Lady Falcons outlast Lady Hawks in district opener
By STEFAN MODRICH | Staff Writer
The Los Fresnos Lady Falcons and Harlingen South Lady Hawks opened district play in 32-6A in dramatic fashion, as Alison Spier’s decisive goal clinched the 2-1 win for the Lady Falcons in penalty kicks Friday night.
Goalkeeper Sabrina Hinojosa made several momentous saves in the contest for Los Fresnos, but none loomed larger than her denial of Mallory Grannum’s penalty kick that proved to be decisive in the 5-4 shootout.
“Sabrina’s one of the best goalkeepers I’ve seen,” Spier said. “She’s one of the best in our district for sure. Just seeing her there I have confidence in her, and I know the rest of the team does, too.”
Said Los Fresnos coach Patricia Hernandez, “We knew coming into this game that it was going to be a tough game. We needed to set the tempo for the rest of district. All I asked of them was to leave every ounce that they had in them out on the field.”
Spier and Itzel Bochas were instrumental in defending the back half, allowing the Lady Falcons to bend but not break.
Hernandez said maintaining a mental edge was crucial for her squad in a game that lasted more than three hours in real time and elapsed 100 minutes of clock time.
“We’ve tried to hone in on mental toughness and focus,” Hernandez said. “We can push through anything. And that’s been the goal that we’ve set for ourselves.”
Again for Harlingen South coach Omar Pedroza, it was a tale of two halves. The Lady Hawks surrendered a goal off of a corner kick by Los Fresnos defender Sara Garza less than 10 minutes into the game, but they responded well to Pedroza’s pleas to press more effectively and looked like a brand new team in the second period.
“That’s what we talked about at halftime,” Pedroza said. “They were winning all the 50-50 balls. We can’t do that, not against good teams. You have to fight for every ball.”
Three minutes into the half, Alise Garza sprinted up the near sideline with nothing but the horizon in front of her and struck a well-placed ball into the top right corner of the net to give the Lady Hawks the equalizer and a much-needed morale boost.
Grannum’s footprints were all over the field, as 10 minutes later she found herself with a golden opportunity to give Harlingen South the lead, but she drove the ball an inch wide of the right post after a cross.
“Without her back there, we don’t even make it to penalty kicks,” Pedroza said. “I know that if I put her up front, she might make something happen. But what do you do? She’s an awesome kid.”
And the Lady Hawks later lamented three of their best scoring chances late in the second half, as a slick pass that went through the legs of a Los Fresnos defender set up a shot from close range that glanced off the post; another shot was held by Hinojosa and nearly crossed the goal line after it was dropped; and, at the end of the first overtime, Grannum had a clear look at an open net from inside the box and sailed her shot above the crossbar.
All this is to reinforce Pedroza’s belief that there won’t be any undefeated teams to make it out of the gauntlet that is the 32-6A season.
“Our district is going to be tough,” Pedroza said. “Everybody’s that good.”
Hernandez knows her Lady Falcons will be playing in close and consequential games the rest of the way.
“Every team in our district is going to be this competitive, and we just can’t let our guard down,” Hernandez said. “Every game, you’re playing for district.”