By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
LOS FRESNOS — “I wanted to come out here with a boom.”
Mission accomplished, Mark Mata.
Los Fresnos’ senior quarterback did a little bit of everything Friday night, totaling 367 yards of offense and six touchdowns to help the Falcons erase an early two-touchdown deficit and upend Edcouch-Elsa 50-40 in Los Fresnos.
Mata’s big night was a fitting performance for the Brownsville Herald’s Game of the Week.
“I’ve been working so hard for this,” Mata said. “It’s finally paying off and it showed. I just wanted to help my team be successful.”
Mata found that success in the form of 251 yards on the ground and four touchdowns in his debut under center after playing receiver and safety on defense last season. He also threw for 116 yards and two more touchdowns on 12-of-22 passing to lead the and deliver new head coach Patrick Brown his first victory at LFHS.
“It feels great. I’m worn out,” Brown said. “Did I think it was going to be 50-40? No way in hell.”
Falcons freshman receiver Nicholas Valencia also had a strong showing for Los Fresnos, hauling in six catches for 78 yards and Mata’s two touchdown tosses. The youngster also recovered a Mata fumble in the end zone for another score with 7:38 remaining in the third quarter.
“I knew I had to do my job,” Valencia said. “As soon as I saw (the ball) get out, I chased it.”
“He saved me,” Mata added.
Mata threw his second touchdown to Valencia — a 13-yard pass — seven seconds into the fourth quarter that served as the game winner. Senior running back David Alvarez sealed LFHS’ scoring outburst with a 3-yard touchdown run with 3:56 left to play.
Edcouch-Elsa quarterback Marco Aguinaga matched Mata’s night with his own gaudy numbers. The Yellowjackets senior passed for 290 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 108 yards and another score, but the effort went for naught.
Edcouch-Elsa got on the board first with 6:48 to play in the first quarter. Aguinaga scampered for a 3-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead. Just a minute and a half later, following a Los Fresnos punt, Aguinaga hit Jalen Aguila on a 9-yard pass for another score and the Yellowjackets were ahead 14-0.
Los Fresnos answered with two touchdowns in a span of a minute. The first score came on a 74-yard burst through the Edcouch-Elsa defense by Mata with 3:56 left in the first quarter. A botched punt by Edcouch-Elsa on its next series gave the Falcon offense a short field, and Mata scored on the ensuing drive with a 7-yard run to tie it at 14.
The Yellowjackets wasted no time regaining the lead. Under two minutes into the second quarter, Aguinaga hit AJ Rodriguez on an 8-yard pass to jump ahead 20-14.
Los Fresnos then struck back with nearly minute to go in the first half. The Falcons’ defense got a safety and Mata hit Valencia on the next series for a 23-20 lead.
But Edcouch-Elsa took it right back, as Aguinaga threw his third touchdown, a 29-yard pass to the end zone with just seven seconds left for a 28-23 advantage at the break.
The lead didn’t last long, however, as Los Fresnos opened the final 24 minutes of play with three straight touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Falcons’ defense shut out the Yellowjackets in the third quarter and allowed just 12 points the rest of the way.
“Fatigue got the best of us,” Edcouch-Elsa coach Joe Marichalar said. “We shot ourselves in the foot (with three straight punts) to start off the second half. If you don’t have good field position, it’s going to be tough to win. Give Los Fresnos credit, they got a little upset over there and they decided to play football. That’s what it’s all about.”
Marichalar said his players had no reason to hang their heads. But they have to regroup quickly with Edinburg Vela up next.
“We’ll use this as a learning experience,” he said. “We gave it a good shot, but give (Los Fresnos) credit. I’m proud of my kids, they were resilient, they never quit. We’ll fix it and get ready to go.”
In the end, the difference was Mata, who made plays for Los Fresnos when it needed them.
“He’s pretty special,” Brown said of his quarterback. “He made some monster plays to get us out of bad situations. He really stressed their defense. I thought his leadership and how hard he played was fantastic.”
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.