By ROY HESS | Staff Writer
Soccer is indeed a game of surprises.
Things can change from day to day.
It was somewhat surprising when the PSJA High Bears suffered a 15-1 loss against Brownsville Veterans Memorial on Friday during the inaugural South Texas Futbol Showcase.
One day later, during Saturday’s final day of the Futbol Showcase, the Bears came out eager to prove they are a far better team than the previous day’s score indicated. They showed it by capturing a 2-1 victory against a favored Hanna squad on its home field to end the soccer event on a positive note.
The three-day, 18-team Futbol Showcase was played at Hanna, Rivera and Los Fresnos. There were three full 80-minute games at each site every day, starting Thursday. There was no tournament bracket play, nor a championship game.
While the Bears came out of Saturday’s match feeling a lot better about themselves, the Golden Eagles had to face the fact that anything can happen in soccer on any given day.
“We faced a team that I guess was hungry to win,” Hanna coach Reyes Prado said. “Our players came out a little flat, and that’s soccer. The Bears put the ball in twice, and we only put it in once. We had a lot of chances, but we couldn’t put the ball in (more than one time). We can’t make excuses about (going against) the wind (the second half) because they played against the wind, too.
“Unfortunately for us, that’s soccer.” Prado added. “That’s the way the game is played.”
It was a bright, sunny day with strong gusts of wind Saturday at Hanna.
Going against the wind during the first half, the Bears went up 1-0 before Hanna tied the score with a goal by Kevin Ochoa. PSJA High then took a 2-1 lead before halftime. The Bears came out and settled into a defensive posture for the entire second half, dropping eight to 10 players back to defend their goal the entire time.
Hanna, despite going against the blustery wind during the final 40 minutes, still controlled the action and had far more chances at the goal but just couldn’t find the mark.
“We’ve played several good teams throughout the preseason (before our district starts), and we’ve brought up our game,” Prado said. “This time around, after everybody heard the score from Friday (between PSJA High and Brownsville Veterans), you tend to let down your guard, I guess, and we ended up losing. I told our players, ‘Let’s not disrespect them, let’s play with intensity,’ but with (high school) players, it’s sometimes hard (after they see a score like that from the previous day).
“It happens,” Prado added. “It’s unfortunate, but it did happen to us, and I’m glad it happened at this point (of the season). Maybe we can humble ourselves now and not let our guard down against anyone else.”
Prior to Saturday’s setback, the Eagles defeated Laredo United and Edinburg Economedes by 3-1 scores during the first two days of the Futbol Showcase.
“We’re very happy with the way we’ve been playing against some very tough opponents,” Prado said. “Today, PSJA High was a good team that came out to play, and we ended up losing to a good team. It’s not a big deal because it happens. They were probably really determined, and I don’t blame them. After what happened Friday, their coach had them ready against us. It’s just one of those things that happens in soccer.”
Also on Saturday at Hanna, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln tied 0-0 with Laredo United and McAllen High defeated Jubilee Brownsville 7-0.
At Rivera, it was Lopez over Harlingen South 5-2, Rivera over Edinburg North 1-0 and Edinburg Economedes over La Joya High 1-0.
At Los Fresnos’ Leo Aguilar Memorial Stadium, Brownsville Veterans edged Los Fresnos 2-0, Porter shut out Edinburg Vela 5-0 and Pace topped San Benito 4-0.