Most teams in the Rio Grande Valley are reaching the midway point in district play, District 32-6A begins tonight.
Harlingen High finished atop of a three-team race in District 32-6A last season. The Cardinals finished the season 13-1, besting Brownsville Rivera by a game at 12-2 and Los Fresnos by two games at 11-3.
“It has been a long time coming, obviously,” Harlingen High head coach Joslynn Torres said. “The fact that we are barely starting on Sept. 20, it has been crazy, but we have had so much prep for it. On my team, seven of them are seniors, all seniors pretty much play.”
Against Laredo LBJ on Saturday, the seniors were key. Casey Vidal finsihed with 25 kills and Juli Bryant had 18.
“This is their year, we have said it all season long, we have to get it done,” Torres said. “The goal this year is undefeated district champs.”
Harlingen High opens with Weslaco High 6:30 p.m. tonight at home.
The most intriguing matchup tonight is Los Fresnos versus Brownsville Rivera.
Brownsville Rivera has had highs and lows in non-district. The Raiders won the BISD tournament, but have dropped three of the last four matches against Class 6A opponents.
“The girls are young and they are working hard,” Rivera head coach Mary Avelar-Guerra said. “So, hopefully they are ready. They have been coming around, getting better a little bit at a time. Sometimes, the better the team, the harder they play.”
Rivera graduated Kenya Ibarra (154 kills) and Clarissa Olivares (274 assists). Seniors Richelle Guerra and Emily Morales have stepped up around a team of younger players.
“They are starting to gel a little bit more than they have earlier,” Guerra said. “I just hope that they keep doing that and they kind of relax a bit. I think they are still nervous, especially when they play at home.”
Last season, Rivera beat both Harlingen and Los Fresnos away, but was swept at home.
The Falcons come into district with wins in their last five non-district matches. Los Fresnos swept Edinburg North on Saturday.
“After our game on Saturday, you could tell the girls had excitement on their faces,” Los Fresnos head coach Anissa Lucio said. “We have been working really hard for a really long time and we are excited to get going.”
Los Fresnos are captained by Jenna Rios. Some of the key contributors are Cory Reyes, Dakota Martinez, Shiloh Jones, Addyson Vega, Marcela Tijerina and Arianna Hernandez.
“We have a lot of respect for Rivera,” Lucio said. “We know that they are going to be a tough competitor, so it is always fun to set the tone for district starting with a competitive game.”
The match between Rivera and Los Fresnos starts at 6:30 p.m. tonight at Rivera High School.
Because it will possibly be a three-team race for the top, the last playoff spot will be up for grabs between Weslaco High, San Benito and Brownsville Hanna.
The Greyhounds and the Eagles battle tonight at San Benito.