By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

ELSA — Port Isabel coach Mike Hazelton knew from the beginning he and his squad were in for a wire-to-wire battle in their bi-district playoff game against Kingsville King. And that’s exactly what the Tarpons got.

Dennis Lozano led Port Isabel with 18 points and the Tarpons edged the Brahmas 58-53 on Monday at Edcouch-Elsa in front of a large crowd of blue-clad supporters.

After trailing by five points at the end of the first quarter, Cole Pinkerton scored seven of his eight total points in a row for the Tarpons to start the second quarter and cut the deficit to three.

Pinkerton said Monday’s game felt like a home game and that he and his teammates were grateful for the support from the fans who traveled an hour west to Elsa.

“In the beginning, like (Hazelton) told us, we were trying to play a little bit too much hero-ball,” Pinkerton said. “In the second quarter, Dennis found me and my teammates found me, and it was good for me to have that trust from my teammates. … That opened it up a little bit more for everyone.”

Kingsville King answered and widened the lead back to five, but Daniel Rinza (13 points) drew a foul and completed a three-point play with 4:11 to go, bringing the Brahmas’ lead to 20-17.

He paused for a moment to soak in the roar of the crowd before sinking the foul shot.

On the next possession, at the 3:26 mark, Rinza tied the game at 20 with a corner 3, prompting Kingsville King coach Korey Hardeman to call a timeout as the Port Isabel faithful continued to elevate the deafening noise in the gym.

“When we feed off of our energy, I believe we are unstoppable,” Rinza said. “And that’s what happened tonight.”

With Port Isabel trailing by one point, Kaiden Martinez (15 points) put the Tarpons in front 22-21 after being fouled on a layup. Martinez missed the ensuing free throw.

Gabe Garcia laid the ball in off the glass for Kingsville King, and Dennis Lozano converted a three-point play during a frenetic final minute of the first half that sent the Brahmas into the locker room up 27-25.

Curt Bencze (16 points) and Nathan Garcia (18 points) led the Brahmas with nine first-half points each.

“We made an adjustment at halftime,” Hazelton said, noting that earlier in the year Port Isabel faced Kingsville King without Bencze earlier in the season. “We knew (this game) was going to be different.”

Pinkerton (eight points) and Rinza (13 points) combined for 13 of Port Isabel’s 18 second quarter points.

Lozano sank a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 6:04 remaining in the third quarter to give the Tarpons a 28-27 edge.

Bencze tied the game at 32 with a short two-handed floater with three minutes left in the third quarter.

He missed a chance to put Kingsville King ahead by a bucket when he split a trip to the throw line with 2:23 to go, and Lozano made him pay, knocking down another triple that sent the Tarpons back in front 35-33 with 2:06 to play in the third quarter.

“Dennis Lozano, he took off tonight,” Pinkerton said. “He played amazing. … He opened things up and we started talking more and clicking more. At first we were slow on our feet. … (We improved by focusing on) the little things, things like that.”

The third quarter ended with the two teams deadlocked at 36, and it was time for Lozano and Martinez to shine. The two combined for half of the Tarpons’ 26 points in the period.

“Dennis played outstanding,” Rinza said. “I gotta give him a lot of credit, he’s like my brother on this team. We’ve been playing since we were small. I told him ‘I didn’t want this to be our last game,’ so I just told him that whoever’s feeling it during the game to (have them) take the ball and we’ll back them up.”

Sophomore Josue Navarro came off the bench to make a huge block on Garcia’s three-point attempt that allowed Port Isabel to regain possession at the 4:55 mark, sending the already raucous Tarpons crowd into a further frenzy.

When Martinez’s deep 3 rattled in and out and in again, and a Kingsville King turnover led to Martinez standing all alone for an easy layup under the basket to provide the Tarpons a 47-38 cushion with 3:40 left, it was effectively over.

Next up for Port Isabel is an area round date with the winner of Devine and Navarro, who are slated to play at 6 p.m. today.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

RIO HONDO — After a six-year absence, Rio Hondo returns to the playoff stage Tuesday for a bi-district matchup against Sinton as one of the most improved teams in the Rio Grande Valley by a wide margin.

Coach Mike Alvarez guided the third-seeded Bobcats to a 9-5 finish in District 32-4A and a 20-14 overall record after ending last year’s district slate at 4-10.

“I think what they needed was structure,” Alvarez said. “And guidance on how to play the game and to simplify it into fundamentals. … Right now, we’re reaping the rewards from all the hard work they put in last year.”

Rio Hondo is led by senior captains Jabez Villarreal and CJ Leal, and senior Daniel Garcia.

A challenging non-district schedule that featured close losses to Harlingen High and Brownsville Veterans Memorial and a signature win over San Benito served as benchmarks along the way.

“Practice is a lot different (with Alvarez),” Leal said. “He really helps us a lot. … We’ve really improved a lot. Those games against those bigger schools, they’ve really helped a lot. I think we’re going to go into the playoffs thinking we’re going to win.”

The turning point of the Bobcats’ season was a road win over longtime rival Port Isabel. An overtime loss to Hidalgo also became a motivator for a hungry team eager to show it could hang tough with perennial powerhouse in 32-4A.

“We shouldn’t have lost that game,” Garcia said. “But after that, we knew this year was going to be our year. Beating (Port Isabel) was a big game for us, because it motivated us and we knew we could finish the season strong.

“The potential was always there. We just needed to come together.”

The Bobcats became a more cohesive unit in part because of the emergence of their top scorer, who has embraced his role as the go-to-guy in late game situations.

Villarreal is the eighth-best scorer in Class 4A, averaging 18 points and 10 rebounds per game. Garcia also is averaging a double-double, at 10 points and 10 boards per contest.

“When we start to move the ball around, it gets us open shots,” Villarreal said. “It just happens to be that I end up taking over when I have to. …. It’s just a blessing. These guys believe in me and I’m so thankful for that. It’s the same for me, I can trust them and I have their back all the time. It’s a bond that we’ve built this year.”

Sophomore Zechariah Rios (10 points and six rebounds per game) and Leal (eight points and six rebounds per game) are part of a balanced group that emphasizes sharing the ball.

“We’re always sharing the ball constantly,” Garcia said. “(We’re) talking on defense, calling screens, and it’s all brought us closer like a brotherhood. (Our chemistry) has been a lot stronger this year.”

Rios said he and his teammates are relishing the opportunity to restore the program’s status as a contender.

“It’s a great group of guys,” Rios said. “We’ve improved tremendously as a team. … It feels good because we know the talent this school has and the students that have come in and out of here. It’s been better all the way around.”

The Bobcats and Pirates (14-8, 10-3 31-4A) are set to tip off at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Harlingen High.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

Los Fresnos’ Thiago Almeida and Samuel Hernandez both competed in the Class 6A competition at the University Interscholastic League wrestling state championship meet Friday at the Berry Center in Cypress.

“They both wrestled hard,” Los Fresnos coach Kevin Nguyen said. “The competition here was amazing, and we got caught in some bad positions. Overall, I’m proud of them for getting here and leaving it all on the mat.”

Hernandez, at 195 pounds, finished the year with a 19-4 overall record. He lost in the first round to Joe Racicot of Katy Seven Lakes, with the match ending via pinfall at 4:57.

Almeida, at 106 pounds, wrapped up his season at 21-7. He was defeated in the first round by Eamonn Jimenez of Killeen Ellison by pinfall at 1:20.

“Thiago is only a sophomore,” Nguyen said. “So I’m excited for him to get this experience so early in his career. I can’t wait to see what he brings back next year.”

In the girls bracket, San Benito’s Yamilex Perez was the lone representative from the East Valley.

She lost her first round match in the 165-pound division to Arlington High’s Pamela Escobedo in a 9-1 major decision.

The Lady ’Hounds’ senior captain ended the season at 27-5.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

RIO GRANDE CITY — Harlingen High rallied from a double-digit deficit to set up Emery Scoogins with a chance to force overtime against Laredo United South during the closing seconds of their area-round game Friday in Rio Grande City.

But Scoogins’ 3-point shot glanced off the glass and the rim, and the Panthers prevailed 41-38 to advance to the third round of the playoffs.

It was Harlingen High coach Ashley Moncivaiz’s second postseason loss — and fourth overall — against Laredo United South in six years as coach of the Lady Cardinals (30-8, 10-0 District 32-6A).

But with only one senior on each team’s roster, Friday’s clash figures to be the first of many high-caliber battles in the coming years between Moncivaiz and her counterpart, Laredo United South coach Leopoldo Guardiola.

“We’re a team that’s loaded with talent and skill,” Guardiola said. “And we’re young. … All in all, it was a tough win to get through. The playoffs are tough, and every game’s going to get harder. We grew today.”

The Lady Panthers led 10-8 at the end of the first quarter, and Harlingen High obtained its first lead for a brief period of the second quarter, when Rosa Zapata fed Juli Bryant for an easy layup with 6:33 to play to go up 12-10.

Dezerae DeLaGarza led the way for Laredo United South with 18 points, 11 of which came during the first half. She made three 3s, the last of which came from the top of the key following a timeout with 3:03 to play that put the Lady Panthers up 20-12.

The Lady Cardinals were plagued by turnovers and missed several open looks that contributed to the double-digit deficit they faced at the end of the first half.

The Lady Panthers led 24-12 at the half, outscoring Harlingen High 14-4 during the second period.

Laredo United South’s length and active hands gave them an edge on the defensive end, disrupting the flow of the Lady Cardinals’ offense.

Callie Cervantes (12 points) and Juli Bryant (nine points) sparked Harlingen High’s second-half comeback, outscoring the Lady Panthers 17-7 in the third quarter.

“I told them at halftime that we weren’t playing together,” Moncivaiz said. “We were standing and watching, expecting other people to do their job, instead of trusting (each other) and playing as a team.”

Cervantes was 8-for-8 from the free throw line during the second half, and the Lady Cardinals shot 67 percent from the charity stripe (11-for-16), up from 50 percent on 4 of 8 from the line in the first half.

“I told my kids (after the game) I was proud of them, and they can’t be mad,” Moncivaiz said. “In the third quarter, we started three freshmen, one sophomore and one junior. And you saw the energy from them.”

With the game tied at 33, Laylhn Badiuru put the Lady Cardinals in front with 5:11 to go, putting back a miss from Sydney Portillo to give Harlingen High its first edge of the second half.

But it was short-lived, as DeLaGarza sent the Lady Panthers in front with 4:10 to play, making both of her free throws to go up 37-35. Cervantes was perfect again from the charity stripe to knot the game at 37 with 2:40 left, but Harlingen High never led again.

“We created some turnovers, and we didn’t finish some easy shots at the end,” Moncivaiz said. “We did get to the line, we did make some shots, but we turned over the ball, and that was one of the things that hurt us.”

Laredo United South’s Angelina Lopez drove through the lane for an uncontested layup and a 39-37 edge with 1:30 left, the last made field goal attempt of the contest.

DeLaGarza and Millie Hernandez sealed the game at the free throw line, with Hernandez providing the crucial final point that forced Harlingen High to attempt a 3 to try to send the game to overtime.

Hernandez finished with seven points for Laredo United South. Avery Hinojosa had eight points for the Lady Cardinals.

The Lady Panthers advance to the regional quarterfinal round to face Edinburg High, which defeated Laredo Alexander 56-44 on Friday.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

Hanna’s Sabian Arceneaux earned the distinction of being the first Golden Eagles player to sign a letter of intent to compete at the collegiate level in 2020 when he signed Jan. 8.

Like many basketball players and others competing in winter sports, he has yet to officially begin his track season, but the Coe College signee said he plans to make his season debut at the 65th running of the annual Sams Relays on Saturday.

Arceneaux plans to compete in the high jump, the 400 and the 1,600 relay.

“I’m trying to mainly focus on (the) high jump and set (a personal record) this year,” Arceneaux said. “Hopefully I’ll make it as far as I can. … I’m excited to see how I do at my first meet and just go from there.

“I usually get my best 400 times when I’m (running in the 1,600 relay) because I have to do better for my teammates.”

He may have a little extra hop in his steps at Sam Stadium because of the challenge of a bigger field of competitors.

“I like that there’s different teams from further away, not just competing against the Brownsville area. There’s Corpus Christi teams and (teams from) deeper into the (Rio Grande Valley).”

In 2018, Sabian’s sister, Marie, signed to play softball with Mount Mercy University, a school located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that competes in NAIA.

He eventually found that his new athletic and academic home would be a little more than a mile away from Marie’s at Coe College.

“When my sister first went (to Mount Mercy), I went around (town),” Sabian Arceneaux. “I had a campus invite (from Coe College), and walked around the campus and met with all the coaches. … I guess you could say (it was because of my sister) because Iowa is pretty far from Brownsville.”

Coe College is a private liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Kohawks compete in the American Rivers Athletic Conference in NCAA Division III.

Arceneaux said his coaches at Hanna were helpful in helping him find the best athletic and academic fit for him, while reminding him that maintaining or improving his performance in his last season will only be to his benefit.

He still has one more significant decision to make.

“I’m looking at majoring in nursing or engineering,” Arceneaux said. “I’m not sure yet which one, but I’m leaning towards nursing.”

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

Hanna’s Shannon Perez had a dilemma many student-athletes dream of having — a decision of which sport she was going to play at the collegiate level.

For Perez, signing with Texas Lutheran University to play soccer instead of cross country was a relatively easy choice, but one that at least merited consideration due to the senior’s status as a two-time District 32-6A champion as a distance runner.

She made that commitment official Thursday at the Hanna auditorium, surrounded by family and friends.

While she was beloved by cross country coach Olaya Teran and her teammates, several of whom were present for her signing, the soccer field was always where Perez’s heart was.

Despite her diminutive stature, she developed a reputation as one of the area’s most tenacious defenders, earning a spot as a freshman on the varsity roster and quickly winning over Lady Golden Eagles coach Eliseo Guzman. Perez’s parents credited her middle school coaches for her aggressive on-field mentality, as well as her introduction to the sport playing on a co-ed club team.

“I think it’s because I play smart,” Perez said. “I know I’m not the fastest out there or the most skilled, but I know how to play and I’ve known the game since I was little. I pretty much know where the (opponent) is going to go even before she knows she’s going to go there.”

Guzman praised Perez’s ability to read and react to oncoming attackers as the play developed, with or without the ball.

“She knows how to anticipate the plays,” Guzman said. “When they send the ball, she’s already running to the ball. She gets there before the offensive players.”

Perez said the coaching staff at TLU saw her play at a tournament San Antonio, and that both parties had been correspondence prior to that.

“I just decided that I felt more comfortable signing with soccer than I did for cross country,” Perez said. “I do have a passion for soccer. I do love cross country with all my heart, but soccer is where it’s at.”

At TLU, Perez intends to study biology and follow a pre-med track.

“Coming off of middle school and going into high school, I was a completely different player and played with players I had never seen before,” Perez said. “I’m excited to play in college and see girls from other states and other countries.”

TLU is a private university in Seguin. The Bulldogs compete in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

HARLINGEN — Freshman Morgan Peralez had 10 first-half points and 19 total to lead Weslaco High to a road victory in its playoff opener in the bi-district round, 54-43 against Harlingen South on Tuesday.

Against a South squad known for its effective outside shooting, Weslaco High coach Griselda Fino took a more old-school approach, running the floor and finding open looks in the paint, exploiting Peralez’s height advantage as a matchup in their favor against the smaller Lady Hawks.

“Our strategy was to run,” Fino said. “We can definitely do that, and turn around and play some defense. We knew we were going to be outmatched going against — they’re pretty much all guards — with our big (Peralez) in there defensively.”

The Lady Panthers led 12-5 at the end of the first quarter, and also limited South to five points during the decisive third quarter.

Allyah Guevara hit a 3 for the Lady Hawks to cut the deficit to 16-10 with 6:12 to go in the second quarter, and a steal off of an inbounds pass by South’s Bianca Gonzalez led to a Laura Ramirez layup.

During the Lady Hawks’ next possession, Karla Reyes (11 points) connected from downtown to trim the Weslaco High lead to one with 4:53 to go, prompting a Lady Panthers timeout.

On the ensuing possession, Amber Lopez (nine points) capped the South scoring run with a trey from the top of the key to give the Lady Hawks their first lead of the night, 18-16 with four minutes to play in the first half.

Laura Ramirez finished with eight points for Harlingen South.

Weslaco High responded with back-to-back buckets and went up 20-18 with 2:56 to go.

Julia Celis’ perfect trip to the line for South evened the game at 20 with 2:06 remaining, and Lopez was good again from three-point range to put the Lady Hawks up 23-22 with one minute to play in the period.

Layups by Jazmin Saenz (nine points) and Haley Villalpando — the latter bucket was of the coast-to-coast variety following a steal — during the final 23 seconds of the second quarter gave Weslaco High a 26-23 edge at the end of the first half.

Kirsten Padilla had seven points for Weslaco High, all of them coming in the second half to help

Her team begin to take control of the game.

The Lady Panthers opened an 11-point lead with one minute to go in the period and led 39-28 at the end of the third quarter. Peralez was responsible for seven of her team’s 13 points in the quarter.

“She started coming along halfway through our season,” Fino said. “She moved along really fast. She has a huge impact on our team. Believe it or not, she’s still learning. … My goodness, she’s tremendous. I think she’s helped us along the stretch, these last few ballgames she’s really, really come through for us.”

Saenz made a layup while drawing a hard foul in the first 10 seconds of the fourth quarter and knocked down the free throw to give Weslaco High its largest lead of the night at 42-28.

The veteran came through with several key assists and steals during the second half to widen the margin down the stretch.

“The thing about (Saenz) is nobody really looks at her and says, ‘We have to stop her,’” Fino said. “That’s the beauty of her, she’s so unselfish and she’s such a team player. She’s one of my captains for that reason. … If we ask her to guard the other team’s best player, Jazmin does that. If we ask her to guard a post (player), she will do that. If I tell her, ‘All you have to do for us is get 10 boards tonight and we’re gonna win the game,’ that’s what she’ll do. And I love her for that. I’m so proud of the fact she had a big game tonight.”

Celis made a short jumper out of a timeout with just less than three minutes remaining to cut the deficit to eight, but the Lady Hawks were reduced to sending the Lady Panthers to the free throw line, where the visitors put the game out of reach with less than one minute to go.

“Harlingen South is a great team,” Fino said. “They’re a senior ballclub, (Reyes) has been around for a long time, and my hat’s off to all of them because they really fought for everything tonight. They really showed that they wanted to win.”

In the area round, the Lady Panthers are set to face Laredo Nixon, which defeated McAllen Memorial 42-38 on Tuesday.

By STEFAN MODRICH, Staff Writer

DONNA — Harlingen High coach Ashley Moncivaiz’s teams like to send a message to their opponents.

The first of several statements the Lady Cardinals made with their play on the court Monday night at Donna North was as follows: If you’re going to cross halfcourt with the ball safely in your hands, you’re going to have to work for it.

As it happened, the Lady Chiefs didn’t leave their end of the court until the 6:18 mark of the first quarter, turning the ball over on each of their first four possessions as Harlingen High eased to a 68-15 bi-district playoff victory.

The Lady Cardinals opened the game on a 10-0 run and never looked back.

“We wanted to make sure we set the tone with defense,” Moncivaiz said. “A lot of times people want to set the tone with offense, but for us you’ve got to set the tone with defense and let our offense go from there.”

Eleny Cavazos’ second free-throw attempt with 4:52 in the first period was Donna North’s first point of the game.

The Lady Cardinals led 21-8 after the first quarter and went on to outscore Donna High 24-0 in the second quarter.

Despite the absence of the injured Alexus Coto, Harlingen High didn’t miss a beat offensively.

Avery Hinojosa scored 10 points during the first half and made two 3-pointers, the second of which was one of four total from Harlingen High in their second-quarter scoring barrage. She was one of three Lady Cardinals to reach double figures, along with Portillo (11 points) and Emery Scoogins (10 points).

Freshman Rosa Zapata had nine points for Harlingen High, and junior Callie Cervantes added seven points.

“We’ve always said that we don’t want to depend on one or two people,” Moncivaiz said. “We want to make sure our team has enough people to contribute on the court.”

Scoogins was fouled hard and knocked down as she drilled a corner 3 with 3.5 seconds left to give Harlingen High a 45-8 lead at the break. Her third trey of the game came with 6:36 remaining in the fourth quarter and gave the Lady Cardinals a 51-point advantage.

“When I hit that 3, I just felt the rush and the adrenaline,” Scoogins said. “Once I hit that, I felt like everything else was going in. Everyone else on the team was feeling it, so we just kept on pushing (the pace) and feeling good. It feels like when we’re playing together, there’s no one in the gym, we’re just having fun and playing our game.”

Harlingen High managed to limit the Lady Chiefs to just seven points during the second half.

Donna North’s first points since the first quarter came on a free throw by Jennifer Vargas with 5:01 to play in the third quarter. Harlingen High led 56-11 at the end of the period.

Senior Briana Palomares had seven points, and Gabriela Aviles posted four points to lead the Lady Chiefs.

In the area round, the Lady Cardinals are set to face Laredo United South, which defeated La Joya High 63-36 on Monday.

By STEFAN MODRICH | Staff Writer

Los Fresnos’ Thiago Almeida and Samuel Hernandez earned state qualifying spots at the Region IV-6A final Saturday at Littleton Gymnasium in San Antonio, and the rest of the Falcons were named alternates.

“Overall, our kids wrestled hard,” Los Fresnos coach Kevin Nguyen said. “There’s a lot of tough kids up here at the regional tournament. No one gave up,they (left it all) on the mat.”

The District 16-6A champions had six all-region wrestlers, including Almeida (fourth place) at 106, Roman Rodriguez (fifth place) at 120, Fabian Sosa (fifth place) at 126, Hernandez (fourth place) at 195 and Leeroy Guerrero (sixth place) at 220.

In the girls bracket, Karen Waters finished in fifth place at 215.

“I think one (thing) we need to work on next week at state is limiting our mistakes,” Nguyen said. “Mistakes caught a couple of our kids. And mistakes become less and less forgiving as we advance.”

San Benito captain Arturo Solis advanced to the second day of the regional final, where his postseason ended in an eighth-place finish in the 160-pound weight class.

“The guys tried their best, and with a young team this was a great learning experience,” San Benito coach Xavier Perez said. We had (Solis) advance to Day 2 of the tournament (where he finished in the) top eight. Unfortunately, we did not advance anyone to state.”

The top wrestler for the Lady ’Hounds was Yamilex Perez, who finished third at 165, qualifying for the state meet and improving her overall record to 26-3.

By STEFAN MODRICH | Staff Writer

Brownsville Veterans Memorial senior diver Nico Alvarez finished in 11th place at the University Interscholastic League state meet Saturday at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin.

“Nico did well (Saturday),” Chargers diving coach Mark Schlatter said. “He climbed two spots and finished in (third place). He was consistent, and that was the difference.”

By finishing in the top 16, Alvarez earned the designation of second-team all-state. He was originally seeded 13th. In 2019, Alvarez finished seventh at the state meet.

“I improved on my concentration a lot,” Alvarez said. “The best part of state was staying consistent on all my dives and not regretting how I did on any one of them.

“(I’m) really grateful to represent Brownsville,” Alvarez added. “I did it for the 956.”

In Class 6A, Los Fresnos freshman Jada Ashford swam in the 50-meter freestyle, where she made it to the consolation final.

Los Fresnos coach Jaime Perez said he was pleased with his team’s performance.

“For seven of our eight girls, this was their first trip to state,” Perez said. “We didn’t win but we did learn and it was a good experience for the girls. We had a successful season, and preparation for next year starts tomorrow. I am confident that we will be back next year and continue to improve one step at a time. I would like to thank my assistant coach, Ivan Hernandez, and our diving coach, Stefanie Esquibel, for all of their hard work. … Go Falcons!”

Ashford (24.26) placed 15th overall.

Despite being awestruck by the new environment at first, Ashford said she was appreciative of the opportunity to qualify for state in her first year with the Lady Falcons.

“Going into the meet it was a shock to see all the swimmers and a crowd,” Ashford said. “I was imagining it a lot different. Despite my experience, this was for sure different but I am very grateful to swim in such an amazing facility.”

The Lady Falcons’ top performer already is looking ahead to next season.

“Now that I am done, I can prepare for next year’s state (meet) by going into the meet with a more positive mindset and a higher confidence,” Ashford said. “I am definitely going back to the Valley to continue practicing and preparing for next year’s season.”