The Mercedes Tigers had their backs against the wall after two lopsided defeats to District 32-6A opponents, Weslaco High and Harlingen High.
The Tigers responded Friday night with a big win over the McAllen High Bulldogs 48-37.
“We needed that one, it was a long night,” Mercedes head coach Roger Adame said. “We set the schedule up and we knew those are two premier teams that are 3-0 right now. We knew we had to go against teams like to get ready for our district. We are in a really touch district.”
“I would not do our team favors by putting them against teams that they could probably feel good against and not find out where we really needed help.”
The two games helped the Tigers make some decisions personnel wise, Adame said.
“We kind of simplified a lot of stuff,” he said. “We got our kids playing faster with the real simple offense and defense, that helped out. You can see that tonight.”
Adame praised Tyrell Trevino and Xavier Sanchez as some of the key performers in the victory.
Mercedes (1-2) will head to neighboring city La Feria (2-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Lion Stadium. McAllen High (1-2) begins play in District 15-5A DI against PSJA North (3-0) 7:30 p.m. Friday at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium.
EDINBURG NORTH 42, SHARYLAND PIONEER 39: At Edinburg, Keyshawn Garcia returned a kickoff for the touchdown for the Cougars’ first touchdown of the night, setting up a 42-point outburst enroute to their second straight win.
The 42 points marked a season high for the Cougars, topping their total from their previous two games combined.
“It was a big win for us in a lot of aspects,” Edinburg North head coach Damian Gonzalez said. “The kids worked really hard. We hadn’t played up to our standards the first two games, but we came out and played really well tonight. All three parts of the game, offense, defense and special teams came through for us tonight.”
The Cougars (2-1, 0-0) continue their non-district schedule against Eagle Pass on Friday at the Laredo Student Activity Center.