By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
LOS FRESNOS — Los Fresnos was in command and couldn’t hold its lead late against Weslaco High in a battle of district unbeatens.
The Falcons held a slim lead going into the fourth quarter, but saw it slip away in a 69-63 loss to the Panthers in a the District 32-6A basketball game on Friday.
“Weslaco (High) is a good team and they’re very well coached,” Los Fresnos coach Marco Hinojosa said. “(Coach) Gabe (Valdez) has been doing this for a long time and has a lot of wins under his belt. It boiled down to making little plays and we missed a bunch of layups and they hit all of theirs that was the difference in the game. They made the plays under the basket that we didn’t.”
Alex Garcia led the way with 19 points and Andrew Carrizales added 16 points for Los Fresnos, but the pair was held to a combined seven points after scoring 14 apiece in the first half.
The Falcons couldn’t hold Weslaco High’s Braxton Bloomquist in check as he scored a game-high 24 points, including 15 in the first half and was big down the stretch for the Panthers (5-0 in District 32-6A) and handed Los Fresnos (4-1) its first district loss.
“I knew coming in it was going to be a tough game for us,” Valdez said. “I know we can play on the road. It was a big game for both of us. Braxton’s one of our key guys, he kept his composure and played well within himself and in the contents of the offense and we got a big win.”
Los Fresnos held a one-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter, but after Weslaco High’s Braxton Bloomquist gave the Panthers the lead on a jumper, he added to it with a 3 to push the lead to 58-54. A 3-pointer by Garcia would get the Falcons within one at 58-57.
The teams traded baskets and the Panthers took a 66-61 lead with some stops on defense and a few buckets when they needed them. Gabe Martinez hit a pair of free throws to get Los Fresnos within 66-63, but Weslaco High held off the Falcons and hit a few free throws down the stretch to seal the district win and put itself at the top of the standings.
“Defensively we tried to keep our composure,” Valdez said. “Offensively we moved the ball and tried to get it inside, but it opened up the outside for us and we hit some big shots.”
Matthew Olmeda and Jesus Paez were also in double figures for Weslaco High. Olmeda finished with 11 points and four rebounds and Paez added 10 points and four rebounds.
Jordan Urbina finished with 13 points and added four steals for Los Fresnos before fouling out late in the final quarter.
After being in control for three quarters despite a slim margin, Los Fresnos couldn’t hold onto lead after Bloomquist helped get Weslaco High started on a run that would shift momentum in the final quarter. The Falcons had shot well all game, but struggled at times in the fourth allowing the Panthers to build a small lead that they couldn’t recover from.
“We missed some putbacks and layups and that was the ball game,” Hinojosa said.
The Falcons coach was confident that his team wouldn’t forget they’re first district loss.
“We’ll be ready next time. We’re going to win at Weslaco, you can bet on that,” Hinojosa said. “If we can reel off several wins and go to Weslaco with just one loss, that will be for a district title.
“That will be a game to watch for everybody in the Valley.”
WESLACO HIGH 52, LOS FRESNOS 36
The Los Fresnos Lady Falcons couldn’t match the aggressiveness of the Weslaco High Lady Panthers from the start and fell behind.
The Lady Falcons scored the opening basket, but saw the Lady Panthers make a 12-0 run, including six points from Brianna Pena, to take a double-digit lead and outscored Los Fresnos 15-4 in the opening quarter.
“Missed layups and free throws kill you,” Los Fresnos coach Kim Edquist said. “The little things like that. The first quarter dug us deep (in a hole). We were right there at times, but that struggle of trying to catch up is tough against a good team like Weslaco (High).”
Ariadna Gallardo led Los Fresnos with 18 points, including four 3-pointers — three in the second half — but couldn’t make up for the first-quarter deficit.
The Lady Falcons played the Lady Panthers nearly even the rest of the way, but Weslaco High’s Emily Saenz was the difference with a game-high 21 points, including some big buckets down the stretch to hold off Los Fresnos.
The Lady Panthers also took advantage from the charity stripe, hitting 15 of 26, including 14 of 20 in the first half.
“The game plan was to attack the basket,” Weslaco High coach Griselda Fino said. “I thought we came out strong. We tell the girls anytime someone man’s you up, your mentality is I’m going to go score on you. We look for that in sets and have complete confidence in our five kids on the floor.”
Weslaco High moves to 6-1 in District 32-6A and Los Fresnos falls to 3-4 in district play.
It seemed every time Los Fresnos tried to make a run, Saenz would hit a big shot to quell the rally. She had two 3s in the second half that both shifted momentum back to Weslaco High.
Gallardo had eight points in the third quarter alone, but Los Fresnos still trailed by 12 points heading into the final quarter. She had another 3 early in the fourth quarter and Britney Ruiz had back-to-back buckets during another surge for Los Fresnos, but it couldn’t overcome the way it started the game.
“Los Fresnos did a good job of being resilient despite us making those little runs, they kept at it,” Fino said. “I’m glad we walked out of here with a W.”
Pena finished with 12 points and five rebounds and Gabriella Garza added nine points and six rebounds for Weslaco High.
Ruiz had eight points, four rebounds and a pair of steals and Cassie Parra grabbed seven rebounds for Los Fresnos.
Despite the setback, Edquist believes her team can still earn a playoff berth.
“We have to take care of some of those teams (in the second half of district) … we don’t want to rely on someone else to beat someone,” she said. “I think we’ve made that turn and are starting to believe in themselves, so we’ll see what happens.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @andrewmcrum.