By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald
All those who thought the Rivera Lady Raiders reached the peak of their soccer capabilities in 2017 by advancing three rounds in the playoffs were sadly mistaken.
The Lady Raiders did even better in 2018 by going four rounds deep and qualified for the Class 6A regional tournament in San Antonio for the first time in program history.
For guiding his team to another milestone in girls soccer, Rivera’s Peter A. Rodriguez is The Brownsville Herald’s Girls Soccer All-Metro Coach of the Year.
Also, Brigitte Iglesias, a sophomore playing her first year on the varsity for the Lady Raiders, is The Herald’s Girls Soccer All-Metro Newcomer of the Year.
Iglesias scored some timely goals for the Lady Raiders, particularly during their playoff run, and was a solid performer throughout the season.
“ Definitely (what stood out to me this season about Brigitte) was her dedication to being a well-rounded player,” Rodriguez said. “What she did wasn’t for herself, it was for the team. Everything she did on and off the field was to get better and to contribute to the team. She did her part by helping keep the girls together in addition to displaying her talent on the field.
“ It was a benefit for us to have her this year,” he added. “She’s just a well-rounded player.”
Iglesias, an attacking midfielder, was chosen as the top newcomer in District 32-6A this season, as well.
“ It was a privilege to have played on this team and to have worn the shirt for Rivera,” she said. “It was amazing to play on the pitch with such talented players (as teammates). It was a great season and a great experience.
“ The most important thing for us (as far as being successful) was we bonded more towards the end,” she added. “Every game we had a motivation and told each other that we had to get better. As we went along, we started talking (to each other) more and gained more confidence. That’s what really helped us a lot.”
Regarding her postseason awards for All-Metro and in 32-6A, the standout sophomore said, “It’s really an honor. I thank God so much, our team and the coach. The season we had was just something amazing.”
Iglesias said Rodriguez did a lot to boost the team.
“ Coach Rodriguez did an amazing job,” she said. “He contributed a lot to our success. He’s the one who believed in us in the first place when we didn’t believe in ourselves. He would motivate us and tell us we could do it and win.”
This was Rodriguez’s second year as the Lady Raiders’ coach and he has a good feeling about what the team can do in the future after what’s happened for the Rivera girls in 2017 and 2018.
He earned All-Metro coaching honors last season as well for guiding the Lady Raiders to the third round of the postseason for the first time.
“ It’s been very rewarding,” Rodriguez said. “Hands down, it’s probably one of my most personally rewarding accomplishments in this profession. It was rewarding because the girls went out, played hard and gave it their all.
“ I told the girls what we did in soccer class way back in September paid off in the playoffs (in March), and they could see that,” he added. “Going to the regional tournament for the first time was a very exciting feeling.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess