District races coming down to the wire
The District 30-6A and 31-5A races are coming down to the wire for boys and girls soccer teams and with nine of the 14 teams from the seven Mission, La Joya and Sharyland high schools in the thick of their respective races, which teams will extend their seasons into the UIL state playoffs and which will be left on the outside looking in, will soon be determined. So let’s take a look at each of the four districts, through Monday’s games, involving Big 7 teams and which of the 14 teams have either clinched a district title or a playoff berth, or are still in the running as only one week remains in regular season play.
District 30-6A Boys
It should come as no surprise to any local high school soccer fan that the Juarez-Lincoln Huskies are once again atop the District 30-6A standings. The Huskies have been the team to beat in this district for some time now and with their 12-0 record and 36 points, Coach Victor Ramos’ squad has already clinched yet another district championship.
The La Joya Coyotes are currently holding on to second place in the district with an 8-4 record and 23 points. As the only other 30-6A boys’ team to have already clinched a playoff berth, the Coyotes will be looking to finish the regular season off strong and clinch the district’s second seed.
As for the Mission Eagles, their 5-7 record and 14 points may not be anything to write home about, but should they win-out and should the teams ahead of them falter, they could still qualify for the playoffs.
District 30-6A Girls
This is the only district of the four involving Big 7 teams in which a Big 7 team is not currently in first place. That is because with a 12-0 record and 36 points, it is the McAllen High Lady Bulldogs that currently occupy the top spot in the district. However, with an 11-1 record and 32 points, the Juarez-Lincoln Lady Huskies are nipping at the Lady Bulldogs’ heels and with their second head-to-head matchup of the season coming up Tuesday, the Lady Huskies could very well find themselves at the top of the standings come next week.
As for the La Joya Lady Coyotes and the Mission Lady Eagles, their single digit points totals of eight and three respectively, has them both much closer to the bottom of the district standings than the top and has them both mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.
District 31-5A Boys
With an 12-1 record and 36 points, the Sharyland Rattlers are not only sitting pretty atop the District 31-5A standings but their 13 point lead over their nearest competition with only two games remaining on the regular season schedule assures Coach Reveriano Hernandez’s Rattlers of their first district championship since the 2015-2016 season.
With five teams vying for the district’s remaining three playoff spots, and with only one game left in the regular season, it’s all going to come down to the results of Tuesday night’s games in District 31-5A. Through Monday night’s games, the Palmview Lobos’ 23 points, the Pioneer Diamondbacks’ 22 points, the Roma Gladiators’ 21 points and PSJA Memorial’s and PSJA Southwest’s 20 points make this district race way too close to call. The fact that Palmview and PSJA Southwest close out the regular season against each other, makes that a do-or-die game for both teams. As for the Diamondbacks, they close out their district schedule against the 1-11 Rio Grande City Rattlers at home Tuesday.
District 31-5A Girls
Unlike the boys’ 31-5A district race, which is still wide open with only one game to go, the 31-5A girls’ playoff spots are already all wrapped up. This includes the first ever district championship for the Pioneer Lady Diamondbacks who have compiled an impressive 11-1 record and 34 points.
With the Lady Diamondbacks having qualified for the playoffs every year of their existence, having won bi-district championships each of those years and having qualified for the state’s Sweet 16 twice, it may come as a surprise to some to know that this indeed is their first district title, but it is.
As for the Sharyland Lady Rattlers, their 9-3 record and 28 points are good enough to clinch Coach Mario Rivera’s squad one of the remaining three playoff spots. The other two playoff spots in the district belong to Roma and PSJA Memorial. Next up for the Lady Diamondbacks is Rio Grande City while the Lady Rattlers will finish up their regular season against PSJA Memorial. Both of these games are being played Tuesday and both are home games for the Sharyland teams.
