MISSION — D.D. Ibarra had ice bags strapped to her right shoulder and left leg following the Mission Tournament on Saturday.
The Mission Veterans Memorial sophomore wasn’t supposed to play in the championship game, with a lingering shoulder issue and a strained hamstring, but she did so at her own accord.
The payoff: a tournament co-MVP trophy after the Lady Patriots defeated McAllen Memorial 25-15, 25-19, 25-18, to win the Mission Tournament for a second straight year.
“I begged and begged and they finally let me (play),” Ibarra said. “So, like, if I got hurt, it’s like, ‘It’s your fault.’ But thank goodness I didn’t.”
Ibarra hardly showed any signs of discomfort, recording 12 kills, 17 assists and 15 digs, as she split the co-MVP honor with teammate Gabrielle Lerma (12 kills, 17 digs, eight assists and two aces).
The setter-hitter combination ignited Mission Vets (9-5) after the team was humbled the week prior at the Pearland Tournament in Houston, where it went 2-5.
Since facing Memorial in the opener earlier this month, the Lady Patriots have made some adjustments, most notably with their service reception, going with three players instead of four.
On Saturday, Mission Vets coach Diana Lerma also reminded her players to break each game up in “little sections,” such as trying to be first to score 10 points. The Lady Patriots did that each time, especially in Game 2, when it raced out to a 4-0 lead that provided enough cushion to withstand a relatively even battle the rest of the set.
Neither team allowed a separation greater than two points in Game 3, until Lerma found Ibarra for a 20-17 advantage that prompted Memorial to call for time.
Mission Vets closed out that stretch on a 5-1 run, with Isela Rodriguez scoring once for a 21-18 edge and Lerma and Ibarra hooking up twice more on consecutive possessions.
The loss dropped the Lady Mustangs to 13-4.
“We got swept again by Mission Vets but it was a better showing than the first time we played them, so that’s promising,” Memorial coach Lorena Lopez said. “The lineup is coming along so it’s just a matter of more practice.”