By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
CORPUS CHRISTI — It was a tough night for the Brownsville Veterans Memorial Chargers when they faced off with the Corpus Christi Veterans Memorial Eagles on Friday at Buccaneer Stadium.
The Chargers couldn’t get their offense going, and three turnovers during the first half put them in a hole too deep to come out of. Brownsville Veterans was defeated 28-0 in the Class 5A Division I bi-district game and ends the season at 7-4.
“Against a good team you have to capitalize on your opportunities and we didn’t, so hat’s off to them for playing tough and forcing us into some bad situations,” Chargers coach Kelley Lee said.
Brownsville Veterans played well defensively during the first half and notched an interception courtesy of junior Kenny Davis on Corpus Christi Veterans’ first possession.
While the Chargers stopped the run, the Eagles found success with short passing gains to move the chains. But with fumbles on their first two drives, an interception on the third and a three-and-out on the fourth, the Chargers left their defense on the field for too long, allowing Corpus Christi Veterans to open up things.
“The biggest thing was our defense played too many plays in the first half,” Lee said. “Defensively, we were playing really outstanding early in the game, but I think we only ran 10 or 11 plays in the first half (on offense) and our defense wore down. Then some of those short passes became 10, 12 yards, because we didn’t protect our defense enough.”
The Eagles moved the ball slowly and efficiently, primarily in the air. Senior quarterback Aiden Hinojosa hit five different receivers during the first half and completed more than 15 passes.
Hinojosa accounted for three Eagles touchdowns, giving them a 21-0 lead at halftime. He rushed for the first two, then with three seconds on the clock, he hit top target Cameron DeLaPena for a 5-yard passing score. DeLaPena dove full extension toward the end zone after the catch to break the plane.
Brownsville Veterans came out of the locker room determined to make a comeback and started the third quarter strong. Freshman running back Storm Montoya took his first two carries for first downs and 32 quick yards.
Senior running back/linebacker Jorge Alvarado, junior quarterback Reece Sampayo and junior running back Michael McHale helped Montoya get the Chargers to the 25. But on fourth down, Corpus Christi Veterans’ Nicolas Reyes broke up a pass to the end zone.
“We were going to run out of time and we wanted to try and come back and win the game, so we took some shots and it didn’t work out. But the kids fought hard,” Lee said.
Again, Brownsville Veterans’ defense played tough, forcing a punt that was blocked by junior defensive end Bryan Chavez to give the Chargers prime starting field position at the Eagles’ 35. Nicolas Guerrero recorded a sack to push the Chargers back and force a punt.
Corpus Christi Veterans then tacked on its only score of the second half. On fourth down, DeLaPena beat single coverage down the sideline and hauled in a 27-yard touchdown pass from Hinojosa.
Brownsville Veterans didn’t go down without a fight. Alvarado powered his way through the defense, using a 45-yard run to get the Chargers near the red zone. Guerrero and Romeo Lara led a solid Eagles defense that forced a turnover on downs.
Late in the fourth, Corpus Christi Veterans’ Joshua Frayre recovered Brownsville Veterans’ fourth turnover on a loose pitch. Lara also recovered a fumble, and Luke Johnson reeled in the interception. The duo was included among the Eagles’ defensive standouts.
Chavez, Alvarado, senior linebacker William Wassen and junior linebacker Gary Bardales led the Chargers defensively.
Many of Brownsville Veterans’ playmakers will be back to build on Lee’s successful first season in 2022. But the coach expressed his thanks to the handful of impact seniors who helped get the program back on the right track.
“They helped get the Chargers back into winning ways and changed the direction of our program back to where we want it to be,” Lee said. “They feel bad right now, but they’ll look back on it and realize all the things they accomplished and what a good season it was. They can be proud of that.”