By ANDREW CRUM | The Brownsville Herald
Junior running back Brandon Zapata fumbled on Pace’s first drive against Edcouch-Elsa, but he certainly made up for the early miscue.
Zapata finished with 175 yards on the ground and three touchdowns to lead the Vikings to a 34-17 victory over the Yellowjackets in a crucial District 32-5A game Thursday in Week 9 at Sams Memorial Stadium.
“I was just reading the blocks, if I don’t get the blocks I can’t run … everyone has to do their part,” he said, giving credit to his teammates. “It feels good … we’re all feeling really good. We’re proud of each other, we did it as a team.”
Zapata scored twice before halftime on runs of 1-yard and 26-yards and found the end zone again in the fourth quarter on a 14-yard run to lead the way on the ground as Pace (4-4, 3-2) piled up 277 yards via its rushing attack in a game that keeps it in the postseason mix. The loss by Edcouch-Elsa (4-4, 2-3) is its second straight in district play and it needs to regroup quickly with just two games left in the regular season.
“This was a huge win because it puts us a little closer to where we want to be,” Pace coach Danny Pardo said. “Our defense is playing with confidence … they played great (Thursday). I think we caught Edcouch-Elsa a little bit down after losing to Mercedes last week.
“We’ll take the win anyway we can.”
The Vikings’ defense forced three fumbles and got an interception by senior defensive back Rafael Dominguez and senior quarterback Randy Aguilar finished with 163 yards through the air and two more touchdowns as Pace totaled 440 yards on offense during the night.
After a fumble on the first drive by both teams, Edcouch-Elsa took the early advantage late in the opening quarter. Senior running back Jorge Gomez broke free on a 50-yard touchdown run for a 6-0 lead after the run conversion failed with 2:09 left.
Pace got going on its next possession, as Zapata capped off the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to gain a 7-6 lead with 8:57 left in the second quarter.
The Yellowjackets answered with a 33-yard field goal by senior kicker Ronaldo Mata to retake the lead, 9-7, with 6:51 left in the second.
The Vikings answered a minute and a half later as Zapata found the end zone again after a 26-yard scamper and Pace regained the edge, 14-9.
After Edcouch-Elsa punted, the Vikings scored with 30 seconds before halftime as Aguilar hit senior receiver Misael Monsivais on a 24-yard strike for a touchdown and a 21-9 advantage at the break.
“I don’t know if you want to pinpoint the offense or defense, but as a team we didn’t ‘Jacket football,’” Edcouch-Elsa coach Joe Marichalar said. “You have to give credit to Pace, they were ready for the moment. We gave it up and they capitalized and that’s the way it went down (Thursday).
“We fell into a hole and couldn’t get out of it.”
In the third quarter, Aguilar hit senior receiver Gabriel Zapata on a 26-yard touchdown pass to extend the edge to 27-9 with 3:52 left.
In the final quarter, the Yellowjackets scored on an 18-yard run by junior quarterback Albert Trevino and Gomez added the two-point conversion to cut it to 27-17 with 7:32 left to play.
Brandon Zapata put it out of reach with his third touchdown on the night late in the final quarter to seal it for Pace.
Trevino finished with 93 yards and a touchdown on the ground and he threw for 173 yards, but four turnovers by the Yellowjackets’ offense — three in the second half — stopped drives and it couldn’t find the end zone enough after halftime.
The Edcouch-Elsa defense also forced four turnovers on the night, but its offense only scored off one, with its lone score in the second half.
“(Pace) knew what was at stake and they made a push toward the postseason … they went all out and we didn’t,” Marichalar said. “I tell the kids that life isn’t easy … this is the hand we’re dealt. Either you cry about it or find a way to get it done … so we’re going to find a way to get it done.”
Pardo sees his team coming together at the right time as it tries to carry this momentum into a possible postseason berth.
“The kids played fast and they’re finally having fun … they’re really enjoying it,” he said. “We have to keep working though. We’re not doing anything different except the kids are enjoying playing … it started last week after they saw we can win a tight game. Pulling out a game like last week helped them.
“They played good (Thursday) … they played fast and they played aggressive and that’s what I wanted.”
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.