By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald
The football season is going along pretty much how the Pace Vikings envisioned it would go.
Pace is off to a 3-1 start, including 3-0 in District 16-5A Division I.
The next challenge for the Vikings comes at 7:30 p.m. Friday when they return to PSJA Stadium for a district matchup against the PSJA Memorial Wolverines, who are 0-4 (0-3 district). Even though they’re winless, the Wolverines are showing improvement each passing week.
Pace just played at PSJA Stadium last week and defeated PSJA Southwest 19-7 in district action. It was the Vikings’ third win in a row. The only setback thus far for the Vikings was a non-district 20-17 overtime loss at Sharyland High in the season opener on Aug. 31.
Second-year Pace coach Danny Pardo is pleased with his team’s showing so far as the regular season draws closer to the halfway point.
When asked to grade his team at this point of the schedule, Pardo agreed that grade should probably be a B-plus.
“We’re doing good enough to win,” the Pace coach said. “We’re moving the ball. We just need to score more. Last week against PSJA Southwest, we had four trips inside the 10-yard line and only scored three points.
“Our defense is doing well,” Pardo added. “We’re fortunate to be putting together some long drives (on offense) to have a good time of possession, and that keeps our defense off the field.”
The Vikings are leading the district in defense by allowing only 158.8 yards per game. It was only a year ago when the Vikings were fairly porous at times on defense. The Wolverines rank last in district, giving up 417.8 yards per outing.
Offensively, the Wolverines are averaging 261.8 yards per game, while Pace is averaging 270.0 yards.
“We don’t take PSJA Memorial lightly,” Pardo said. “We have a lot of respect for them. Their record doesn’t really show the kind of team they have.
“Their quarterback (Orlando Munoz) can move (and make plays), and they have a running back (Joaquin Sanchez) that is fast, and is the district champion in the 100 (meters), I believe,” Pardo added. “Nobody we’ve faced so far throws the ball like they do, so it will be a good test for us. It’ll be a good game.”
PSJA Memorial is coming off a 44-24 district loss two Thursdays ago to Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Sams Memorial Stadium. In that game, Munoz passed for 250 yards, wide receiver Tavis Sain ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns and Sanchez rushed for 62 yards.
Wolverines coach Michael Uribe sees his team improving every week.
“Absolutely,” Uribe said. “We’re making strides and getting better. I’m optimistic about our progress and pleased with how we’ve improved.
“We’ve been having a good week of preparation to give ourselves the best chance possible to be successful against Pace,” he added. “There’s a reason why they’re 3-0 (in district). Pace is very athletic and big up front.”
Pace relies on quarterbacks Brandon Zapata, a senior, and Jose Banda, a sophomore. If Zapata isn’t at QB, he plays running back and leads the team with 250 yards rushing. Dylan Barron (224 yards rushing) and Banda (196) are also in the mix.
Banda has the best passing numbers, having completed 14 of 29 attempts for 246 yards and two TDs with no interceptions in four games.
The Vikings and Wolverines didn’t play each other last year as each team was in a different district.
Next week, district action continues for both teams. Pace returns to Sams on Thursday against La Joya Palmview, while PSJA Memorial is at Rio Grande City on Friday.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess