MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
McALLEN — Shortly after beating Edinburg North, McAllen Rowe’s Sophia Luna wrapped her arms around a tearful member of the opposing team, saying, “You girls never gave up. You kept fighting.”
Luna realized her team’s season very well could have ended Saturday. But thanks to a couple of adjustments and two late rallies, the Lady Warriors secured a 25-21, 16-25, 26-24, 26-24 Class 6A area round victory to advance to the regional quarterfinals.
“It’s playoffs and they were ready to go,” Rowe coach Magda Canales said. “Everybody’s going to be ready to go this time of year.”
Rowe (36-5) avoided falling behind 2-1 after Game 3 by closing out the set on an 11-3 run, including a 7-0 spurt to come back from a 24-19 deficit.
In Game 4, Rowe trailed 24-23 after hitting the net, before scoring three straight to seal the match.
“I thought they showed a lot of heart today. Probably one of the best games we’ve played all year,” Edinburg North coach Adrian Cavazos said. “Give them credit. They sided the ball out real well and they made us pay.”
Rowe had contributors across the boards Saturday. Deanna Spear (15 assists) fed Mayda Garcia (28 kills) for a forceful spike into the back row to tie Game 4 at 24. Vanessa Lopez (31 assists) followed by setting up Luna. And then Ryela Rodriguez (8 kills) capped it with a kill off a Lopez assist.
“The heart, the dedication,” Luna said, citing the reason Rowe won. “We just kept telling each other, ‘Guys, we don’t want to go home. We have to do whatever it takes; give it everything you’ve got.’ We just came together as a team.”
The Lady Warriors’ biggest rally came in Game 3, facing a 2-1 deficit. Coming out of a timeout, Rowe trailed 24-19. But Spear connected with Rodriguez for a kill. Spear posted a block-kill herself. And then Lopez found Rodriguez, who lobbed the ball over the net, narrowing the deficit 24-22 and forcing North to call for time.
Lopez came out and spotted Luna for a score. Garcia delivered an ace. And Luna dumped the ball with two hands to give the Lady Warriors a 25-24 advantage. Rowe completed the turn-around when North bobbled the ball and wound up hitting the net.
“I think everybody in a sense didn’t want to go home,” Luna said. “Everybody told each other this isn’t the end. We’re not ending in the second round. It was the assertiveness that everybody was just like ‘you’ve got to get past this. You got to get this set and we’re going to put it away.’”
Rowe struggled going up against North’s Clarivel Garza. The 6-foot-2 middle blocker posted 22 kills and disrupted several other shots.
Canales made three consecutive substitutions at one point, trying to find the right combination. She even moved Garcia to back row in Game 2, leaving a scoring void.
Garcia slid back into the front row, at her usual outside-hitting role, before the set was over. But North was in full control of that game, leading by as much as 12-5 and then 21-12.
“They played together,” Canales said of North. “They were able to get adjusted to our hitters and they were able to do a good job as far as defense goes.
“We’ve had a few matches like that (in which Rowe had to rally to win) and the kids remember the feeling and they refuse to get off the court.”
At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Rowe will face Los Fresnos in a 6A regional quarterfinal match at Harlingen South.
The two teams have faced another four times (three in tournament action, once in non-district) this season, with Rowe winning each match.
“They’re tough. They’re resilient,” Canales said. “They refuse to let the ball hit the floor, and they have a good defense as well.
“They’re a well-rounded team.”