KEVIN LU | SPECIAL TO THE MONITOR
EDINBURG – A few inches was all it took to decide an Edinburg North 36-35 double overtime win against Weslaco East as District 31-6A play opened up at Cats Stadium on Friday night.
Edinburg North (3-2, 1-0 31-6A) went for a two-point conversion when a point-after kick would have sent the game to its third extra period. Down 35-34, Cougars coach Rene Saenz gave the ball to running back Tito Salazar.
The senior barely got the ball over the goal line.
“I felt like our kids deserved a chance to win it, not a chance to lose it,” Saenz said. “I figured (Weslaco East) was going to go for two on the possession before, and I said, ‘We’re not going to give them another chance; we’ve got to go for it now.’”
Weslaco East (4-1, 0-1) lost its first game of the season despite a star performance from Lupe Moron. The running back had 177 yards rushing and two touchdowns on a game-high 26 carries.
His six yard run in the second overtime gave the Wildcats a 35-28 lead before the Cougars’ final possession.
“He didn’t fall over the goal line,” Wildcats coach Michael Burget said of the Cougars’ game-winning two-point conversion. “But I can’t question the officials. It was a judgment call; it’s just the way it is.”
Edinburg North quarterback Martin Rodriguez set up the final play when he connected with Michael Cantu for a 25-yard score. Cantu outran the Weslaco East secondary and the football fell into his arms as he crossed the goal line.
It was Cantu’s second touchdown of the night. The first tied the game with three minutes left in regulation.
Down 21-14 on the Wildcats 39 yard line, Rodriguez aired out a pass meant for Cantu. It looked like the Wildcats’ Ciro Rojas had the better chance at it, but Cantu wrestled the ball away in the air and scampered into the end zone to tie it at 21. The senior wideout had a game-high 70 yards receiving.
He stole what would have been Rojas’ second interception of the night. Rojas’ first came with less than a minute left in the first half. The Wildcats’ speedster picked off the ball in his own end zone. He ran the ball back 15 yards before the Cougars’ Justin Guerra stripped him and ran the ball back to give Edinburg North a 14-7 lead going into halftime.
Friday was Edinburg North’s third overtime game of the season. Senior running back Matt Whitesides reached a game-high 200 yards rushing with a six-yard run to open the first overtime, but he twisted his ankle. He gave way to Salazar, who converted the most important play of the game.
“We have all the confidence in the world in Tito,” Saenz said. “He’s a tough runner, and you can see what he can do.”