ROY HESS | Staff Writer
The La Feria Lions are facing a familiar opponent in the first round of the Class 4A soccer playoffs.
The Lions are going against the Zapata Hawks in bi-district for the third straight season.
This time, La Feria is playing host to Zapata at 8 p.m. Friday. It will be a 4A bi-district boys doubleheader with Raymondville playing Hidalgo in the 6 p.m. opener at La Feria.
Sergio Rodriguez Jr. has been the Lions’ coach since the program started in 2009. The best playoff showing for the La Feria boys came in 2017 when they won district, defeated Zapata 3-1 in bi-district and advanced four rounds in the postseason before suffering a 2-1 loss in penalty kicks to Bandera in the 4A regional tournament in McAllen.
Last year, the Lions played Zapata in bi-district at La Feria and lost 5-0.
The Lions want to redeem themselves in bi-district against the Hawks this season.
“We’re No. 3 (from District 32-4A) and they’re No. 2 (from District 31-4A),” Rodriguez said of his team’s matchup against Zapata. “It’s going to be a close, even game. Our players remember their players. Our players communicate, they practice hard even when it’s raining and they want to win.
“We have players on our team who went to the regional tournament two years ago,” he added. “They want to win and keep going in the playoffs.”
Francisco Vargas is a junior center midfielder/forward for La Feria. He is glad to be playing for the Lions for several reasons.
“This team has a lot of heart and a lot of potential,” Vargas said. “We have some young players. I think if we fight hard enough and our mentality is in the right place, we can go far. I’ve been here for three years (on the varsity) and I love all these guys. People may not believe too much in us this year, but I really think we can go far.”
That sentiment is shared by Diego Martinez, another junior for the Lions who plays defender on the left side.
“It’s a bunch of different players for us this year compared to other years, but it’s still a good team,” Martinez said. “We just have to train hard and work our way up there. We all believe in each other and we play together to control the game.”
Arnold Gonzalez is a senior center midfielder for the Lions and a four-year member of the varsity. He said Zapata is a very familiar opponent and added that things change every season, so Friday’s game is likely to be different than the two teams’ previous encounters.
“Our team now is really young compared to the teams we’ve had before, but I think there’s a lot of potential to do well (in the playoffs),” Gonzalez said. “Next year, I think the team will be even better.
“I would just say thank you for these past four years,” he added “God bless everyone.”
HAWKS CHASE HISTORY
The Harlingen South Hawks are back in the playoffs after a one-year absence as the runner-up team from District 32-6A. South finished district with a 6-4 record and 18 points.
No one can remember if the Hawks have ever won a game in the playoffs, so they figure to be chasing history at home on Friday in their Class 6A bi-district match. South will play host to Edinburg Economedes at 7 p.m. at the Hawks’ Mini-Stadium.
“We are approaching the game as a great opportunity to break through for a playoff win,” Hawks coach Julian Robles said. “The team is extremely motivated, confident and excited to be the first soccer team to compete in a playoff game at our newly remodeled mini-stadium.
“We had an excellent practice on Monday and we seem to be finding the back of the net at the right time,” he added. “We know that Economedes will be ready to play and we expect a tough game. We played them twice before (this season) with each team winning a close one.”
The South-Economedes winner advances to next week’s second round of the 6A playoffs to face Laredo United or McAllen Rowe.
REGIONAL RETURN
The Region VI-6A Tournament is returning to Brownsville Sports Park April 12-13 and will be played there in 2020 as well.
Teams in the playoffs must win three times to advance to the regional tournament.
The Valley has never failed to advance a boys team to the state tournament in Georgetown from a regional tournament played at BSP.
Past teams going to state from the regional tournament at BSP were Brownsville Porter (2011), Sharyland High (2012), Brownsville Rivera (2015) and Brownsville Lopez (2016). Sharyland High and Rivera went on to win state championships.
Also, the Region IV-4A Tournament will be played again in McAllen April 12-13.