By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
Pace was behind early at home against Lopez, but came roaring back thanks to Andres Salgado’s hot hand.
Salgado knocked down a 3 that started a second quarter surge to give the Vikings the lead and they never looked back in the 70-50 victory over the Lobos in a District 32-5A game Tuesday at Pace.
“We all came out to play, we really wanted this win,” he said. “We’ve been very focused … hopefully we can keep playing like this.”
Salgado scored a game-high 23 points and hit four 3-pointers, including three in the first half on his way to 15 first-half points. He added a pair of rebounds, four assists and a steal to clinch the third straight playoff berth for Pace (8-4 in District 32-5A) and drop Lopez to 5-7 in district play and on the bubble for a postseason trip.
“He’s been struggling and is recovering from some injuries from the summer,” Pace coach Jose Luis Ramirez said. “He hasn’t trusted his body to do the work. But in a game that means something, you can always count on him.”
Pace trailed 17-15 after the opening quarter and began a 10-0 run to take control. Salgado got it started and added another 3 to give the Vikings a 25-17 edge. After Lopez’s Julio Jimenez got a three-point play to cut it five points, Pace went on another run, this one an 11-0 surge that included a pair of 3s by Randy Aguilar, the later one turned into a four-point play as the Vikings increased the advantage to 36-20, although Lopez cut it to 11 by the break.
“I think we settled in,” Ramirez said after the first quarter. “We had to win to clinch a place (in the playoffs). We moved the ball more effectively and got open looks and knocked them down.”
The teams traded buckets in the second half. Lopez cut it to six points at one point, but didn’t get any closer as foul trouble and a rough night from the field hurt any chance of overcoming its first half deficit.
“You get in foul trouble on the road and nothing good ever comes from it,” Lopez coach Neil Schuster said. “We didn’t hit shots we usual hit. The looks were there, we were getting what we wanted but sometimes the ball doesn’t bounce the way you want it to.”
Pace continued to score in transition and hit several free throws down the stretch to push the lead to 20 in the district victory.
Aguilar finished with 19 points and seven rebounds and Julio Ortega added 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists for Pace.
Jimenez led Lopez with 13 points and a pair of rebounds before fouling out. Matt Ramirez and JJ Briones added 11 points apiece and combined for seven rebounds for the Lobos.
The loss didn’t spoil a trip to the postseason with two games remaining, but it did make it tougher. Lopez will likely have to win both games and get some help.
“We have to get ready for Porter (on Friday) and put our best foot forward,” Schuster said. “Regardless of what happened, I’m proud of these kids … I know they left everything out there.”
Ramirez was happy to earn another trip to the postseason.
“It’s what it’s all about. Our goal is always a district title, but second to that is making the playoffs,” he said. “We told ourselves this is something we have to do every year, it’s a tradition … something we take pride in. It’s a culmination of work, workouts, blood, sweat and tears to get to this spot.
“To know we’ve earned it, it’s a proud moment. But we’re not anywhere near satisfied, we have a long way to go.”
PACE 64, LOPEZ 7
In the girls contest, Pace opened up a big lead in the first quarter led by Crystal Eureste’s 11 points and cruised to a district win over Lopez.
Eureste finished with 19 points, seven rebounds and seven steals as the Lady Vikings amassed 23 steals by halftime and finished with 34 in the overwhelming district victory and will now prepare for the playoffs.
“It’s really exciting,” she said of heading to the postseason. “It’s the next step for us to prove people wrong that we weren’t going to make it (to the playoffs). We’re ready. We’re going to give it all we’ve got.”
The Lady Vikings held the Lady Lobos without a point in the first half. Pace used its defense to get points off turnovers and outscored Lopez 31-0 at the break.
Pace opened up the third quarter on a 15-0 run and held Lopez scoreless until 1:36 left in the third as Betsi Perez ended the drought with a bucket.
The Vikings outscored the Lady Lobos 16-5 in the final quarter and finished the district season with a 10-4 mark and a trip to the postseason. Lopez finished winless in district, but returns plenty of experience as everyone returns next season.
“We’re looking forward to hitting the offseason hard this year,” Lopez coach Adam Castaneda said. “We’re looking to build the whole program with these girls coming back. We’re going to build on this year’s experience and use this as a learning experience.”
Nora Espinoza led Lopez with three points on a 3-pointer, Perez and Briana Matamores each had two points and Miriam De Leon grabbed five rebounds for the Lady Lobos.
The Quezada twins, Kaylynn and Katie finished with eight points apiece and combined for 11 rebounds and 14 steals for Pace. Karla Garcia and Geaceli Orive added seven points and combined for six rebounds for the Lady Vikings.
Pace will face either Laredo Martin or Laredo Nixon in the postseason and defense will certainly be important to have the chance to advance.
“We wanted to work on our defense and that was our focus heading into the game,” Pace coach Eddie Lozano said. “It helps our confidence going into the playoffs.”
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.