By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
Brownsville Veterans wins back-to-back big games
Brownsville Veterans Memorial has now won two important games in a row with a 21-7 victory over Lopez. The Chargers handed the Lobos their first District 32-5A loss, one week after doing the same on the road to Edcouch-Elsa in a 50-20 victory. Against Lopez, BVM took control on both sides of the ball. The offense erased a 7-0 deficit with two touchdown runs by Gustavo Vasquez, and the defense allowed nothing after halftime. The unit also forced a fumble and returned it for a touchdown to help seal the win. The win leaves the Chargers tied for second place in the district standings with the Lobos, but BVM now owns the tiebreaker. Both teams sit behind Mercedes, which came back to beat Brownsville Veterans in Week 6. The Chargers face Porter this week and finish out the district schedule against Donna North and on the road against Donna High. Brownsville Veterans is still in the hunt for the district crown, but it needs to take care of business this week Chargers coach David Cantu said. “The biggest game is the next one on the schedule,” he said after Friday’s win against Lopez. “We have a great respect for Porter, and we’ve seen what they can do. We have a short week, and we just have to worry about that.”
Los Fresnos heats up
Don’t look now, Los Fresnos is on a roll. With a 34-31 triumph last week, the Falcons held off a feisty Hanna team which is also trying to stay near the top the of the District 32-6A standings. Los Fresnos quarterback Mark Mata led the offensive outburst with 170 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and 246 yards and a score through the air to give the Falcons back-to-back wins in district play and put them back in the mix for a shot at the postseason. Hanna and Weslaco High will continue battling Los Fresnos for the third and fourth district playoff spots. Harlingen South and Weslaco East are a game back, and everyone is chasing San Benito and Harlingen High, who are both perfect in district play. Los Fresnos is on the road this week against the Cardinals and will look to keep pace. “I think our players have shown resilience the last two weeks and have come back to win,” Los Fresnos coach Patrick Brown said after defeating Hanna. “We’re going to take a win no matter what. We’ll take this one and move on.”
St. Joseph is ready for district
St. Joseph Academy’s game against Marine Military Academy in Week 8 was its last test before district play starts in TAPPS. The Bloodhounds didn’t disappoint, taking a commanding 33-0 lead after the opening quarter before pushing that advantage to 41-0 at the half. Running back Mario Garcia had two touchdowns on the ground, and quarterback Kai Money ran for a score and threw another to his favorite target, Bernie de la Garza. The receiver also returned a punt for another touchdown in the shutout victory. St. Joseph begins district play on the road against San Antonio Central Catholic, which beat the Bloodhounds last season on the way to the district crown. The game against MMA wasn’t as much about the opponent, it was more about making sure SJA was sharp and ready for its district gauntlet. “The kids are ready for district play,” St. Joseph coach Tino Villarreal said after Friday’s win. “We knew coming in this was our final test before district. It’s not about the opponent; it’s about not making mental mistakes. It was about us executing, and we did that.”
Pace wins when offense clicks
This lesson is one we’ve learned this year on a couple of occasions, if Pace is clicking offensively, it usually wins. In the Vikings’ two wins this season, that has been the case. In Week 6 against Porter, Pace gained more than 400 yards, only committed two turnovers and spread the ball around, getting almost an equal amount of yardage from both its passing and running games. The Vikings used a similar blueprint in Week 8 against Donna North, albeit a bit heavier on the passing side as quarterback Randy Aguilar threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns. Gabriel Zapata caught five passes for 166 yards and all three scores. Pace had to rally from an early 14-point deficit and seized the momentum after a huge goal line stand by its defense at its own 1-yard line. The defense’s denial set up the game-winning pass play: A 78-yard catch-and-run to Zapata for a touchdown. Pace is down in the standings but not out, and has a tough challenge this week. The Vikings are set for a road date at Edcouch-Elsa in Week 9, but Pace won there last season in a tight game.
Port Isabel regroups on the road
Port Isabel has a short memory. The Tarpons forgot about a loss to Rio Hondo two weeks ago to start their District 16-4A Division II slate, and the past couple games they’ve played against Orange Grove. Orange Grove has had the Tarpons’ number as of late and went on to win the past two district titles. Port Isabel got back on track behind running back Omar Silva, who rushed for 305 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Tarpons to a 38-21 district victory over Orange Grove. Travis Camacho and Daniel Martinez also both found the end zone in the win. It put Port Isabel back in the hunt for the postseason and a district crown. It was a team effort in a convincing win over the Bulldogs, especially after the setback to Rio Hondo in Week 7. “It was a big win for us,” Port Isabel coach Monty Stumbaugh said. “Orange Grove is a good football team. We didn’t play well last week and we knew we needed a win to get back in the race (for a district title). We controlled the ball and we did a good job on defense. I’m extremely proud of our effort and the way they responded and getting after it.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter, he’s @andrewmcrum.