By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Cupcakes always taste better after a victory.
The Rivera Lady Raiders found that to be true Saturday as they celebrated Parents Appreciation Day at their gym during a District 32-6A volleyball match against Weslaco East.
Before the teams warmed up, parents of the Rivera players were introduced and treated to cupcakes and refreshments. Players and coaches had to wait their turn until after the match to receive their goodies.
The Lady Raiders wasted little time in sweeping past the Lady Wildcats 25-15, 25-10, 25-15 to improve to 4-1 in 32-6A heading into Tuesday’s important showdown at 5-0 Los Fresnos .
Within a minute or two after the match ended, each of the Rivera players had a cupcake in her hand and was celebrating the team’s latest district triumph, its fourth in a row.
“It felt very good to win today because going into our next match, we need the momentum,” said Stephanie Garza, a junior outside hitter/back row defensive player for Rivera. “We need to feel (confident and) prepared for that next match.
“I’m very proud of my team,” Garza added. “We played together as a team and we won as a team today, and that’s it.”
Teammate Litzy Medina, a junior outside hitter, was in agreement.
“We played aggressively and everyone was hustling for the ball,” Medina said. “We made some errors, but we overcame them, and that shows we’re pushing forward and building up our momentum. I’m so proud of this team.”
Lady Raiders coach Elizabeth Avelar -Guerra said her girls seemed a bit nervous early in the match as they apparently were feeling some pressure to do well with their parents watching.
“They were a little hesitant to start off, and I told them, ‘What’s the difference? Your parents are always here to see you play,’” Avelar-Guerra said. “‘The only difference is we just put up some balloons, that’s all.’ They were like, ‘Oh yeah,’ and then they came together as a team and played hard. They did an awesome job today.
“This group has worked hard, even since the summer,” Avelar-Guerra added. “Their parents are very supportive. Before, we would have maybe one or two that played club ball. Of this group, they’re all playing club. They’re working out on their own and they’re very dedicated. It’s a young team, but these girls work hard all year long.”
There were five early ties during the opening game, the last of which came at 7-7. After that, Rivera took control of the match against the Lady Wildcats (0-5).
The Lady Raiders were led by Medina’s 11 kills. Also for Rivera, Garza had eight kills and seven digs, while Victoria Zuniga added seven kills. Kourtney Shears contributed 16 assists, 13 digs and three aces, while Lilian Vera had 14 assists and four aces. Madelaine Blanco added 12 digs.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @ HessRgehess