By ROY HESS
Staff Writer
There’s a feeling of excitement plus a little bit of uncertainty for the volleyball teams at Porter and Pace as they get ready to start District 32-5A competition Saturday against a new set of conference opponents.
Most of their former district foes, including four other Brownsville schools, are now playing in 32-6A, which also begins district play Saturday.
Because of their enrollment figures, Pace and Porter stayed in Class 5A, while the UIL moved other nearby schools up from 5A to Class 6A last February when a new realignment was announced.
As 32-5A action commences at 2 p.m. Saturday, Pace will be playing at Mercedes and Porter will be at home against Donna North.
“I haven’t seen everybody (in 32-5A) because we’ve all been playing at different places in various tournaments, but I want to say Pace might give teams a run for the money, and probably Edcouch-Elsa and Mercedes, too. That’s what I’ve heard,” said Porter coach Laura Fortner, whose squad is 3-3 in non-tournament action following Tuesday’s 25-23, 25-8, 22-25, 25-18 setback in a non-district match at Port Isabel.
Pace coach Gavin Rudder said, “Honestly, I haven’t seen too many of the teams in our district play. I think it all depends on who’s peaking at the right time. I’ve heard Donna (High) is pretty tough, but it could be anybody’s district.
“I think we’ve got a really good shot (in district),” added Rudder, whose squad is 5-9 after a 25-19, 24-26, 24-26, 25-15, 15-9 non-district loss at home Tuesday against Lyford. “Our hitters are coming around, and our team has really improved in leaps and bounds from when I first got them. Once we actually put together a good match, it’s going to be hard to stop us.”
Rudder said playing good defense has been a strong point for his team so far this season. He said two senior standouts for Pace heading into district are libero Ashlynn Marchan and front-row player Rose Perez.
Meanwhile, Sabrina Garcia, a senior outside hitter, has become a dependable leader for the Cowgirls, Fortner said.
Porter is basically a junior team, Fortner said, and some of the juniors who are playing key roles along with Sabrina Garcia include setter Marquel Rivera, libero Karen Garcia, all-around player Danielle Sanchez and middle blockers Karla Sosa and Krista Quiroz.
“We’re definitely starting off better than last year, so that’s always a good thing,” said Fortner, who is now in her second season guiding the Cowgirls. “Last year was more of a time for learning basic skills and learning what was expected of them. This year, it’s more a matter of executing those skills. We’re drilling, drilling and drilling, so that when it comes game time, they’ll break bad habits, quit doing the mistakes that have hurt them before and become more mentally tough.
“The mental aspect is what is going to make or break us this year because we definitely have the skills now,” Fortner added. “The leadership of our go-to person (Sabrina Garcia) is something that has stood out to me a lot. She’s been playing consistently (well) no matter where she is on the court.”
Regarding his team, Rudder, now in his second year at Pace, said, “We were struggling, but we’ve turned it around lately, and I think it’s going to really carry us into district. I think we’re going to start peaking at the right time. We’ve been moving some people around (and trying them at various spots), but I think all together, our team is going to do really well.”
Fortner and Rudder have developed a mutual coaching friendship in volleyball, going back to Fortner’s playing days in college, then as Laura Rodriguez, at Hawaii-Hilo, where Rudder was one of her coaches. Fortner, a former standout player at Hanna, said she likely would have become Rudder’s assistant at Pace had she not been hired to be the coach at Porter.
Their two teams play each other in district for the first time this season Sept. 23 at Pace.
DISTRICT OPENERS
In inaugural 32-6A matches at noon Saturday, it’s Harlingen High at Rivera, San Benito at Hanna, Lopez at Los Fresnos and Brownsville Veterans Memorial at Harlingen South.
The schedule of 32-5A openers at 2 p.m. Saturday has Donna North at Porter, Pace at Mercedes, Edcouch-Elsa at PSJA High and PSJA Southwest at Donna High.
District 32-4A also begins Saturday, and the Port Isabel Lady Tarpons will begin their quest to capture a third straight district title at 1 p.m. at home against Zapata.