For the past two seasons La Joya High has broken the huddle at the end of practice the same way, yelling “playoff bound” as motivation for the team.
The Coyotes were able to break the huddle with the same chant at the end of Friday’s game against Mission High, punching their ticket to the postseason for the first time since 2017 with a 21-17 victory over the Eagles.
“We kept on telling the boys to keep believing and trusting God that he would guide us and give us an opportunity,” La Joya High head coach Reuben Farias said. “It came down to last week, knowing we had to win out to give ourselves a chance. We won last week and just kept telling the boys this is the opportunity we were getting. They capitalized and work hard and it is just amazing for these boys. At any time, they could have just quit. They just kept persevering. I’m just excited for our school and our community that we’re in the playoffs for the first time in a while.”
Trailing the Eagles 17-14 during the final period, La Joya High running back Erasmo Rodriguez ripped off a touchdown run of over 40 yards for the go-ahead score, securing the Coyotes playoff berth. The touchdown marked the first of the season for Rodriguez.
“Earlier today I had spoken to him before the game and told him tonight was his night,” Farias said. “I told him he was going to have a big night and a big run. I told him I was going to need him to take on in and that it was going to happen for him. He was a little discouraged before so I’m really happy for him scoring that touchdown.”
The Coyotes finish the year with back-to-back wins to clinch a playoff berth. They’ll take on San Benito in the first round of the Class 6A DI playoffs at a date, time and location to be determined.
DISTRICT 16-5A DII
MISSION VETERANS 49, ROMA 35: At Roma, the Patriots didn’t leave anything to chance and punched their ticket to the playoffs with a road win against the Gladiators.
Mission Veterans improved 5-5 overall and 2-3 in 16-5A DII. Roma dropped to 5-5 overall and 2-3 in district, but the Patriots claim the district’s No. 3 seed due to the head-to-head win over the Gladiators. Roma will be the No. 4 seed in the playoffs and meet Flour Bluff in the bi-district round. Mission Veterans is slated to face Gregory-Portland.
“We’re a proud program and part of what happened tonight was we had better execution,” Mission Veterans head coach David Gilpin said. “We knew we had a really tough ball game on our hands. Roma’s a good ball club and Coach (Frank) Villanueva has a good team and I’m glad that they’re in the playoffs.”
The Patriots jumped out to a 21-0 lead and held off a strong Roma team during the second half.
Bi-district playoff details are to be determined.
DISTRICT 16-2A DI
LA VILLA 14, FREER 12: At Freer, the Cardinals captured back-to-back District 16-2A DI championships with a comeback win against the Buckaroos, capping off a perfect 5-0 run through district play.
La Villa trailed 12-6 at the break but pulled ahead after a touchdown and successful two-point conversion by quarterback Brandon Felix.
“It was tough. We were down in the first half, but in the second half we stopped them, got an interception and took it in for a touchdown,” La Villa head coach Danny Perez said.
The back-to-back district championships are the program’s first since 2012 and 2013.
“It tells you how these coaches are working and getting the kids ready. We have nine seniors, a young team, they didn’t expect us to win it, but the kids put in hard work and the kids made it happen,” Perez said.
La Villa will face Ganado in the bi-district round of the playoffs. Game details are to be determined.
DISTRICT 15-5A DII
EDCOUCH-ELSA 24, VALLEY VIEW 20: The No. 4 seed in District 15-5A DII was up for grabs in Edcouch. The Yellow Jackets scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter on a reverse by Jayreed Amaya from the 31 yards to secure the win over Valley View Friday night.
“It was a tough victory, Valley View was tough, they gave us a fight and it went down to the wire,” first-year Yellow Jackets head coach Victor Cardenas said. “The seniors pulled us through. They have been resilient all year, they really carried the team and they did awesome tonight.”
The touchdown was scored only a few seconds into the fourth quarter. The defense stepped up the rest of the way.
“The coaching staff did a heck of a job all season,” Cardenas said. “We did not have the season, we should have had. Our defensive staff and our thunder defense have carried our team all season long and the coaching staff has done a tremendous job at keeping the team together against all adversity. We have had a lot of injuries and had to play a lot of second and third stringers, and our coaching staff has done an explementary job.”
Edcouch-Elsa will face Sharyland High at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Sharyland in the bi-district round.
DISTRICT 16-3A DII
SANTA ROSA 28, BANQUETE 6: Santa Rosa secured the No. 3 seed in District 16-3A DII Friday night in Santa Rosa.
The win sees the Warriors return to the playoffs for the first time since 2018. Santa Rosa (7-3, 4-2) also finished with a winning record. The last time, the Warriors finished with a winning record was 2013.
“I could not be prouder of the kids,” Santa Rosa head coach Joe Marichalar said. “We started a little sluggish in the beginning, but our kids kept their composure. I was really proud of them coming together as a team and being selfless. It did not matter what happened, they just wanted to get it done as a team. That was an awesome feeling and an awesome sight to see.”
Like most seniors on the night, the Warriors were not ready to hang up their cleats.
“They were talking about it, and they did not want it to end,” Marichalar said. “It was great to see them happy, tears of joy, they wanted to cherish that moment. That was us last year, we did not get to experience that and it hit them hard.”
The experience also benefits the school. Making it to the playoffs helps set the tone for the school year, Marichalar said.
Santa Rosa will play Nixon Smiley in Ingleside Friday in the bi-district round.