By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
HARLINGEN — The Harlingen High gym was buzzing with intensity when the fifth set of a District 32-6A match between the Lady Cardinals and the visiting Brownsville Rivera Lady Raiders began.
Harlingen High, ranked No. 16 by the Texas Girls Coaches Association, was 7-0 in district play coming into the match. It only lost one set during the first round.
The Lady Cardinals won the first two sets against Rivera, but the Lady Raiders came roaring back to win the next two, forcing a fifth set. And when Harlingen High went up 4-0 in the decider, Rivera’s fighting spirit shined again.
Senior middle blocker Kimberly Chavez was tremendous at the net, recording blocks and slamming down kills to energize Rivera’s fifth-set win that capped a come-from-behind 22-25, 18-25, 29-27, 29-27, 15-11 victory.
“It feels so great. It’s my senior year, so it’s an amazing feeling to win and be one of the only teams to beat Harlingen,” Chavez said. “We had that fire, and it helped us win the game today.”
The Lady Cardinals looked poised to clinch their seventh sweep in district. Even with the Lady Raiders tenaciously fighting back from deficits to take leads in both sets with help from errors, Harlingen High responded.
Outside hitters Juli Bryant and Casey Vidal and middle blocker Aaliyah Gomez were swinging well from the opening whistle for the Lady Cardinals. Setter Juliana Valdez was able to mix up her hitters because of solid passing from the back row, led by libero Elena Aguinaga.
Bryant was clutch down the stretch during the second set to lift the Lady Cardinals to victory. Rivera held as large as a six-point lead midway through the frame, then Bryant took control. She sliced a kill down the line to give the Lady Cardinals the advantage at 16-15. From there, she didn’t look back, and she slammed down hard hits and defended tips well to lead her team to a 2-0.
Harlingen High quickly went up 5-0 in the third set and was firmly in control as Gomez played strong on the net. Gomez was a top contributor for the Lady Cards attack throughout the match and recorded several blocks and deflections. Rivera trimmed its deficit to 16-14, but then Gomez notched a kill to end the rally.
But the Lady Raiders didn’t go away. Rivera’s back row, anchored by libero Richelle Guerra and aided by defensive specialists Ashlyn Tapia and Darlyng Longoria, hustled to dig Harlingen High’s hitters and passed well to keep the Lady Raiders in system. That allowed Kimberly Chavez and Naylah Trevino to put down nice kills and spark an inspired Rivera comeback.
“Those first two sets were rough. We were right there,” Rivera coach Liz Avelar-Guerra said. “They started fighting back and they didn’t give up, and I’m so proud of them. They came together as a team, they refused to give up, and they got that win. They deserved it. It’s fantastic to see them play like that.”
Senior outside hitter Kenya Ibarra, an every-rotation player, had some timing issues with setter Clarissa Olivares early. Ibarra stayed composed and mixed heavy kills with well-placed tips to keep Rivera in the game.
Vidal and the Lady Cardinals tried to target Ibarra when she was playing defense, and they had some success early. As the match rolled on, Ibarra adjusted to the attack, helping the Lady Raiders’ improved passing efficiency and relentless back row effort that came up big in the comeback.
With the system running smoothly, Olivares got additional Lady Raiders involved in the attack. Chavez, Trevino and middle blocker Alondra Garza got better as the match went on, and they delivered timely kills and tips during the final two sets.
“They came together as a team. Instead of yelling at each other, they were talking, helping each other, and it was beautiful,” Avelar-Guerra said. “(Chavez) really came through with the blocks and (Garza) was hitting really good, too. Those two girls played really well, and (Trevino) came in and got some good kills when we needed them.”
Chavez notched five blocks during the fifth set and hammered down three kills. Ibarra had a hot hand late, too, and her back row defense was solid to help Rivera’s scrappy defensive specialists. The Lady Raiders hustled after everything, diving for short tips and chasing errant passes, and did well to force Harlingen High to commit a plethora of attack errors down the stretch.
“The support from my teammates (helped my performance). We were getting hype after every point we got, and the more hype it was, we just built it from there,” Chavez said. “After winning this game, we’re not satisfied yet. We’re still going to go back to practice and keep working hard for every other team.”
The thrilling upset lifts Rivera to 6-2 in district play and Harlingen High falls to 7-1, shaking up the title race with the second round of district underway.
“It is what it is, it happened, and we’re not going to dwell on it because we still have a goal and that is the district championship,” Harlingen High coach Joslynn Torres said. “Sometimes this has to happen, and that’s so cliché to say, but it does. This is going to put a fire under our butts. … The team that’s going to win the game is the one that wants it more, the one that’s going to fight harder. All the credit to Rivera.”