NATHANIEL MATA | THE MONITOR
ALAMO — PSJA Memorial’s Jose Acosta was in alone against Edinburg Economedes goalkeeper Javier Perez on a breakaway opportunity. Acosta waited for Perez to cheat left, then softly deposited the ball into the right portion of the net for the game’s first tally. Memorial scored again in the second half for a 2-0 win over Economedes on Friday.
Acosta’s composed finish belied the fact that he is a natural sweeper who is playing forward due to injuries in the Wolverines’ forward ranks.
Memorial coach Alex Cruz said Acosta wasn’t sure about making the switch at first before ultimately agreeing to the move.
When the two teams met in Edinburg on Jan. 30, the Jaguars had all the scoring in a 3-0 blanking.
“To me, this game is more satisfying, because we are playing without three starters,” Cruz said after Friday’s final whistle. “(Acosta is) a speedy guy. Surprisingly, he accepted the challenge, and it paid off with the speed. He’s got a good touch.”
Friday’s result muddles the top of District 31-6A’s standings. Frontrunners PSJA Southwest and Edinburg Economedes stay at 22 and 19 points, respectively, with losses Friday, while PSJA Memorial moves into third with 13 points.
Memorial senior goalie Rudy De Leon thrived on Friday after making an important move to sharpen his game between the posts.
“In the first games, honestly, I played without glasses, so I couldn’t really see that much,” De Leon said. “The coaches made me put my glasses on, and it was a big difference for the team. I barely started two games ago, and I wasn’t too confident those two games, because I was scared they would break. Now, I’m pretty confident.”
De Leon made at least seven plays over the course of the 80 minutes to charge the ball and negate the Jaguars attack.
Just five minutes into the game, De Leon interrupted a centering pass from Ramiro Rios to Abraham Alferez. The Jaguars controlled possession during most of the first half, but their passes were regularly intercepted by either De Leon or the Wolverines defenders.
Econ’s Perez made a pair of impressive saves before the scoring got underway. Acosta settled the ball and tried to power a shot just inside the near post, but Perez was in the way of the high-velocity shot. Garza had a chance not long after, but his shot rolled into the arms of Perez.
Econ was aggressive out of the halftime break. During the first six minutes of the second half, the Jaguars sent two free kicks screaming wide of both De Leon and the goal post. The Jags took four second-half free kicks.
Nearly 15 minutes into the half, the Wolverines took advantage of Econ’s time on the ball with a counterattack strike. Ruben Garza corralled the ball around midfield and made his own path with a deep run into the box. Garza made no mistake to double PSJA Memorial’s lead.
“It feels great, because it pushes us to keep going more and to defend and everything. It’s just a great feeling,” De Leon said about having goal support and playing with the lead.
Econ will look back on its missed opportunities on not just free kicks, but also corner kicks and centering passes. Many times, the Jaguars would send a potentially dangerous ball through the 6-yard box with no recipient to be found.
The tight 31-6A race will resume on Tuesday, when PSJA Memorial faces Edinburg North while Economedes hosts PSJA High.
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