BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
LA JOYA — A week ago, Edinburg Vela fought through fatigue to earn a spot in the championship game of the ultracompetitive Mission Fastpitch Festival, but ultimately ran out of gas in a shutout loss to Weslaco High.
The SaberCats, however, weren’t tired after blanking Los Fresnos 10-0 in five innings Saturday night in the La Joya Tournament championship game.
“Our goal coming here was to give everybody a chance to play, and we did,” Edinburg Vela coach Jon Maples said.
“We needed to make a statement,” Edinburg Vela pitcher Naomi Reyes said. “We all felt like we were drained last week after we beat (district opponents) Edinburg North and Edinburg High before playing Weslaco. It seemed like we spent longer innings on the field at the Mission tournament. This week, we spent longer innings at the plate.”
On Thursday, the SaberCats drilled Brownsville Lopez, Rio Grande City and La Joya Juarez-Lincoln, scoring 46 runs combined.
During the third inning of Saturday night’s championship game, Kameryn Casares roped a two-run double as a part of a three-run inning to put the SaberCats up three. The runs continued to pour in for Vela, as the team added three more in the fourth and fifth innings, capped on a run-scoring double by Reyes.
Reyes, a Texas Southern signee, kept the Falcons guessing all evening. She pitched four of the five innings, giving up one hit and striking out 10 batters. For her achievements, Reyes was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
“I’m happy to win the award,” Reyes said. “I’m glad I stepped up for the team, but I wasn’t the only one. It was a total team effort.”
A big reason for Reyes’ hot start to the season is the expansion of her pitching arsenal.
“I’m doing what I need to do when I get in the circle,” Reyes said. “I’ve added some offspeed pitches, which I use in different situations. I’m trying to keep hitters off balance whenever I can.”
“She’s averaging 10 strikeouts per outing, and she had 10 more tonight,” Maples said. “Naomi is doing her job, but she’s also relaxed and having fun. She trusts her teammates to pick her up, and they do the same for her.”
Vela (12-1) pitchers won all six of their games in La Joya, while allowing just one run as a unit.
“What we’ve been able to do here is pretty impressive,” Maples said. “I hope we’ve opened some eyes across the Valley these last two weeks.”