By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Not surprisingly, the greatest moments in Brownsville high school soccer history have come while city teams played for a state championship.
In this final installment of The Brownsville Herald’s summer-long “Brownsville is Futbol” series, the focus is on five matches involving city teams that stand out as all-time best moments for Brownsville soccer since the UIL sport started in Texas in 1983.
Four of those five defining events took place as Brownsville boys teams played at the highest level for a UIL state title.
Here are The Herald’s Top 5 greatest moments in Brownsville soccer history with a summary of each game:
No. 1 – PORTER WINS STATE ON 20-PLAYER PK MARATHON
The date was April 16, 2016. The Porter Cowboys faced the Frisco Wakeland Wolverines in the Class 5A state final at Georgetown ISD’s Birkelbach Field. Both teams were undefeated and Frisco Wakeland was nationally ranked.
What transpired was an epic soccer match that was deadlocked 2-2 after 100 minutes of regulation and overtime action. It finally wasn’t decided until the 20th player — 10 from each squad — had attempted his penalty kick and missed.
It was an amazing and dramatic conclusion as Porter prevailed 3-2 by winning the PK sudden-death shootout 10-9 to end the season 28-0-1. The highly regarded Wolverines, boasting NCAA Division I recruits, finished 25-1-1.
With his second goal of the match, Porter’s Alexis Armendariz, a junior forward, gave the Cowboys a 2-1 edge with eight minutes left in regulation. But with only 1:09 to go in regulation, Wakeland rallied and came up with a remarkable goal when the ball hit the left post and ricocheted across the goalmouth to narrowly settle into the net just inside the right post.
After neither team could score in OT to break the 2-2 stalemate, the match went to penalty kicks, where 10 players for each team attempted a PK.
In a shining moment for Porter, while under immense pressure, all 10 Cowboys converted their penalty tries. Those players (in order) were Uriel Sepulveda, Marco Don Juan, Enrique Soto, Armendariz, Harambe Garcia, Anthony Cuellar, Esteban Mata, Angel Silva, Luis Lara and Ricardo Vidal. The PK attempt of the 10th Wakeland player hit the right post and bounced away, setting off an emotional, jubilant celebration on the field and Porter sideline as the Cowboys prevailed 10-9 in PKs to earn a 3-2 victory.
Armendariz, who finished the season with 31 goals and 17 assists, was named 5A boys MVP at the state tournament and later was chosen All-Valley boys soccer MVP.
Also, Porter freshman goalkeeper Mario Rios made his first starts of the season in the state semifinal and final to earn all-tournament honors along with teammates Alexis Anzures and Marco Don Juan.
On that day, Porter, which had won the 5A soccer crown in 2006, became the only Valley school to capture more than one UIL state championship in any team sport.
“It was an honor to have been part of the 2016 Porter team,” Cowboys coach Jose Espitia said. “It was a total team effort. Our boys worked together like a well-oiled machine and deserve every single recognition they’ve received.”
No. 2 – LOPEZ WINS VALLEY’S FIRST STATE TITLE IN SOCCER
The date was April 17, 2004. It was the day the Lopez Lobos captured the Valley’s initial UIL state championship in soccer. It all began with Lopez as the Lobos were the first of six Valley teams to bring home UIL state crowns.
Due to a downpour and lightning in Georgetown on April 10, the original scheduled day for the Class 4A state boys final, the title match was postponed until one week later at Cabaniss Field in Corpus Christi. There, the Lobos confronted favored Brenham, a team with a 32-game winning streak.
Valley fans at Cabaniss Field outnumbered the Brenham faithful 2-to-1 and the day eventually belonged to Lopez. The Lobos went up 2-0 during the first nine minutes thanks to goals by Jose “Bebo” Ramos and Ivan Morales, and Lopez wound up winning 2-1 against a stunned Brenham squad. Brenham scored during the 77th minute, but it was not enough.
The 25-4-1 Lobos that season were blessed with a pair of talented junior forwards in Ramos and Enrique “Chicle” Rivera. Each finished the year with approximately 30 goals. The Lopez midfield consisted of standout players such as Morales and Roberto Galvan. The defense was led by Joe Lopez, the team’s designated spokesman, and his younger brother Mando Lopez.
“I would say that winning the championship in 2004 — against all odds for we were facing a formidable opponent — gave every team in the Valley the mental assertion that our style of soccer (in South Texas) was good enough to compete against anyone at the state level,” Lopez coach Amadeo Escandon said. “I can recall on a personal note in 1986 when we (were Hanna players and) advanced to the regional tournament in San Antonio. Although I wasn’t a starter, the talk amongst ourselves was not about our team and how well we were playing, but rather about how tall, strong and fast the players from San Antonio were. Mentally, we had already lost the game and it reflected on the final score as we lost 3-1.
“I almost made the same mistake as a coach in 2004 as I gave our players scouting reports on potential (playoff) opponents from San Antonio and North Texas,” Escandon added. “I recall how ‘Bebo’ came up to me and told me straight up, ‘Coach, you worry too much about the other team. We’re going to beat them.’ That was the mentality the rest of the team shared, and that, I believe, is the greatest legacy the 2004 team gave to the rest of the Valley teams.”
No. 3 – RIVERA RAIDERS BECOME STATE’S FIRST 6A BOYS CHAMPS IN SOCCER
The date was April 18, 2015. The Raiders took on Katy Cinco Ranch in the title game of the UIL’s newly created Class 6A division of the state tournament at Georgetown.
Because of inclement weather conditions and a revised, backed up schedule, Rivera had to play two matches within less than 24 hours. The Raiders beat North Mesquite 5-1 in a state semifinal that lasted past midnight into Saturday, April 18, and came back the same day in the evening to top Cinco Ranch 2-0 for the 6A championship. It was roughly two games within a 16-hour span.
Rivera that season was probably the most dominant team the Valley has ever produced in soccer as the Raiders finished 28-0. For the first time, a Valley team won state with a perfect record. It was a Rivera team featuring an unrelenting offensive attack that included Eliseo Ortiz (26 goals), Isidro “Chelin” Martinez (23) and Alexis Herrera (22).
Martinez was chosen 6A boys MVP at state and teammates Ortiz and Herrera joined him on the all-tournament team along with brothers Israel and Eliezer “Chaii” Acero.
Martinez made it 1-0 just 16 minutes into the title match and it became 2-0 by halftime. Cinco Ranch never seemed to have a chance.
The feeling of exhilaration after winning it all was best summed up by Hernan Cruz, a junior defensive midfielder for the 2015 team.
“No words can explain how happy and excited we are, knowing that we’re 28-0 with a perfect season, making our dream come true and not being the team of ‘almost there, almost there,’” Cruz said. “An undefeated season with a state title is unimaginable.
“Since the beginning we knew it was going to be tough and everything, but we stayed humble and stayed together as a family, as brothers and as a unit, just playing Rivera’s style of soccer,” Cruz added. “That’s what helped us get to state and go 28-0.”
Added coach Salvador Garcia, “It”s amazing not only to win it all and go undefeated, but the way we did it by playing an attractive, beautiful style.”
No. 4 – PORTER PULLS OFF IMPROBABLE UPSET AGAINST POWERHOUSE COPPELL
The date was April 15, 2006. The site was Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex in Round Rock, where Porter battled state soccer powerhouse and No. 2 nationally ranked Coppell for the 5A championship.
The stunning result was Porter’s first UIL state championship thanks to a pair of timely goals by senior forward Jorge Briones, who helped the Cowboys rally from a 1-0 deficit to prevail 2-1 in overtime.
The championship match went to overtime after 80 minutes of scoreless action in regulation. Having recorded a decided edge in shots on goal, it was no surprise that Coppell went up 1-0 in OT. But then the Cowboys came alive and scored the next two goals off the foot of Briones to win 2-1 in OT. It was a shocker for Coppell, whose fans had been yelling “USA, USA” to spite Porter as being a school on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Briones was named 5A boys MVP at state. Also selected to the all-tournament team for 22-4-5 Porter that season were defensive midfielder Diego Rodriguez, defender Michael Cedillo, center midfielder Mario Perez and goalkeeper Eric Chapa, who made 12 saves in the state semifinal and 11 saves vs. Coppell.
Other standouts for Porter included Edgar Acuna, Jovanny Briones, Juan Razo, Wilfredo Fernandez, Aldo Sierra and Gerardo Herrera.
“It was amazing,” said Jose Luis Zarate, who coached the Cowboys that season and now coaches golf at Brownsville Veterans Memorial. “All the hard work in the offseason and regular season paid off. The motto was ‘Believe in your abilities — you belong here.’ ‘Si se pudo’ (Yes, we could).”
No. 5 – LOPEZ, PORTER PLAY BEFORE LARGEST CROWD TO SEE A CITY SOCCER GAME
The date was April 9, 2011. The site was Brownsville Sports Park, where Porter and Lopez squared off on a sunny Saturday afternoon in the Region IV-5A final with a trip to the UIL state tournament in Georgetown awaiting the winner.
The event attracted a crowd of between 4,000 and 4,500, which set a record as the largest turnout to ever watch a soccer game in Brownsville. It was one of the few times the stands of the main soccer field at BSP have been almost filled to capacity for a sporting event. The line of fans waiting to enter the stadium stretched back more than a football field long, winding around the parking lot.
The previous record of approximately 2,000 spectators was set on April 2, 2004, when Lopez played on its home field and defeated Porter 1-0 in the Region IV-4A final.
The two teams’ regional final matchup of 2011 at BSP had a different outcome as Porter triumphed 2-0 and advanced to state for the third time. The officiating in that 2011 match didn’t please either team as Moises “Moy” Gonzalez, Lopez’s standout midfielder, was red-carded on a questionable call and forward Alan Cortinas, Porter’s leading scorer, was sent off after receiving his second yellow card.
The Cowboys moved on to the 5A state semifinals, where they lost six days later to Round Rock McNeil 2-1 and finished the season 32-4.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess