COLLEGE STATION — PSJA North’s Ale Aparicio threw five touchdown passes and linebacker Michael Gonzales Jr. started the game with an interception to beat San Marcos 32-18 in the final game of pool play and advance to the championship bracket after going 2-1 on Friday.
The Rio Grande Valley’s hopes of a team advancing to the Division 1 7-on-7 state tournament championship bracket hinged on whether or not PSJA North could take down San Marcos. Weslaco High and McAllen Rowe went 0-3, and PSJA High went 1-2. All three will be in the consolation bracket today.
“I had an off game before this one,” Gonzales Jr. said. “They kept targeting me and I was out of my element, but I had to lock in to help my team get to the championship bracket.”
Gonzales Jr. read the San Marcos quarterback’s eyes on the first series, picking up an easy interception and setting the tone for the rest of the game on defense.
“This was probably one of our better games this tournament,” Gonzales Jr. said. “We came out firing. We got them off the field a couple of times and do what we usually do, black-shirt defense.”
Aparicio looked composed in the pocket, shredding the San Marcos defense for five touchdown passes. Aparicio completed two of them to Julius Arredondo, but was hitting every receiver on a plethora of different routes.
“It feels good going into a game knowing you can trust your receivers,” Aparicio said. “You could put the ball in any place, and they are going to get it. Having that chemistry from running routes outside of school and outside of games really helps.”
The Raiders beat Cy Falls in their first game 20-6. PSJA North lost to Timber Creek in the second game 26-20, but because Cy Falls beat Timber Creek in the third game and the Raiders beat San Marcos, PSJA North took the top seed from the pool.
PSJA North takes on Arlington Lamar at 8:45 a.m. PSJA High was beating Arlington Lamar late in their second game, but lost in overtime 26-20 on a fourth-down play. PSJA High beat Houston Lamar 26-21 to avoid going winless. The Bears dropped the first game 14-13 to Wylie East.
Weslaco High, like PSJA High, could have made it to the championship bracket if not for late comebacks. The Panthers gave up late touchdowns in their first two games. Elijah Rodriguez pulled down three long touchdowns against Midlothian Heritage, but a touchdown on the final play and subsequent extra point resulted in 19-18 a Panthers loss.
Weslaco High lost to Waller 27-21 and to Bryan by the same score.
McAllen Rowe had a chance to take a late lead against Lake Belton, but quarterback Lance Salinas and the offense were stopped at the goal line. The Warriors let it slip at the end, losing 31-21. Salinas made great throws throughout the game to his speedy receivers.
McAllen Rowe lost to Dawson 27-20 and McKinney 26-6. Weslaco High, McAllen Rowe and PSJA High all play at 8 a.m. in the consolation bracket.
La Feria faced Division II runner up Anna in the first round of the single-elimination tournament for all Division II teams. The Lions were beat 40-0 by an Anna team that was extremely talented at the receiver position with three-star recruit Jacob Emmers.
Anna lost 27-20 in the championship game to Hitchcock.