McALLEN — First, it was the Pink Panthers versus Twinkle Toes.
Now, it’s McAllen High versus McAllen Memorial, a match for first place in District 31-5A at 6 p.m. Friday at McAllen Memorial.
On a star-filled field, a budding rivalry continues to take shape as freshmen Julianna Millin (Pink Panthers/McHi) and Chloey Mejia (Twinkle Toes/McAllen Memorial) will once again face off with the winning team in the driver’s seat for the district title and top seed heading into the postseason.
The two have made their presence felt this year and they sit among the top scorers in the Valley. Millin has registered 19 goals in 10 district matches. Mejia has found the back of the net 17 times in nine district matches.
“We were in MYSA (McAllen Youth Soccer Association) when we first played against each other,” Millin said. “My dad coached the Pink Panthers and we would play the Twinkle Toes and she (Chloey) was seriously the best in MYSA.”
Mejia had similar memories of Millin.
“She is just so fast,” Mejia said. “And Julianna has a fight in her that she will get it done. I’ve seen it.”
Gaining acceptance isn’t always the easiest for freshmen. Both girls, however, said their teammates welcomed them with open arms, but they still had to work for where they are now.
“I definitely didn’t expect it to be easy, knowing I would have to fight for my place,” Millin said. “Thankfully I had a lot of teammates who welcomed me in so it was an easy adjustment. I couldn’t have done anything close to this without their support.
McHi and Memorial go into tonight’s game with 8-1-1 records and 25 points to sit tied atop a stuff top-heavy district. McAllen Rowe is 6-1-2 with 22 points and Sharyland High is 6-2-2 with 21 points. So, tonight’s super heavyweight matchup has major implications with just three regular-season games remaining. The winner is alone in first. The fallen will be fighting for playoff position in a district where McHi, Memorial and Rowe have all tasted first place this season – with Sharyland breathing down all of their necks.
McHi won the first meeting against Memorial this season, 3-1. Both teams have scored more than 50 goals this year, ranking as the top two offenses in district. They’ve also only allowed nine goals each, the fewest allowed in district.
“I expected a tough game since this team has been the best in the Valley for years,” Mejia said of that first meeting. “I felt we all had out moments where we could’ve done better but, overall, we worked hard and prepared and left it out there against them.”
“I’m proud of us and the preparation we had leading up to that game,” said Millin, who scored once in the victory. “We were super focused but there were things we still needed to build on and I think we’ve been working on that.
“We’ll see on Friday.”
“I didn’t expect this,” Mejia said of the growing rivalry. “But it’s fun and I feel it’s going to be good.