By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
Consistency means everything, especially in volleyball.
Lopez coach Jacquelynn Touchet said her team played one of its most consistent matches of the season Saturday in winning at Pace 25-22, 25-18, 25-19.
The Lady Lobos, trying to reach the playoffs for the third time in six years under Touchet, completed the first round of District 32-5A competition in fourth place with a 4-3 record thanks to Saturday’s win.
Pace ended the first round of district in fifth place at 3-4.
Lopez and Pace tied for fourth place in 32-5A a season ago and the Lady Lobos won a “play-in” match against the Lady Vikings to reach the postseason.
Touchet is well aware that getting a victory over Pace on Saturday may come in quite handy down the road in qualifying for the playoffs again.
“Playing against Pace is always a battle for us,” the Lady Lobos coach said. “It’s one of the rivalry matches we look forward to during our district season. This was a big win for our district record and also considering the pride and rivalry involved.
“I’m really proud of the way our girls played today,” she added. “We’ve been preaching a lot to them about playing with confidence and being consistent throughout our matches. I feel that today they really showed us that. I believe having the right mentality is a big reason we win or we lose. This match really showed me that our team has the right mentality.”
The memory of what happened last season hasn’t been forgotten by the Lady Lobos.
“Last year we weren’t fortunate enough to get this win (over Pace during the first round of district) and it kind of put us in a bind at the end of the (regular) season, so we really wanted to secure this match,” Touchet said. “I told the team, ‘I don’t want to be stressing about playing catch-up (to make the playoffs) later in the season.’”
Lopez led by as many as eight points, 11-3, early in the first game before the Lady Vikings battled back to tie it and even go ahead 15-14 when the Lady Lobos hit a volley into the net. It soon became 22-22 before the Lady Lobos went up 24-22 on a block by Carla Lopez and a cross-court kill by Jennifer Cisneros.
The Lady Lobos then took the first set 25-22 when a volley by Pace sailed out of bounds.
It was tied 9-9 in the second game before the Lady Lobos surged to a 10-point lead, 22-12, and eventually won 25-18 when a volley went off a Pace player and carried out of bounds.
The Lady Vikings twice led by seven points, 11-4 and 12-5, in the third game, but could not fend off the determined Lady Lobos, who snapped a 17-17 deadlock and went ahead for good 18-17 on another Pace ball that sailed long.
On the final point that helped Lopez win the third set 25-19 and sweep the match, Desirree Castillo scored on a well-placed cross-court tip from the left side that caught the Lady Vikings out of position.
“This was a big accomplishment because we always have a big battle with Pace,” said the Lady Lobos’ Carla Lopez, a senior middle blocker who led her team with double-digit kills and a number of blocks. “We knew we had to play hard and beat them today because last year it was a little bit difficult (getting past Pace and reaching the playoffs).
“A win like this puts us out there and lets the other teams (in 32-5A) know that we’re good competition for them,” she added. “They shouldn’t feel that just because we’re Lopez they’re going to beat us.”
Noemi Gallardo, the Lady Lobos’ junior setter, credited her team’s steady play as being the difference Saturday.
“We were real consistent compared to other matches we’ve played,” said Gallardo, a team captain. “We had a lot of chemistry and we played as a team. It was a lot of fun.
“I feel we’ve gotten better as we’ve gone along,” she added. “A win like this pumps us up. We’re already thinking ahead to playing the other teams (in the second round of district) because now we know what they’ve got.”
District 32-5A’s second round begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday as Brownsville Veterans Memorial visits Pace and Lopez plays host to Porter.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess