By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald
The UIL state soccer tournament opens this week in Georgetown and there’s one thing missing.
This year, for the first time since 2012, there will be no Brownsville team playing at state.
Brownsville’s five-season streak of having at least one team at state (2013-2017) has ended.
This season’s best hope for a Brownsville team in Georgetown didn’t materialize as Brownsville Veterans Memorial was downed 3-1 by undefeated Valley View (31-0) in Saturday’s Region IV-5A final at Corpus Christi’s Cabaniss Field.
Brownsville’s most recent streak of sending teams to Georgetown includes state championships by the Rivera Raiders in 2015 and Porter Cowboys in 2016, both finishing with undefeated records.
Actually, Brownsville has had a boys team playing at state 11 times out of the last 14 seasons (2004-2017).
Hanna coach Reyes Prado said there are always high expectations for Brownsville soccer teams that at times may seem too unrealistic.
Still, the Brownsville teams always aim for the best possible finish every season and believe they can do it.
“Yes, it seems strange (not to have a Brownsville team at state this year) because of the fact that we have set up the bar very high and the expectations are way too high for Brownsville soccer,” Prado said. “(But) I think one school from Brownsville, or maybe even two, will go back to the state tournament next year.
“Considering we have so many high schools in this town, it is always a great accomplishment to send our soccer teams to the state tournament,” he added.
The city’s first UIL state championship in soccer was won in 2004 by the Lopez Lobos, who captured the Class 4A title. Since then, there have been a pair of Class 5A state titles won by Porter (2006 and 2016) and one in Class 6A won by Rivera (2015). The Raiders’ state crown of four seasons ago, captured with a 28-0 record, gave Rivera the honor of winning Texas’ inaugural 6A crown in boys soccer.
“The streak (by Brownsville teams) was impressive while it lasted,” Rivera coach Salvador Garcia said. “I have been saying it since the beginning of the year that I can see the rest of the (Rio Grande Valley’s) programs getting better.
“I do not know if it is because our standards (in Brownsville) are so high that having no teams in the state tournament (makes it feel like a down year),” Garcia added. “Personally, it feels like a disappointment. I think there is no time to relax and it is time to start another streak.”
The beauty of city’s soccer prowess is all six of Brownsville ISD’s schools have displayed their might on the soccer field with four BISD teams making it to state multiple times.
Lopez has advanced to state a Valley-record five times (2004, 2009, 2014, 2016 and 2017), while Porter has gone four times (1984, 2006, 2011 and 2016). Rivera has advanced three times (2005, 2007, 2015) and Hanna twice (1990 and 2013).
Lopez (6A) and Porter (5A) both went to Georgetown in 2016.
Pace and Brownsville Veterans have come within a victory of making it to state more than once. The Vikings have played in the regional final three times (2006, 2007 and 2016) and come up short against another Brownsville team each time. The Chargers made it to the regional final in 2017 and 2018 only to fall short against Lopez and Valley View.
“My guys kept playing hard (against Valley View) until the very end,” Brownsville Veterans coach Alberto Vasquez said Saturday. “They kept fighting and fighting. I’m extremely proud of the way they showed up to play. Unfortunately, things just didn’t go our way this time.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess