This Friday, two undefeated teams will meet at Rattler Stadium. Only one will retain its unblemished record. McAllen Memorial (6-0, 3-0) will be taking their perfect record into enemy territory when they face the Sharyland Rattlers (6-0, 3-0).

Unblemished records aren’t the only similarity between the two 30-5A schools. Both are coming off impressive wins last week.

Read more: Rattlers, Mustangs stage battle of the season

When discussing his team’s adversity this season and their performance thus far, Veterans Memorial Head Coach David Gilpin, doesn’t sugarcoat the situation.

“We’re realists when we meet in the coaches offices,” said Gilpin. “We’re 2-4 and 2-2 in district play and we’re not happy with that at all. There is no magic thing to say to a team. It’s tough sometimes when we look at what’s going on.”

They say winning solves everything so perhaps the magic elixir for the Patriots will be to get their second win in a row as they face a flailing Roma team this weekend rife with their own woes.

The Patriots have been hit with every possible hardship a football team can. The Patriots lost their star quarterback early in the season and that was only the start of their injury-prone season. On both sides of the ball the Patriots find themselves a threadbare team on the brink of snapping. As the beleaguered team prepares for its next game, the emphasis has been one of endurance and coping.

Read more: Patriots endure, look for two in a row

MISSION - It was a long night for the Veterans Memorial Patriots. Needing a win to push the back into the winners’ column and at least tied for fourth place, the Patriots’ offense struggled in a 19-8 loss to Roma.

Read more: Mistakes take Veterans to 2-3 in District 32

For the casual observer, all the tired tropes about teamwork seem to vanish the minute there’s a change in the score. But coaches will tell you that it isn’t just the wide-receiver who dances into the end-zone or the big bats in baseball that determine a team’s success.  It’s the blocker or the catcher. It’s the specialist. For the Sharyland Lady Rattlers, it’s their setter Jenna Garza.

Sharyland’s 25-7, 25-12, 25-17 dismantling of a strong up-and-coming Mission team last Saturday encapsulated exactly how integral their stalwart setter is to the Rattlers, currently ranked No. 24 by the Texas Girls Coaches Association’s top 25 state volleyball poll.  Time and time again, Garza found her big hitters with sublime sets swinging high left and right, or just placed quick and short.

Read more: Sharyland's Jenna Garza: The magician in the middle

MISSION - It wasn’t easy, but the Sharyland Rattlers took home a last second win over visiting Donna last night, 17-15. Joey Martinez’s 49-yard field goal as time ran out gave the Rattlers their second district win and their first close game of the season.

Donna pounded the ball all night, running the clock and keeping Shary’s offense off the field as the Rattlers only had the ball three times in the first half. The beginning drive was the best for quarterback Tres Barrera and his teammates. Using short pass routes, draws and zone read runs, Barrera marched his squad down the field efficiently.

Read more: Shary withstands comeback of upset minded Redskins

In Sharyland’s 45-13 victory last week over McAllen Rowe, the Rattlers began District 30-5A with a solid start. Sharyland, whose offense is usually most talked about, showed they’re quickly developing a defense that is every bit as opportunistic and perhaps just as lethal.

Unbeaten Sharyland forced three Warriors turnovers and blocked two punts to help pad a score that began to get away from Rowe before halftime. But this week, Sharyland can ill afford to expect the same opportunities against a Donna team that boasts a perfect record of their own and quite a bit of momentum in their own right.

Read more: Sharyland vs Donna: Battle of the unbeatens