By ANDREW CRUM | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
Basketball is about finding a balance between offense and defense and Pace certainly found it this season.
After the Lady Vikings lost the bulk of their scoring and their top defender to graduation last year, the suddenly younger squad had to find their new roles.
Junior Rosa Salinas provided stability on the defensive end in the middle of Pace’s 2-3 zone, anchored the paint and became its top rebounder and shot blocker. Sophomore Sofia Espinoza settled into the starting lineup and provided consistency on offense and led the Lady Vikings in scoring.
Salinas earned the distinction as the top defender for District 32-5A and Espinoza was the district’s top newcomer and now the honors continue for the pair. Salinas earned the distinction as The Brownsville Herald’s 2018 All-Metro
Defensive Player of the Year and Espinoza is the All-Metro Newcomer of the Year.
“I’m happy, I’m proud … I feel good about it,” Salinas said. “I worked hard for it.”
She averaged 7.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks, 3.0 steals and 2.5 assists for the Lady Vikings as their defensive specialist.
“I feel like she was our anchor,” Pace coach Eddie Lozano said. “Our defense could break down at different times, but when (opponents) got in the paint they felt uncomfortable. She has long arms and great timing. She has a good ability rebounding and going and getting that ball and she limits your possessions.”
The junior helped improve her game in the offseason at Oliveria Park with competition against the boys. It helped her get quicker and tougher in the paint. And thanks to her coaches, her parents and even her brother Mario pushing her, it helped transform her game.
“She understands our concept and her role; and she understands everyone’s role too,” Lozano said. “This year she was the general, she talked to everybody. That’s the attitude she took this year, being in control of the entire defense and that helped us out a lot.”
Espinoza found her groove on offense during the year and scored a season-high of 28 points, including 20 in the first half against Porter during a district game in December.
“I’m very proud of my accomplishments because I practiced really hard during the season,” she said. “I put in the work in practice and the way I played I was proud of myself. I always had goals … if I did good in one game, in the next one I always tried to do better.”
Espinoza was the Lady Vikings go-to scorer and averaged a team-best 11.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.1 steals, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks.
“She’s a natural scorer, she knows how to get the ball in the hoop,” Lozano said. “Whether it’s a fast break or a post move, she makes buckets. I didn’t know at the beginning of the year she was going to be our leading scorer.
“It turned out that way and it was a blessing.”
It took some time for Espinoza to get comfortable with her game in the paint, but once she did she thrived.
Pace graduates only three seniors and returns nine including Espinoza, Salinas and district All-Defensive teamer Lexy Arce.
“I feel comfortable and excited about next year, but we have to start working,” Lozano said.
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @andrewmcrum.