Tuesday’s volleyball match between city rivals Mission Veterans and Mission High started just a bit more than 90 minutes late due to poor scheduling by host Mission.

When it finally started, the visiting Patriots did what they could to make up for the long-delayed start, getting their business done with a 25-15, 27-25, 25-16 sweep to improve to 4-0 in District 30-5A play.

The Patriots’’ win sets them up for a battle of the district’s unbeaten against Palmviewon Tuesday  if both teams win their matches on Saturday. Veterans hosts Laredo Nixon at noon and Palmview travels to PSJA High for a non-district match. Both teams are 4-0 in district and Palmview dethroned Mission Veterans as long-time defending district champions last year.

Senior Sophia Pacheco paced the Patriots highly improved attack, cranking out a game-best 18 kills and virtually being unstoppable when Veterans could put together a good pass, something they struggled with throughout the night. When Pacheco got those sets, however, she was money, often times finding a piece of empty court.

Freshman sensation Mady Perez added 12 kills and sophomore middle Delilah Cantu added 10 kills.

“Everybody needs to understand their role. If you’re not a go-to player, you have to wait for those sets,” Mission Veterans head coach Diana Lerma said. “You can’t get upset when balls are going to your go-to players and when you get your chances you have to come through. Mady and Sophia are a very good combination, and Delilah was there ready to put balls away too.

“That’s when we broke away in the first and third games, when they were all working together.”

Mission had fewer unforced errors throughout the night but both teams had long strings of sloppy play, including at the end of the second set. Mission held set point at 24-23 to tie the match at one set apiece but over the course of the final points the teams combined for a double, two service errors and an illegal rotation. Cantu then blocked a Mission attack and Patriots grabbed a 2-0 lead.

The Patriots, who seem to thrive on their organized chaos, something Lerma refers to as “jungle ball,” found their groove to kick off the third set and Mission helped with four attack errors, giving the visitors a commanding 13-4 third-set lead.

The three-headed offensive attack by Mission Veterans is something that has been on and off this season, but when it’s on, it’s effective as Pacheco and the Patriots showed Tuesday.

“My mentality was to come to the game thinking we had already won because this was a once in a lifetime thing because we haven’t played Mission in a district game in a while,” Pacheco said. “It was a big eye-opener but the key was to come in with a good mentality.”

The Patriots did exactly that. After having to wait extra long to get onto the court, they went to work right away. Perez opened with three kills in the first four points and Cantu added a quick kill in the middle and followed it up with a thunderous shot on an overpass, gifted from the Eagles. They pushed their lead to 12-5 in the first set on back-to-back shots from Pacheco.

They are so young, but they have so much talent.” Pacheco said especially about Perez and Cantu. “It helps me knowing they have my back and that they can kill the ball as well. I just wanted to keep swinging and hitting the spots on the floor.”

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Reported scores around the Rio Grande Valley and Coastal Bend area from Tuesday’s high school volleyball matches. Coaches, text your results – with district and overall records – to (956) 821-3834 or email to [email protected].

District 29-5A

CC VETERANS DEF. CC RAY 25-13; 25-8; 25-13

CC RAY (2-14, 0-4): Destanee Hargis, 7 kills, 19 digs, 1 ace; Sophia Gomez 2 kills, 4 assists; Iliana Garcia 6 assists; Hylaria Lopez 10 digs; Leann Lopez 1 ace; Savannah Vela 1 block

CC VETERANS (21-4, 3-0): Nya White 11 kills, 2 blocks; Kianna Lanton 6 kills; Kayla Chavez 18 assists; Paige Ortiz 7 assists; Lily Garza 11 digs; Jazzlynn Escamilla 11 digs; Kaylee Worthington 3 aces, 2 blocks;

District 30-5A

PALMVIEW DEF. RIO GRANDE CITY 17-25, 25-20, 25-17, 12-25, 15-11
Palmview (13-8, 4-0): Valerie Gana 15 assists, 6 digs; Arizona Gauna 1 ace, 1 kill, 19 assists, 19 digs; Yanelli Castaneda 1 kill, 4 digs; Kylie Cantu 4 aces, 12 kills, 12 digs; 3 blocks; Camila Hinostrosa 5 kills, 1 block, 5 digs; Jessica Arevalo 1 kill, 1 assist; 42 digs; Jaylen Rosales 15 digs; Miley Zieske 1 ace, 17 kills, 31 digs; Ayleen Trevino 2 kills, 2 digs

Rio Grande City: Not Provided

JUAREZ-LINCOLN DEF. ROMA 25-23, 22-25, 25-20, 20-25, 15-12
Juarez-Lincoln (1-2 in district): Kimberly Reyna 2 aces, 12 kills, 1 block, 2 digs; Katelyn Garza 3aces, 4 kills, 27 digs; Alexandra Marroquin 7aces, 4 kills, 23 digs, 4 blocks; Stacy Jimenez 1 ace, 7kills, 8 digs; Sophie Peña 1 ace, 6 kills, 9 digs; April Marroquin 3 kills, 16 digs, 39 assist .

Roma: Stats not provided

MISSION VETERANS DEF. MISSION HIGH 25-15, 27-25, 25-16
Vets (19-4, 4-0): Sophia Pacheco 18 kills; Delilah Cantu 10 kills; Mady Perez 12 kills
Mission: Stats not provided

 

District 31-5A

SHARYLAND PIONEER DEF. MCALLEN MEMORIAL 25-20, 25-22, 25-11
Pioneer (21-3, 4-0): Florencia Curiel- 15 digs, 1 assist, 2 aces; Scarlet Verjel- 10 kills, 2 blocks, 1 ace, 2 dig; Elle Hill- 6 kills, 1 block; Izabella Cano- 7 kills, 7 digs, 1 ace, .5 block; Itzel Hernandez- 9 kills, .5 block; Ava Saenz- 5 kills, 4 dig; Hailey Botello- 32 assists, 10 digs, 1 block, 1 kill; Danica Gonzalez- 2 digs, 1 ace; Ashley Cervantes- 6 digs, 1 ace

Memorial: Not provided

MCALLEN HIGH DEF. PSJA SOUTHWEST 25-8, 25-12, 25-14
McAllen (18-10, 3-0): Kaylen Ottmers 7 digs 2 aces 2 assists; Karely Cantu 7 kills 2 blocks; Bella Rivera 7 kills 2 aces; Yaneli Rocha 1 kill 2 digs 2 aces 24 assists; Gabriela Estringel 7 kills 1 block; Giulliana Trevino 3 kills; Izabella Palacios 4 kills; Mackenzie Davidson 1 block; Braelyn Martinez 5 digs; Katelyn Vaden 3 digs 2 aces; Alyesha Morin 1 dig

Southwest (1-2 in district): Not provided

SHARYLAND DEF. MCALLEN ROWE 24-26, 25-19, 25-12, 23-25, 15-12
SHARYLAND (24-3, 2-1): Kenisha Martinez 8 kills; Pamela Pena 9 kills, 2 blocks; Kassandra De La Garza 11 kills, 40 assists, 2 blocks, 2 aces; Maria Rodriguez 2 kills, 2 blocks, 4 aces; Jayleen Berlanga 24 assists; Barbara Pena 1 blocks; Ivana Adame 2 blocks

ROWE (21-5, 1-3): Laana Palacios 19 assists, 2 aces, 9 digs; Aubry Castro 1 ace, 7 digs, 22 assists; Hailey Gonzalez 11 kills, 10 digs; Brianna Sanchez 11 kills, 1 assist, 10 digs, 2 blocks; Kendyl Keenan 13 kills, 2 digs, 3 blocks; Katelynn Tarbutton 6 kills, 1 dig, 3 blocks; Audrina Perez 3 kills, 3 digs; Andrea Gutierrez 1 kill, 1 block; Lynette Palacios 3 kills, 3 digs

EDINBURG VELA DEF. PSJA NORTH 25-10, 25-12, 25-8

Vela (22-5, 2-1): Abby Zamora 6 kills, 10 assists, 9 points, 2 aces; Lauren Hanson 5 kills, 17 assists, 18 points, 5 aces; Maddy Luedecker 10 kills, 3 digs, 8 points, 2 aces; Mia De La Garza 23 digs, 6 points, 1 ace; Savanah Rivera 3 kills, 3 blocks; Daya Meza 6 kills, 1 block; Fernanda Valdez 2 assists, 5 digs; Abry Ysquierdo 7 kills, 2 digs, 3 points, 1 ace; Gloria Salinas 5 digs, 2 points

PSJA North: Stats not provided

District 32-5A

BROWNSVILLE RIVERA DEF. DONNA 25-11, 25-10, 25-6
Donna (1-3 in district): Elisa Gonzalez 4 Kills; Alyson Perez 6 Assists; Desiree Guerra 1 Ace

Rivera (2-2 in district): Melannie Garza 18 kills, Xandria Johnson 6 kills; Gianna Cantu 3 aces 27 assists 6 Digs; Briana Ibarra 7 kills 3 digs; Cassandra Pardo 6 kills 4 digs

HARLINGEN SOUTH DEF. MERCEDES 25-15, 25-15, 25-15
South (13-12, 4-0): Stats not provided
Mercedes (1-3 in district): Stats not provided

District 32-3A

IDEA Frontier def. IDEA SPORTS PARK 25-4, 25-7, 25-9.
Frontier (14-6, 4-0): Stats not provided
Sports Park: Stats not provided

 

 

 

District 32-2A

LA VILLA DEF. PREMONT 25-13, 21-25, 18-25, 25-16, 15-10
La Villa (9-5, 1-0):
Rainee Cantu 10 digs 16pts 5kills 2 blocks; Dalilah Alaniz 20 assists 12 pts; Evelynne Martinez 5 digs 2 blocks 4 kills 3 pts
Premont: Not provided

Non-District scores
EDINBURG HIGH DEF. BROWNSVILLE VETERANS 25-17, 25-19, 25-21
EDINBURG (14-10): Ellie Garza – 16 digs, 2 assists, 2 aces; Jackie Garcia – 14 digs, 18 kills, 1 ace, 1 block; Makayla Olvera 26 digs, 2 assists, 1 block, 2 aces, 15 kills; Amanda Aguirre – 1 kill; Melanie Perez 12 digs, 35 assists; Emma Pantoja- 2 digs, 4 kills, 2 blocks; Danika Hernandez – 6 digs; Briseis Cortez – 2 digs; Giselle Sanchez – 2 digs, 1 assist, 4 kills, 2 aces, 1 block

VETERANS: Not provided

 

Reported scores and stats from Sept. 5-across the Rio Grande Valley and Coastal Bend. Coaches, text your results to (956) 821-3834 or email [email protected] and please include overall and district records. Thanks!

 

NON-DISTRICT
SHARYLAND HIGH DEF. PSJA HIGH 25-18, 25-22, 18-25, 25-19

SHARYLAND (23-3): Kenisha Martinez 17 kills, 2 assists, 4 blocks, 1 ace; Maria Rodriguez 3 kills, 3 blocks, 1 ace; Ivana Adame 2 kills, 1 block; Kassandra De La Garza 14 kills, 13 assists,4 blocks; Isabella Mendoza 2 kills; Sophia Mendoza 1 kill; Jayleen Berlanga 12 assists, 2 aces

PSJA HIGH (14-10): Information not provided

Other non-district score
Economedes def. La Feria in four sets, 3-1

DISTRICT 32-5A
BROWNSVILLE LOPEZ DEF. BROWNSVILLE RIVERA 18-25, 25-15, 21-25, 25-22, 15-11.
LOPEZ (18-7, 3-0): Jasmine Cortinas 18 kills, 33 digs, 10 aces; Jenny Shank 13 kills, 22 digs, 2 aces; Paola Solis 7 kills, 5 blocks, Keren Rangel 5 kills, 4 blocks; Chalene Granado 18 assists.
RIVERA (16-8, 1-2): Not provided

DONNA HIGH DEF. DONNA NORTH 25-13, 25-14, 25-23 (no other information provided)

DISTRICT 31-5A
SHARYLAND PIONEER DEF. PSJA NORTH 25-13, 25-12, 25-4

PIONEER (20-3, 3-0): Florencia Curiel: 5 digs, 2 aces, 2 assists; Izabella Cano: 7 digs, 4 kills, 8 aces; Hailey Botello: 12 digs, 19 assists, 1 kill, 1 ace; Elle Hill: 5 kills; Itzel Hernandez: 5 kills, 1 block; Scarlet Verjel: 6 kills, 2 aces; Ava Saenz: 7 kills, 3 digs, 1 block; Sofia Chapa: 2 aces; Ashley Cervantes: 4 digs; Danica Gonzalez: 2 digs
PSJA NORTH: Not provided

McALLEN MEMORIAL DEF. PSJA SOUTHWEST 25-11, 25-16, 25-17

MEMORIAL (16-6, 2-1): Larae Jones 4 kills, 8 digs; Karly Bazan 4 kills, 2 digs; Ana Davila 5 kills, 6 digs; Jozlyn Rodriguez 1 aces, 16 assist , 5 digs; Juliet Trevino 2 aces, 8 digs; Danara Cardenas 3 kills, 3 aces, 4 digs; Emma Farris 3 digs

PSJA SOUHWEST: Not provided

McALLEN HIGH DEF. McALLEN ROWE 25-18, 25-17, 25-13

McHI (17-10, 2-0): Kaylen Ottmers 1 kill, 10 digs; Karely Cantu 8 kills; Bella Rivera 10 kills 1 ace; Yaneli Rocha 3 kills 1 ace 40 assists; Gabriela Estringel 10 kills 2 aces 1 block; Giulliana Trevino 5 kills 1 block; Izabella Palacios 8 kills; Mackenzie Davidson 1 block; Braelyn Martinez 5 digs; Katelyn Vaden 5 digs 1 ace; Alyesha Morin 2 digs

ROWE (21-3, 2-0): Leana Palacios 8 digs, 4 asists; Aubry Castro 8 assists, 11 digs; Hailey Gonzalez 4 kills, 1 assist, 2 digs, 2 blocks; Brianna Sanchez 5 kills, 13 digs, 2 blocks; Kendyl Keenan 4 kills, 1 block; Katelyn Tarbutton 1 kill, 1 dig, 7 blocks; Audrina Perea 2 digs; Andrea Gutierrez 1 kill, 9 digs, 1 block

DISTRICT 30-5A
MISSION DEF. LAREDO MARTIN 25-14, 25-11, 25-11

MISSION (16-5, 2-0): Breanna Longoria 6 kills 3 blocks; Madison Garcia 3 kills 1 block; Joslyn Rodriguez 26 assists 2 blocks; Kayla Alaniz 9 kills; Vanessa Espinoza 7 kills; Victoria Guzman 2 kills 1 block 1 ace serve

MARTIN: Not provided

MISSION VETERANS DEF. RIO GRANDE CITY 25-16, 25-22, 25-12

VETERANS (18-4, 3-0): Sophia Pacheco 10 kills, 4 digs, 2 blocks; Mady Perez 11 kills, 1 ace, 19 digs; Delilah Cantu 9 kils, 3 assists, 5 digs, 3 blocks; Evioria Garcia 1 kill, 5 assists, 26 digs; Heather Flores 2 kills, 27 assists, 9 digs

RGC: Not provided

DISTRICT 29-5A
FLOUR BLUFF DEF. CC MOODY 25-9, 25-13, 25-14
FLOUR BLUFF (17-12, 3-0): Lola Fisher 21 assists, 6 digs, 4 aces; Maggie Croft 15 kills, 6 digs, 1 block, 3 aces; Kristina Rodriguez 10 assists, 2 aces; Ashby McCracken 6 assists; Kate Croft 9 kills; Alyssa Thornton 6 kills; Emily Eggleston 6 kills; Addison Mayo 25 digs; Hollie Santon 2 aces

MOODY (14-9, 0-3): Aubrey Guerra 7 assists, 11 digs, Alannah Gonzales 2 assists, 1 ace; Emery Johnson 6 kills, 2 blocks, 1 ace; Delilah Flores 3 kills; Julia Perales 12 digs, Hanna J. 12 digs; Brianna Perez 8 digs; Allerina Martinez 1 block

CC VETERANS DEF. GOLIAD 25-21, 25-18, 21-25, 24-26, 15-10

VETERANS (20-4, 2-0): Kiana Lanton 23 kills, 1 block; Nya White 12 kills, 3 blocks; Lilyana Garza 25 digs, 2 aces Paige Ortiz 13 digs, 15 assists; Kayla Chavez 39 assists, 4 aces

GOLIAD: Maevyn Wunsch 23 kills, 24 digs, 1 block, 1 ace; Addison Yendrey 21 kills; Isabel Sanchez 12 kills; 12 digs, 48 assists; Karolynn Youngblood 39 digs, 1 assist, 1 ace; Ella Ulbricht 1 block; Hayle Russell 1 block; Sierra Arriazola 1 ace.

 

Dolores Olguin-Trevino remembers when she left Brownsville Hanna, she had 351 wins.

Not much of one for numbers, she just left it there. She never even expected a 352.

Not long after she returned to the sideline, this time coaching St. Joseph Academy, someone told her she had hit the 400 mark.

“I hadn’t been dwelling on numbers, so it was a surprise,” she said. “I was done coaching and sat out a year.”

The idea of starting a program from scratch and building it until they reached the high school level, however, kept calling to her.

“I ended up putting everything I had into it and am still doing that – head, heart and gut,” she said last week days after eclipsing the 500-win mark. “It’s really not about the numbers but about being successful – of course that will include those numbers.”

It hasn’t been an easy task. Olguin-Trevino recalls literally begging teams to play them when they first started. Now, her pre-district schedule spans the Rio Grande Valley as the Bloodhounds play UIL teams in Classes 4A through 6A and from neighboring Brownsville schools to Roma, the other side of the Valley, some 120 miles away.

She has turned the fledgling program into competitors. The Bloodhounds recently defeated Hidalgo in the finals of the Hidalgo tournament in the best of three sets. The host Pirates are a perennial playoff team in Class 4A.

But now, as the St. Joseph Bloodhounds prepare for the TAPPS District 4-5A season, the road trips are as tough mentally, and maybe physically, as the games themselves. All games are bus trips between three and four hours long each way.

“It’s tough – they have four hours on the bus and most of time they’re not awake,” Olguin-Trevino said. “They probably stay up late thinking they have a four-hour ride, but then to get up out of that and get going, it’s tough. I don’t like it but it is what it is and we have to do what we have to do.”

Yvannia Sosa, Seanah Martinez and Gali Martinez pace the Bloodhounds’ offense while Carmina Tijerina, the libero, is an anchor on defense. In the semis and finals of the Hidalgo Tournament, Tijerina tallied 44 digs and 10 aces.

“There are just a few things we need to work on to solidify everything,” Olguin-Trevino said. “We’ve been letting everyone play heading into district but now it’s time to solidify. It’s a good start for us right now (11-3) and we want to keep it going.”

“They said they want to host a playoff game so we started looking at what it would take,” Olguin-Trevino said. “It means being district champ or finishing second and that what we have to work for that.

“I think we are perfectly capable of doing it. It comes down to the mental toughness. We have the physical ability and athleticism. They don’t even know how athletic they really are. If we stay the course we should finish first or second.”

Olguin-Trevino said having a home playoff game could be the final step in her journey – but she thought that after 351 as well. To date, she has 26 players play college volleyball. She started the St. Joseph program with two teams and has grown it to six – three high school and three middle school teams.

“I would like to see these girls go farther than that first round and go as far as they can,” the coach said. “I’ve got the girls and if they can do it this year, I think that this year is it for me. I’ve been thinking about it for a few years. It’s tough, physically and the heat, it’s draining me. I want to use my arms when I’m 80 so I had to give up hitting balls – physically, I want to be able to take care of myself when I’m 80. But as long as I’m here, I’m still giving it my all and the girls do that too.”