BY JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
The Mission Veterans Lady Patriots advanced to the area round Tuesday night with a 42-32 win over Brownsville Pace at Mission Veterans Memorial High School.
The team will have familiar company, however, as all four playoff qualifiers from District 31-5A (Mission Vets, Edinburg Vela, Roma and Sharyland High) won their respective bi-district matchups.
The Lady Patriots will play Victoria East at 6 p.m. on Friday at Roy Miller High School in Corpus Christi.
“We had a good practice today,” Mission Veterans coach Rafael Cantu said. “It was short, but intense.”
Cantu, who has scouted East, says the Lady Patriots’ opponent employs a man-to-man defense, a style often used by Mission Vets.
“We’ve played against man this season, and obviously knowing how to play man yourself prepares you to face it,” Cantu said. “We just have to be smart. We can’t make mistakes. We have to handle the ball and handle it well. (East) depends on steals to set up their offense.”
Ball handling duties will primarily rest on guard Ashley Smith, who scored 13 points on Tuesday to lead the Lady Patriots. In that game, Smith returned from a knee injury suffered during practice last month. Though Smith did not start against Pace, she played what Cantu describes as “significant minutes” in the second half.
“(Smith) will have a much more prominent role,” Cantu said of the point guard’s area round prospects.
RESILIENT ROMA
While the rest of their 31-5A peers strolled into the area round with double-digit bi-dstrict wins, the Roma Lady Gladiators clawed their way to a comeback during Tuesday’s Class 5A bi-district game against the Donna High Bravettes at McAllen High School, eeking out a 43-42 win.
“It was a heck of a game,” Roma coach Romeo Rios said. “It was physical.”
The Lady Gladiators faced a 31-25 deficit during the third quarter and struggled to score against Donna’s relentless full-court press defense.
“Sometimes our players are on and sometimes they’re off,” Rios said of his team’s play against the press. “Sometimes we break a press and the teams back off immediately. We struggled for a while against Donna in the second half, but we regrouped and made the push.”
Roma was led in scoring by senior post Luz Gonzalez with 17 points. Teammate, and fellow senior, Kassy Rocha scored 16, including six of the team’s final seven points during the fourth quarter, including the game-winning free throw.
“Our top two scorers took it upon themselves to be aggressive,” Rios said. “I have confidence in our players.”
With the win, the Lady Gladiators advance to the area round for the first time during Rios’ five-year coaching tenure at Roma, and play Victoria West at 7 p.m. on Friday at Tuloso-Midway High School in Corpus Christi.
SNAKES AND CATS
The Sharyland High Lady Rattlers defeated the Mercedes Lady Tigers 50-32 on Tuesday night at Sharyland High School and will face Flour Bluff at 7 p.m. on Friday at Texas A&M-Kingsville.
The Edinburg Vela Lady SaberCats advanced to the area round Tuesday after a 70-29 win over PSJA High Lady Bears 70-29 at PSJA High. Vela will play Tuloso-Midway at 7 p.m. on Friday at Falfurrias High School.