avelar-Guerra had a similar non-response to the question, indicating there would be no looking beyond Saturday’s matches for either team.

In 32-6A matches at noon Saturday, it’s Harlingen High at Los Fresnos and Rivera at Weslaco East. The district’s other two matches at noon Saturday find San Benito at Hanna and Weslaco High at Harlingen South.

Behind Rivera and Los Fresnos, both 4-0 in the 32-6A standings, are Harlingen High (3-1), Hanna (2-2), San Benito (2-2), Weslaco High (1-3), Weslaco East (0-4) and South (0-4).

Los Fresnos is the defending champion in 32-6A. The Lady Falcons are seeking a school-record fifth straight district title in volleyball.

The four playoff teams from 32-6A last season were Los Fresnos, Rivera, Hanna and San Benito.

32-5A UPDATE

Brownsville Veterans Memorial leads District 32-5A with a 4-0 record.

Behind the Lady Chargers in the district standings are Pace (3-1), Edcouch-Elsa (3-1), Donna High (3-1), Lopez (2-2), Porter (1-3), Mercedes (0-4) and Donna North (0-4).

“It feels great (to be 4-0),” said Brownsville Veterans’ Cassie Valdez, a senior outside hitter/all-around player. “We just want to keep doing what we’re doing (and win).”

Porter has had the most demanding road to start off district as the Cowgirls played three straight five-game matches, winning one out of the three before coming up short at home against Donna High in four games on Tuesday.

Porter plays at defending champion Brownsville Veterans at 4 p.m. Saturday. The other 32-5A matches Saturday find E-E at Pace at 11 a.m., Lopez at Mercedes at 1 p.m. and Donna North at Donna High at noon.

QUITE A COMEBACK

From time to time there are volleyball matches where a team rallies from the edge of defeat and wins.

Port Isabel came out on the winning end with such a comeback Tuesday in a District 32-4A match at Progreso. The Lady Tarpons prevailed 20-25, 17-25, 25-17, 25-19, 15-5.

“We just didn’t let up,” Lady Tarpons coach Julie Breedlove said. “The girls just kept fighting. We got us a little lead in the fifth game and just kept building on it.”

Port Isabel is in third place in 32-4A at 3-2 behind Raymondville and La Feria.

Standouts for the Lady Tarpons so far this season include Olivia Soliz, Carolina Guevara, Marlisa Martinez, Celia Garza and Mckenzee Young.

Port Isabel next plays at Zapata at 2 p.m. Saturday.

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 Brownsville Veterans Memorial Lady Chargers are enjoying the view from atop the District 32-5A volleyball standings.

In a city rivalry matchup Tuesday at Lopez, the defending district champion Lady Chargers improved to 4-0 in 32-5A action with a 25-18, 25-20, 25-12 triumph over the Lady Lobos (2-2).

“I think it’s a great feeling (to be leading 32-5A with an unbeaten record), especially since we were district champs with no losses last year,” said Rebecca Cardenas, a senior middle blocker for the Lady Chargers. “I hope we can keep going through our district schedule (undefeated and) winning each match 3-0.

“We started a little rough tonight,” she added. “We thought we would do better than we did and (play more) how we’re supposed to. Lopez is a city rival and we have a few of them in our district. We hope to do even better against our next city rival.”

The Lady Chargers next play host to Porter at 4 p.m. Saturday as conference play continues. Lopez next plays at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mercedes.

The Lady Lobos displayed some strong play at times, particularly during the first two games. They led 6-3 in the first set and tied the score seven times, the last of which was 14-14, before the Lady Chargers prevailed 25-18 in the opening game.

In the second set, Lopez led by five points twice, 8-3 and 9-4. The score was tied 14-14 and 15-15, before two of three points came on aces by Frida Rangel to give the Lady Chargers some breathing room at 18-15 en route to taking the second game 25-20.

Brownsville Veterans coach Lisa Mares had mixed feelings about the win, saying the Lopez girls appeared to come out with more energy than her squad.

“It seems like every time we play on the road we have a very slow start,” Mares said. “Tonight was not the first time (this season). It’s like I wasn’t seeing our (real) team out there on the court. I told them to show off and do what they’ve worked so hard for (in practice).

“We picked things up and had more energy toward the end of the match,” she added. “I told the girls, ‘We can’t wait that long to get going. We’re going to have other matches on the road and we have to be ready to play better.’

“I’m glad that we pulled through and got the win, but it shouldn’t be like that.”

Top performers on the stat sheet for the Lady Chargers were Cassie Valdez (14 kills, 16 assists, 10 digs), Cynthia Garcia (11 kills, nine digs), Pamela Sanchez (10 digs, four aces) and Kasandra Jimenez (26 digs, two aces).

“Our defense really helped us tonight,” said Valdez, a senior outside hitter/all-around player. “We kept each other motivated even when we had a bad streak (of making some errors). We kept working hard and came back. We have teamwork and confidence (on this team).”

Active at the net for the Lady Lobos were Gina Fraga, Jennifer Cisneros and Carla Lopez.

By ROY HESS, STAFF WRITER

Cynthia Garcia is a standout student-athlete on and off the volleyball court for the Brownsville Veterans Memorial Lady Chargers.
She’s a senior outside hitter who supplies plenty of offense for her team, often recording double-digit kills in matches.
Garcia can be quite effective from the left side as she proved last Saturday. She is coming off an 18-kill performance during a 25-18, 25-20, 28-26 victory at home against Edcouch-Elsa that enabled the District 32-5A defending champion Lady Chargers to stay atop the conference standings at 3-0.
Garcia also ranks as the valedictorian of her senior class.
“Cynthia works so hard on and off the court,” Lady Chargers coach Lisa Mares said. “Everybody admires her. The younger players say, ‘She’s so smart!’ and they’re so happy to get a high five from her.”
Garcia is one of a talented group of senior players for the Lady Chargers, who won 32-5A with a 14-0 record last season and appear very capable of repeating that feat in 2017.
Other members of the Lady Chargers’ standout senior group include middle blockers Bridget Himes and Rebecca Cardenas, outside hitter/all-around player Cassie Valdez, right side hitter Brianna Estrada, libero Kasandra Jimenez and back-row defensive player Maryela Angeles, who has been out due to an unexpected surgery since the beginning of the season.
“It’s pretty amazing to be a part of this team,” said Garcia, a two-year varsity player. “We’re all just one family and all trying to better ourselves and be there for each other like we were against Edcouch-Elsa.
“I think we’re doing well,” she added. “During practice we’re trying to improve our technique and our hitting so we can surprise our opponents and it’s paying off. I love it that we’re constantly communicating with each other (on the court). We don’t want to ever let up.”
Garcia attempts to give a full effort to every one of her endeavors whether it’s athletics or academics.
“I just try to give it my all on every point, no matter what, so we can be undefeated and district champs (again),” said Garcia, who plans to attend college out of state with the intent of one day becoming an obstetrician. “I’m immensely proud of how my team is playing. I believe we have so much potential and there’s so much more we can do.”
The Lady Chargers face their next 32-5A challenge today at Lopez in a 7 p.m. match.

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 | Staff Writer

Brownsville Veterans Memorial expected quite a challenge from Edcouch-Elsa in volleyball when the two District 32-5A frontrunners with 2-0 records played Saturday.

Sure enough, it wasn’t at all easy, particularly in the third game, as the 32-5A defending champion Lady Chargers prevailed 25-18, 25-20, 28-26 on their home court to remain undefeated in conference action. E-E, 2-1, now slips to second place in 32-5A.

“I hadn’t seen Edcouch-Elsa play yet this season, but I heard they were pretty good and that we had better watch out,” Lady Chargers coach Lisa Mares said. “I knew they were going to be a tough opponent because Edcouch-Elsa is always good.”

After staying just ahead of the Lady Yellowjackets most of the time during the first two games, the Lady Chargers found themselves battling from behind throughout the third set.

E-E even led by as many as five points twice in the third game, 19-14 and 20-15, before the Lady Chargers, overcoming mistakes of their own, somehow rallied to take the final set 28-26.

It was tied 24-24, 25-25 and 26-26 before an E-E hitting error gave the Lady Chargers a 27-26 edge. Then a block by Rebecca Cardenas on the final point clinched the match for Brownsville Veterans.

Mares had mixed feelings about the Lady Chargers winning the third game in comeback fashion despite displaying some hitting errors and errant serves.

“I told the girls after the match, ‘Seriously, you guys are going to give me a lot more grey hair,’” Mares said. “(I told them) ‘We can’t be missing serves at the end (of a game) like that,’ but you know what, we did dig out of the deficit we were in and fight back.

“That’s something we need to learn to do,” she added. “Come playoffs, we might be in those situations. It wasn’t good that they made mistakes and fell behind, but it was good that we came back.”

The Lady Chargers were sparked by Cynthia Garcia with 18 kills. Also for Brownsville Veterans, Cassie Valdez had nine kills, three aces, 20 assists and 17 digs. Teammates Kasandra Jimenez and Pamela Sanchez had 34 and 18 digs, respectively, while Sanchez also had a pair of aces.

The Lady Yellowjackets are currently being directed by coach Dragan Markovic, a former assistant at UT-Brownsville under Todd Lowery, now the UT-Rio Grande Valley volleyball coach.

Although it appears Brownsville Veterans and E-E are the top two teams in 32-5A this season, Markovic wouldn’t go quite that far in assessing his team.

“I’d like to say that (we’re the two best teams in our district), but I’m someone who respects every single team we face and I’m preparing for every single team,” Markovic said. “Until we beat Brownsville Veterans, I’m not considering that we’re a dominant team (in the district) or anything like that.

“I’m trying to instill the mentality with our girls that we approach every single team and play the same way,” he added. “There are no easy matches or (too) hard matches. We have to come and play our best every single time.

“This Brownsville Veterans team is a very good team. We knew that when we were preparing for this match. At the end of the match (especially in the third game) we got momentum and came together. We were a step from winning (Game 3), but luck was not on our side.”

Stat leaders for the Lady Yellowjackets included Ashley Galarza (two kills, two digs, two digs), Madeline Acevedo (nine digs, one kill) and Odessa Mata (nine digs, one kill).