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DONNA — Ball control and execution determined the 82nd chapter between Weslaco High’s and Donna High’s historic rivalry on Friday night. That’s nothing new.
Something else pretty familiar recently is the Panthers’ dominance in the series. Behind two clutch takeaways, including one that resulted in a touchdown, Weslaco High won its third straight game over Donna High 28-13 at Bennie La Prade Stadium.
Ahead 14-13 early late in the third quarter, Weslaco (2-0) got the ball right back and capitalized on junior linebacker Jordan Nichols’ 50-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown minutes later that handed the Panthers a 21-13 lead it would only build upon.
“We knew we could score,” said Nichols, who also had a big interception during last week’s win at Harlingen South. “We just had to cause turnovers and not give up the big play, and that’s exactly what we did.”
The Panthers’ defense also collected a key interception late in the first half as the Redskins were driving to try and add to what was then a 13-7 advantage.
“We have a chance to go up 20-13 there at halftime, or at worst get a field goal, and we blew it,” Donna High coach Ramiro Leal said. “But that fumble recovery was the real dagger. We’re down 14-13 and we knew it was all about field position from that point. It just didn’t bounce our way.”
EDINBURG VELA 70, HARLINGEN SOUTH 40: At Edinburg, Robert Guerra scored four touchdowns to lead the SaberCats to their second straight win of the season.
By halftime, Guerra had accumulated 97 rushing yards and three touchdowns, giving Vela a 42-14 lead. He scored again with 7:08 to play on a 15-yard run.
The scoring output marked the second straight game that Vela hit the 70-point plateau. Last week, it beat Brownsville Pace 72-27.
LAREDO UNITED 55, SHARYLAND HIGH 35: At Richard Thompson Stadium in Mission, the Rattlers allowed Longhorns quarterback Ignazio Tellez to throw for 309 yards and six touchdowns in the opening half alone.
Although Sharyland’s defense stiffened in the second half, the Rattlers never pulled close than 14 points. Sergio Tornero ran for two touchdowns, and Seth Carter and Manny Campos added one each. Carter also connected with Edgar Alanis for a score.
LOS FRESNOS 40, EDCOUCH-ELSA 6: At Los Fresnos, Rene Ortega did a little bit of everything for Los Fresnos.
The senior quarterback threw for 248 yards, rushed for 62 yards and accounted for five touchdowns to lead the Falcons to victory over the Yellowjackets.
Los Fresnos’ defense stepped up midway through the first quarter. Alex Garcia picked off a pass by Andrew Segura and returned it deep into Edcouch-Elsa’s territory. A few plays later, Ortega hit Pete Perez on a 10-yard touchdown pass to give the Falcons a 7-0 lead. Later in the first, Ortega scored on a 4-yard keeper and Los Fresnos took a 13-0 lead.
BROWNSVILLE HANNA 42, MISSION HIGH 28: At Brownsville, the Hanna Golden Eagles broke open a close, back-and-forth game in the first half to improve to 2-0 on the season with a non-district victory over the Mission High Eagles on Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium.
Hanna, coming off last week’s 21-14 season-opening triumph against Edinburg Economedes, will attempt to remain unbeaten when it travels to Donna High next Thursday.
Hanna quarterback Andy Lopez highlighted the victory by throwing three touchdown passes and rushing for another score.
SAN BENITO 47, WESLACO EAST 23: At San Benito, the Greyhounds beat Weslaco East to remain perfect on the season at 2-0. The Wildcats fell to 1-1.
“It was the culmination of great work from our kids and our coaching staff,” San Benito head coach Dan Gomez said of the win. “We had great preparation all week. Our play in the second half (was the turning point). We knew they (East) were a second-half ballclub, everybody knows that. So the challenge was gonna be not just at the start of the game, but the second half.”
McALLEN HIGH 28, EDINBURG HIGH 0: At McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium, a McHi defense that gave up 70 points to Odessa Permian in Week 1 bounced back in a major way, shutting out Edinburg High.
“They took a hit to their pride last week, and I was really proud of the way they bounced back tonight,” coach Kevin Brewer said. “That hurt them, giving up that many points last week. They wanted to go out there and get their swagger back a little bit, and they did a great job tonight.”
Ruben Gutierrez and Mariano Garza both had interceptions for a Bulldogs defense that forced a first-half safety to give the team a 2-0 lead entering the break.
McAllen High scored four times on the ground in the final 24 minutes, as Isaiah Gonzalez found the end zone twice and Caleb Youngblood and Josh McGowen each scored once.
“We made some adjustments at halftime and tried to calm down in the second half,” Brewer said. “We focused on certain formations and certain plays that counteracted what they were doing to us, and we were able to get in a rhythm offensively.”
PORT ISABEL 13, RIO GRANDE CITY 7: At Rio Grande City, the Tarpons came out flat and had to comeback in the second half to beat Rio Grande City on the Road.
Port Isabel was down 7-3 at the half after penalties wiped away a couple touchdowns and had to settle for a field goal by Williams Romero.
In the second half, the Tarpons came out a different team. Carlos Orduna scored on a 12-yard rushing touchdown and Romero added another field goal for Port Isabel.
The Tarpons defense did the rest, including getting two big stops, one on a sack and another on a fumble recovery to seal the win.
LA FERIA 35, SANTA ROSA 6: At La Feria, it was a night to remember for the La Feria Lions. Not only was it parents night for the Lions, but a victory over rivals Santa Rosa added a little something extra.
“We played really well offensively and defensively,” said La Feria head coach Oscar Salinas. “Our defensive improved tonight, we all know containing Leo Lara is tough but our defense did a great job.”
Offensively, La Feria’s Isaac Galpin played his best game so far. The senior quarterback threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns on the night.
ROMA 34, LAREDO CIGARROA 3: At Roma, Ramon Espinoza had a career night, running for 280 yards and five touchdowns as the Gladiators picked up their second straight win.
Roma had six different ball carriers, producing 336 yards, and the team showed signs of an evolving passing attack, with Andy Marroquin completing 4 of 7 passes for 54 yards. Damian Villarreal had two catches for 44 yards.
The defense recovered four turnovers, including three interceptions.
“I thought the kids played well,” Roma coach Max Habecker Jr. said. “I thought the offensive line did a great job. They were extremely physical. And defensively, our guys were flying to the ball.”
S.A. Reagan 42, Harlingen High 28: At Harlingen, the Cardinals did not come out on top in their opener, but they gave the heavily favored San Antonio Reagan Rattlers all they could handle and much more.
The Cardinals (0-1) led by double digits at one time in the second quarter, but a huge Rattlers second half proved too much for the Cards as they lost.
Harlingen running back Leo Tienda put the Cards up 21-7 on a 68-yard scamper late in the first half, but a Kellen Mond 5-yard touchdown pass to wideout Matt Roberts as time expired in the first half started a slew of 35 unanswered points for the Rattlers (2-0).
PSJA Memorial 34, PSJA High 6: At Pharr, the Wolverines moved to 2-0 thanks to a pair of defensive touchdowns. Derek Matamoros returned a strip for a 50-yard score, and senior free safety Vicente Rodrigurez returned a fumble for 40. PSJA High fell to 0-2 on the season.
LA JOYA JUAREZ-LINCOLN 27, RIO HONDO 17: At La Joya ISD Stadium, La Joya Juarez-Lincoln picked up its first win since Nov. 1, 2013, beating Rio Hondo.
Brownsville St. Joseph 52, Lyford 8: At Brownsville, the Bloodhounds rebounded from their Week 1 loss to Raymondville, and moved to 1-1 on the season after beating Lyford. The Bulldogs fall to 1-1.
Other scores:
Zapata 20,
Valley View 17
Hidalgo 47,
Progreso 30
Benavides 36,
at MMA 19
Bruni 47,
Monte Alto 7
Taft 43,
La Villa 22
More updates coming soon.