MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
Having to shuffle around her lineup due to graduation, Edinburg Vela coach Araceli Ortega expected her team to take their lumps early in the season.
So far, it hasn’t been bad. The Lady SaberCats — in rebuilding mode, Ortega said — are 17-11, 1-1 in district, despite losing to Roma, RGVSports.com’s fifth-ranked team, in a five-game match Tuesday.
“I think it’s just finding that unity,” Ortega said. “It took us a little while but we’re getting there.”
The Lady SaberCats are by no means a finished product. Across the boards, players are still acclimating to new roles and more significant playing time. Of Vela’s primary players, only Anna Garza, a secondary setter last year, played regularly. Now she’s shouldering more responsibility.
The same goes for Larissa Navarro, who went from outside middle blocker to playing defense in the back row. As one of the team leaders in kills now, Navarro is not having to serve-receiver and playing defense off hitters, not necessarily always blocking.
She’s taken on a scoring role with Jaida Muhammad, who was more of a defensive specialist last year. Maranda Washington, a feisty hitter, adds support as a libero and outside hitter. And Nicole Castañeda and Nicole Avelar have stepped up in the middle with their defense at the net.
“I think our girls have really come around,” Ortega said. “We did lose some of our key players and we knew filling in those shoes was going to be big, but it’s coming around. I think they know where we’ve been (having made the playoffs last year and advancing past the first round), and now they’re trying to get to that point.
“It’s just a matter of trusting each other and working with one another.”
BIG WIN
McAllen Memorial coach Lorena Lopez understands that positioning in the district standings can ultimately be decided by one match, which is why she was encouraged by Wednesday’s sweep over visiting McAllen Rowe.
The Lady Mustangs (22-5, 2-0), the sixth-ranked team by RGVSports.com, leapfrogged Rowe (26-4, 1-1), which was third last week. More importantly than that, Memorial earned a bit of cushion, in case district standings and playoff pairings are decided by tiebreakers.
“Lately, the top 3 schools (in district) have been separated by one or two matches, so, yes, any big win is beneficial,” Lopez said. “Three years ago, there was an instance when all three McAllen schools tied for district, so, of course, any time you get a win, you’ll take it.”
BOUNCING BACK
Since losing to Los Fresnos on Sept. 2, Mission Veterans (21-6, 2-0) has ripped off four consecutive wins, including two straight this past week against formidable. The Lady Patriots beat Laredo Alexander in four sets on Saturday before sweeping Sharyland High on Tuesday.
Mission Vets’ loss to the visiting Lady Falcons was its first to a Valley team since 2012.
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TOP 10
Records (overall, district), Pvs
1, Los Fresnos 22-9, 2-0 (1)
2, Mission Veterans 21-6, 2-0 (2)
3, McAllen Memorial 22-5, 2-0 (6)
4, McAllen High 26-4, 2-0 (4)
5, Roma 23-5, 2-0 (5)
6, McAllen Rowe 26-4, 1-1 (3)
7, Donna High 23-8, 2-0 (7)
8, Edinburg High 20-7, 1-0 (8)
9, Sharyland Pioneer 21-8, 2-0 (9)
10, Brownsville Veterans 20-9, 2-0 (10)