BY JON R. LaFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
The McAllen Rowe Lady Warriors sit atop District 30-6A with a 6-1 record, a tremendous improvement for a team what only won six games all of last season.
“Last year, when all these kids were sophomores, it was all about getting them to believe in the system,” Rowe coach Raul Vega said. “It was hard to do that with so many losses.”
The Lady Warriors (16-12, 6-1) enter Friday’s open date having won four of their previous five games, including a 47-42 road win over then-district leading La Joya Palmview on Jan. 13. The five-point victory was the latest in a string of close games for Rowe.
“We’re banking on the experiences from last year to guide us through this season,” Vega said.
Making the Lady Warriors’ recent run more impressive is the fact the team is without what Vega describes as “that go-to player.”
“The girls have bought into the fact that we’ve got to play as a team, especially when you don’t have that one scorer that you know will score 16 or 17 points a game,” Vega said.
Taking the points as they come on offense, Vega and his staff have emphasized a mantra of rebounding as defense, relying on the inside duo of junior Ryela Rodriguez and junior Mayda Garcia to clean the glass.
“We had to remind the kids how important it is to limit the other team to fewer shots,” Vega said. “Earlier this season, teams were getting their first and second shots. Eventually, (the opponent) is going to make them.”
Despite their district lead, the view from the top is far from cozy. Only three games separate the first four teams in the standings.
“I think coming into the season all the coaches knew it was going to be a battle,” Vega said. “We never saw one team as head and shoulders above everyone else. We all thought we were in the same boat.”
RUNNING ROMA
The Roma Lady Gladiators host the Edinburg Vela Lady SaberCats on Friday in a rematchof District 31-5A foes. When the two teams last met on Dec. 19, Vela handed Roma a 70-60 loss. Freshman center Bianca Cortez of the Lady SaberCats scored 23 points in that contest.
“That was the first time we’ve seen then play all year,” Roma coach Romeo Rios said. “But we’re more familiar with their personnel and their style of play. We’ll be ready for them.”
Roma (17-10, 5-2) enters Friday’s game with a four-game winning streak. During that stretch, the Lady Gladiators have outscored their opponents by an average of 23 points. The driving force for Roma has been senior point guard Yosalin Barajas, who Rios calls the team’s “soft-spoken” leader.
“She leads in a different way,” Rios said. “She may not score 20 or 30 points on a nightly basis, but she does so much for us offensively. Without her, there is no (senior) forward Kassy Rocha and there are no easy buckets.”
Roma’s recent run follows a difficult stretch in which the team lost three of five.
“We were playing .500 ball for a while there,” Rios said. “But we played a lot of good teams with good coaches. Unfortunately, we just didn’t bring it those nights.”
MOVING ON
Tuesday’s 61-44 loss to the Weslaco Lady Panthers marked the second time this season the PSJA North Lady Raiders lost to a Valley team. The District 31-6A rivals split their season series.
“(Weslaco is) no pushover,” PSJA North coach Randy Bocanegra said. “They came to play.”
The loss creates a tie for the district championship with five games remaining in the regular season.
“We’re very optimistic,” Bocanegra said. “We’re going to keep playing, and I like to think that if we had a bad game, it was (Tuesday night).”
The Lady Raiders (23-4, 6-1) will play Edinburg North on Friday night.
“These next five games we have to win,” junior forward Belle Palacios said. “We have to keep working hard and take things more seriously. We have to just go out there and play.”