MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — Without Clarivel Garza in the lineup for Game 1 on Tuesday, Edinburg North coach Adrian Cavazos had to readjust his lineup.
The senior middle blocker, who missed practice the day before with the flu, was required to sit out the opening set of their District 31-6A clash with PSJA Memorial, putting Cavazos in position to tinker with a frontline that is largely responsible for fueling their offense.
Once Garza settled in during the latter two sets, however, the Lady Cougars pulled away comfortably, securing a 25-15, 22-25, 25-7, 25-14 home victory that allowed Edinburg North to remain undefeated in district.
“When our middle is on, it makes everything run smoothly,” Cavazos said. “Having (Garza) there makes a difference. She’s 6-foot-2, so she’s hard to stop.”
Garza provided a big lift, finishing with 11 kills and two blocks to help Natalie Alaniz (20 kills, 5 digs, 4 blocks) shore up the front row. Garza notched back-to-back kills to give the Lady Cougars a 7-2 lead in Game 3. She scored again off feeds from Victoria Rodriguez (14 assists) and Abriana Saenz (18 assists), respectively, to give Edinburg North a 15-4 cushion.
“My nose was stuffy,” Garza said. “You just feel like you’re not strong enough. Like your body’s not strong enough. But I guess the adrenaline just kicked in towards the end.”
Edinburg North (25-10, 5-0), ranked No. 6 by RGVSports.com, was tied five times in Game 4 before pulling away. Zarah Navarro connected with Garza for the equalizer. Anica Vela (37 digs) found Victoria Rogers for a 10-9 edge. Then, Ayissa Maldonado delivered an ace to kickstart what was a 5-0 run, as PSJA Memorial called for time.
“Our defense and lack of communication had a lot to do with our performance,” said PSJA Memorial coach Angie Gonzales, whose team dropped to 3-3 in district. “Communication is key for us.”
The Lady Cougars closed out the night on an 11-3 run, with Garza posting a kill and two aces and Alaniz scoring herself as Edinburg North went up 22-12.
“If our middle goes, so goes our offense,” Cavazos said.
Without their usual front row in place in Game 1, Edinburg North labored through the opening set. The Lady Cougars closed it out on a 7-3 run after Julie Villarreal’s ace gave them a 1-0 lead.
After reverting back to its original lineup, Edinburg North relinquished a 4-0 lead in Game 2 by giving up six unanswered points, capped by Emily Rivera’s two-handed dump. The game was tied 10 times before PSJA Memorial went on a 5-2 spurt to even it at one apiece. Amanda Aguilera (8 assists) connected with Rivera for a one-handed tip. Yessica De Leon found Rivera to make it 23-22. And Kristi Gomez’s over-the-head kill set them a point away from evening the match.
Gomez finished the match with 5 kills and 3 blocks. Rivera added 3 kills. And Carla De Leon chipped in with 14 digs.
“Overall, I’m very proud of the girls,” Gonzales said. “They came through on a lot of plays and I think we came through as a team. In Game 2, there was a lot of communication and the girls put a lot of heart into it and they were able to pull together as a team. No missed serves had a lot to do with it, as well. And our defense was a lot more on key. Defense was getting the ball to our setters.”