By EDWARD SEVERN, Special to RGVSports.com
BROWNSVILLE — The Brownsville Veterans Memorial Lady Chargers continued their unbeaten district season, fending off a motivated Brownsville Porter Cowgirls team 25-27, 25-23, 25-16, 25-16 on Tuesday night.
The Lady Chargers had only dropped two sets in district going into the match, and the Cowgirls made that three during the first set.
The highly motivated Cowgirls came out of the gates strong with great play and hustle from Ashanti Roman, Ebony Garza, Liberty Garza, Kayla Morales, Brianna Franco and Monica Gonzalez to take the first set 27-25.
The Lady Chargers responded during the second set, led by Katherine Fourt. Carrington Lane and Gracie Avilla also pitched in during the set to help the level the match. The Lady Chargers held off a comeback from the Cowgirls late in the set to win 25-23.
Paulina Ramirez’s hustle and assists put the Lady Chargers ahead early in the third set. Ramirez constantly set up her teammates as the Lady Chargers finally shook off a lackadaisical start. Brownsville Veterans took the set 25-16 and the 2-1 advantage in the match.
“There was some changes to the lineup, and sometimes when you do that the players kind of get a little nervous,” Brownsville Veterans coach Elizabeth Mares said. “We lost our libero today and two defenders. No excuses, we had a new libero, and sometimes the team does not adjust well.
“We were kind of quiet and not working together. Porter is always a great defensive team, great fans, a lot of energy, and I think my girls got nervous. They were shook up. We remind them that every team is a varsity team, they want to make playoffs, they cannot sit back.”
The Lady Chargers were back to themselves during the final set, smiling and having fun. Their refound form gave them the 14-7 lead halfway through the set. Great serving by Monserrat De Los Santos and Fourt extended the lead further. The rotational players played great defense, and a fantastic kill from Avilla won the set 25-16.
“We got a big target on our backs, it is great to be undefeated in district,” Mares said. “It is one of the girls’ goals to win district. We practice hard and incorporate that: ‘Hey, everyone wants to beat you guys.’”
The Lady Chargers have won eight consecutive matches, all in district play. They will next face Brownsville Lopez.
Brownsville Porter will hope to stay in the playoff hunt when it visits Weslaco East in the Cowgirls’ next match. Despite losing the match, the Cowgirls played hard and had a great team spirit during the match.
“It says a lot about our program, the grit that we have, but at the end of the day we have to finish in big moments,” Porter coach Ashley Martinez said. “We are a way better team than the one that dropped those last couple of sets. We have to prove that we are in the hunt to make the playoffs, but I am proud of their fight.”