By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
When Hanna and Rivera play in boys soccer, it’s usually for a district championship.
That’s the way it looked Tuesday at Sams Memorial Stadium when the Golden Eagles and Raiders opened the second round of District 32-6A competition against one another.
Hanna (7-1, 21 points) scored late in the match to prevail 3-2 and take over the 32-6A lead with now second-place Rivera (7-1, 20 points) close behind. Los Fresnos (5-3, 15 points) is firmly in control of third place, while Harlingen High (3-5, 10 points) holds down fourth place. Next come Harlingen South (3-5, nine points), San Benito (3-5, nine points), Weslaco East (3-5, nine points) and Weslaco High (1-6, three points).
Rivera edged Hanna 3-2 in penalty kicks when the two teams opened first-round district play on Jan. 26, also at Sams.
This time, it was the Eagles’ turn to win.
Tuesday’s match was tied 1-1 at halftime before Hanna went ahead 2-1 and Rivera drew even again.
Then, with a little more than two minutes remaining in regulation, Hanna’s Danny Rivera received a long pass by teammate Axel Guzman from the midfield.
Rivera dribbled in on the attack and surged ahead of the defense on a breakaway before sending the ball into the goal with a shot from inside the penalty box.
Rivera finished with two goals in the match and teammate Aldair Hernandez had one. For the Raiders, the goals were scored by Roberto Melendez and Jose Muniz.
“Both teams were equally balanced and we both wanted and fought hard for this game,” Hanna coach Reyes Prado said. “My guys had some careless mistakes, but, in my opinion, we were able to set the tempo of the game. Our team was mentally and physically ready for Rivera.
“Our district is very competitive and we should and will focus (only) on our next opponent (for every game),” Prado added. “Coach Salvador Garcia (at Rivera) has a great program and it is always great to beat a team of that caliber.”
Until Tuesday, Rivera had led the district. The Raiders are still only one point behind Hanna and six district dates remain in the second round, so some changes may happen again. But for now, the Eagles lead the 32-6A boys race.
“As we expected, it was a very close, physical game, and in my honest opinion, Hanna wanted it more than we did,” Garcia said. “We are still looking for the consistency that one needs to be a contender and to fight for titles. There were some times during the game when our team played very well and displayed ‘Rivera Soccer,’ but then, for no good reason, we stopped doing that and just played without any discipline.”
District action for 32-6A resumes Friday.
NEW 32-6A GIRLS LEADER
There were changes as well atop the 32-6A girls standings over the past few days.
Former 32-6A girls leader Harlingen South (5-3, 17 points) now has slipped to third place after only picking up one point in its last two games.
At the top spot in the standings now is defending 32-6A champion Los Fresnos (7-1, 21 points) followed by second-place Harlingen High (6-2, 18 points).
After the top three teams are Rivera (5-3, 13 points), Hanna (3-5, 11 points), San Benito (3-5, eight points), Weslaco High (2-6, five points) and Weslaco East (1-7, three points).
An important matchup is ahead on Friday when Los Fresnos travels to Harlingen’s Boggus Stadium to play South at 5:30 p.m. During the first round at Los Fresnos, South won 2-0.
32-5A UPDATE
District 32-5A boys and girls were open Tuesday and will start second-round play on Friday. Some game times have been moved up due to Charro Days.
In the boys standings, Brownsville Veterans Memorial (7-0, 20 points) is the leader with second-place Lopez (6-1, 19 points) close behind. Porter (5-2, 14 points) is third and Donna North (4-3, 12 points) is fourth. Next come Pace (2-5, seven points), Donna High (2-5, six points), Mercedes (2-5, five points) and Edcouch-Elsa (0-7, one point).
The Pace Lady Vikings (7-0, 21 points) remain atop the 32-5A girls standings as they seek their best season in school history and first district championship since 2009.
Donna North (6-1, 18 points) holds down second place behind the Lady Vikings, while Brownsville Veterans (4-3, 12 points) is third, Porter (4-3, 11 points) is fourth, E-E (3-4, 10 points) is fifth and Lopez (3-4, nine points) is sixth. After that come Donna High (1-6, three points) and Mercedes (0-7, no points).
The “Battle of Southmost” doubleheader on Friday between Lopez and Porter has been moved to 10 a.m. (boys) and noon (girls) at Lopez.
Also, the Brownsville Veterans vs. Pace doubleheader on Friday at Pace is set for 5:30 p.m. (boys) and 7:30 p.m. (girls). That’s the normal second-round district time schedule.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess