South San edges Holy Cross to take third in own tourney

HERE’S THE LINK FOR THIS STORY ON THE SOUTHSIDE REPORTER WEBSITE:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/community/southside/news/article/South-San-tournament-showcases-talent-4762734.php

Between dawn last Friday and daybreak last Saturday, Jefferson had some time to reflect on what it had achieved in the first day of the South San Tournament and what was possible during the second.
The Mustangs (5-5) found the confidence and consistency they needed to grab second place in the two-day tournament. Jefferson rolled into the championship with three consecutive strong performances behind it.
“It was an exciting tournament for us this weekend,” Jefferson coach Theresa Ralston said. “The girls really had fun and played really hard. I think they grew as a team.”
Jefferson ended Day 1 of competition with a three-game win over St. Anthony. Although the Mustangs had gotten off to a solid start this year, they had lost three of their previous four matches coming into the tournament. During the weekend, they played more consistently than they had to date.
The Mustangs fought to a 25-22, 25-21 win over Jay in its and South San 25-23, 25-17 to reach the championship match. There, Clemens (11-3) prevailed 25-8, 25-18.
“Clemens was good,” Ralston said. “They were tall and athletic, and they were smart. I don’t know if we were just tired or not.
“The first game, we lost 25-8. We’d been so high emotionally. We won our fifth game in a row when we beat South San. Then we had two hours to sit, and we got out of our game.”
The Mustangs coach was glad her team made a much better showing in Game 2. After Clemens had taken control in the first game, Ralston challenged Jefferson to find the inner strength to compete through its fatigue.
“We limited their runs by how well we played,” Ralston said. “I was pleased that we got better in Game 2 and with how well we played.”
South San (6-4) finished third in its own tournament. Against Jefferson, the Bobcats took the early lead in Game 1.
“We were down in the first game, but we were able to come back,” Ralston said. “The key for us was conistent play, and we benefitted from our energy. We had a lot of enthusiasm, on the court and coming from the bench. We were communicating and playing with confidence.”
South San didn’t exactly fade away in Game 2, but the Mustangs kept their edge.
“I just told the kids to remain calm,” Ralston said. “I knew (South San) was going to come back at us full force, with all their effort. We had to get ready to endure. We had to remain calm and consistent.”
The Bobcats rebounded from the semifinal loss to Jefferson to outlast Holy Cross (7-5) 21-25, 25-17, 25-21 for third place. The Knights had lost 25-19, 25-17 to Clemens in the other semifinal.
Jefferson is trying to build on a 12-16 2012 season in which they finished 8-8 in District 28-4A . That they missed the postseason, undoubtedly, is fueling the fires of the many returning Mustangs.
“We have experience,” Ralston said. “We lost three or four seniors from last year, but we have seven seniors this year. I also have a couple of juniors who got experience last year as sophomores. It’s been working out. We’re starting to jell now.”
The Mustangs were represented by three selections on the all-tournament team. Senior libero Melanie Ybarra, senior setter/right-side hitter Courtney Garcia and junior outside hitter/left back Gabby Vasquez were chosen.
“I think the biggest thing is our senior leadership,” Ralston said. “We have really strong hitters and a couple of bigs in the middle. Melanie helps us pick up the spikes that are coming at us. We have a desire to win.”
Middle blockers Melanie Sheppard (a 5-foot-9 senior) and Marissa Vargas (a 5-5 junior who’s quick and an outstanding leaper) rose to the occasion for the Mustangs. Senior Selena Garcia, who shares setting duties with Courtney Garcia, and senior outside hitter Krystin Garcia also stepped forward in the tournament.
“I think we’re starting to find some role players,” Ralston said, “whom we can count on to step on the court in any given situation. That’s a positive for any team.”
Jefferson began the tournament with wins over Wagner and Fox Tech. They raised their intensity in the third game of Day 1, in order to defeat a mentally tough St. Anthony team.
“That was a really exciting match,” Ralston said. “We lost the first game, won the second and then won 25-21. That match was back-and-forth the whole way. I knew it’d be tough to win that match.”
The resulting victory ended up propelling the Mustangs to a new performance level.
“This year, I keep telling my kids, it’s going to be a special year for us,” Ralston said. “They’ve been working really hard. They’ve taken ownership of every aspect of the game.
“(The seniors) are contributing and leading. They’re taking ownership of their season. It’s been nice.”
Among other area teams at South San, Sam Houston (12-4) and Southside (4-10) each claimed a pair of victories Saturday.
Sam Houston downed Fox Tech (7-9) 25-15, 25-20 and then the Hurricanes rallied to win a three-game match against Lytle 22-25, 25-10, 25-17.
Southside edged Fox Tech 25-18, 25-22. The Cardinals also made a show of strength in Game 2 to pull out a tough match against Eagle Pass Winn 21-25, 25-9, 25-22.
Floresville Tournament
Southwest (8-10) concluded the Floresville Tournament by splitting two of its last four matches.
The Dragons defeated Edison (4-12) 25-7, 25-13 Saturday and fended off Eagle Pass 26-24, 25-17. Southwest lost to Laredo United and Medina Valley, in a 25-21, 18-25, 25-16 decision.
Southwest notched three wins Friday during the tournmament’s first day. The Dragons defeated Burbank 25-12, 25-15, Eagle Pass in rally scoring 25-14, 30-29 and the Floresville junior varsity 25-10, 25-9. Stevens defeated Southwest 22-25, 25-15, 25-18 win over the Dragons.
Harlandale (8-6) picked up a victory over Eagle Pass by identical scores of 25-19, 25-19. The Indians also lost a tough one to Laredo United 23-25, 25-17, 25-9 and fell to Taft.
The Indians had defeated Laredo United Friday, but had to play the Longhorns shortly after the Taft match ended.
“We played a good match against Taft,” Harlandale coach Sylvia Cardenas said. “We stayed with them until the end. But then we went to a back gym and played United right away. We didn’t have any (energy) left.”
In Friday’s matches, Floresville defeated the Indians 25-23, 25-18 in their first match. However, Harlandale was undefeated the rest of the day, winning 25-14, 25-11 over Pearsall, 25-8, 25-13 over the Highlands JV and 25-21, 14-25, 25-15 over Laredo United.
The Indians won the Harlandale ISD Tournament the previous weekend.
“We have an experienced group. It’s the same group as last year,” Cardenas said. “We play with a lot of heart. We’ve been doing really well, but we didn’t do as well this weekend as I expected. We need to do a lot of work on our endurance.”
Highlands (3-13) downed Burbank (3-9) 25-18, 25-10 Saturday in a battle of District 28-4A rivals.