DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — Edinburg North coach Damian Gonzalez did not hide how big he thought Friday’s District 31-6A affair against rival Edinburg High was.
“In my eyes, it was for a district title,” Gonzalez said after his Cougars claimed a 6-2 win at Edinburg North High.
It may be too soon to officially crown the Cougars with a few more games left, but it seems inevitable. Edinburg High, the defending district champ, entered Friday 1 1/2 games back of the Cougars for first place and the lone threat to the Cougars’ pursuit of No. 1.
But this season looks to be Edinburg North’s year. The Cougars jumped out to a 6-0 lead in improving to 9-0 in 31-6A, in line for their second district title in three years.
“It doesn’t secure anything because we still have three tough opponents coming up, but this was a big win,” said junior catcher Saul Garza, who went 3-for-4 with three RBIs. “We knew winning this one means we definitely have a much better shot at that gold trophy.”
Despite a starting lineup consisting of one senior and three underclassmen, Gonzalez said he knew his team had the potential to win a district title well before the season started.
It wasn’t just coachspeak. The players believed it, too.
“We knew we could do this,” Garza said. “Yeah, we have a lot of young players, but we knew they had talent and we knew they would step up because we’d push them. We know we need them. It’s really paid off.”
Added junior Giancarlo Servin: “Our mentality was that this was going to be a really great season for us.”
The Cougars scored four runs on four hits in the second inning to jump on the Bobcats early. It began with Pito Davila’s two-run double on a 1-2 count and concluded with Garza’s two-run single.
North (18-6, 9-0) tagged two more runs in the fourth.
The Bobcats (12-8-2, 6-2) only threatened in the fifth inning. North starter Frankie Rivas allowed three consecutive singles, the last one for an RBI, as Bobcat hitters began getting the timing down on Rivas’ quirky three-quarters delivery. Rivas, who struck out four and walked none, was relieved for Servin, the team’s ace who was available because he only threw about 50 pitches during Tuesday’s run-rule win over PSJA North.
Servin walked the first batter he faced and allowed a RBI single before striking out the final three batters of the frame.
“I had trouble with that first batter, but I calmed down,” Servin said. “I got my curveball over for a strike early, and that was big for me. We had to control what we can control and keep playing.”
Edinburg High coach Robert Valdez said that fifth inning stung. The Bobcats left the bases loaded. In all, they stranded nine runners.
“We squandered opportunities, and we had veteran guys in those positions,” Valdez said. “You just have to tip your hat to (North). They made the pitches and they got out of it.”
Aside from that brief hindrance, North continued to cruise. Servin struck out a couple more batters and never allowed a baserunner past first.
The Cougars are now 2 1/2 games up on Edinburg High and 3 1/2 games up on third-place Weslaco High with three games left. Edinburg North finishes its regular season at Weslaco High, versus PSJA Memorial and at Edinburg Economedes.
“Coming out of the (preseason) tournaments, we had seen a lot of good things, a lot of positives,” Gonzalez said. “We knew we had the pieces in place. It was a matter of kids getting experience and that’s what they did. They’re continuing to get better, they’re buying in and it’s showing.”