By ADAM KUJAWSKI, Staff Writer
Four Metro-area teams embark on their journey through the playoffs beginning tonight.
Following a series of games that were played to determine seeding and opponents, the matchups have been set.
In District 32-6A, the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons wrapped up their position in the postseason some time ago. With unblemished San Benito leading the pack, the Lady Falcons at 11-3 are comfortably situated as the No. 2 seed in the district.
Los Fresnos will open its bi-district round against Edinburg North at 7 tonight. The Lady Cougars, who finished in third place in District 31-6A, will battle Los Fresnos in a three-game series to determine which team advances to the area round.
Game 2 will be played at 7 p.m. Friday at Edinburg North. If necessary, Game 3 will be held Saturday at a time and place that has yet to be determined.
The Lady Falcons are coming off a loss to Hanna in the final district game of the season. Los Fresnos coach Traci Blackman hopes the loss will act as a refresher and motivator for her team moving forward.
“I think we’ve been solid defensively for a while now, and I don’t think this (loss to Hanna) changes anything,” she said. “I think we wake up (Saturday) and go back to being the team that we were. We’ve just got to stay on top of it and make sure it’s not habit-forming.”
Elsewhere in 32-6A, the No. 4 seed was recently decided after an extra set of games following a three-way tie at the conclusion of the district season. Hanna defeated Harlingen High 11-3 on Monday and advanced to face Brownsville Veterans Memorial on Tuesday.
The Lady Chargers triumphed and secured the final playoff spot with an 8-2 win. Brownsville Veterans Memorial will take on the Weslaco High Lady Panthers of 31-6A starting at 7 tonight at Brownsville Veterans.
The best-of-three series will conclude Saturday at Weslaco with Game 2 starting at 5:30 p.m. and Game 3, if necessary, starting shortly after the conclusion of the early contest.
Brownsville Veterans coach Ray Cardenas likes what he’s seen out of his team of late and its ability to overcome seemingly difficult situations during games.
“I like the fact that they’re resilient,” he said. “The score on the board doesn’t dictate their behavior in the dugout or their demeanor in the field. The belief is always there. As coaches, that’s what you want, you want your girls fighting all the way to that seventh regardless of what the scoreboard says. “
The Porter Cowgirls are the Metro-area’s only representative from District 32-5A. They finished the season with a 10-4 district record and won a coin flip that granted them the No. 2 seed.
They will play a three-game series during the bi-district round against Sharyland Pioneer of 31-5A. The Lady Diamondbacks lost a seeding match Monday against Mission Veterans Memorial and will open their series at 7 tonight at Porter.
Game 2 will be played at 7 p.m. Friday at Sharyland Pioneer, and, if necessary, Game 3 will be 5 p.m. Saturday at Porter.
“I’m very confident, especially with the way the girls have been working hard at doing the little things,” Porter coach Arial Arreganda said.
“I think we’ll have to jump on (Sharyland Pioneer) early as far as their pitcher,” she added. “After playing them and watching them, as long as we jump on their pitcher early and stay disciplined at the plate, we should have a good chance (today).”
The Cowgirls faced Sharyland Pioneer on March 3 during the non-district season. Porter won 12-2.
In 32-4A, the Port Isabel Lady Tarpons are the district’s No. 1 seed. They finished with a district record of 12-2 and will play a one-game playoff against the Ingleside Lady Mustangs of District 31-4A at 7 p.m. Friday at Alice.
“We’ve been working on making less errors on defense and, offensively, putting the ball in play and attacking the bases,” Port Isabel coach Jesus Garza said. “We want the other team thinking about us on the bases.
“I’m not too sure what to expect (against Ingleside), but I’ve heard they’re in a really good district and they have a good pitcher. It’s hard to say they are a pushover team.”
Adam Kujawski covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6663 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @adamkujo1.