By Brian Argabright
The 830 Times
There’s an old saying — “It’s not how you start, but how you finish.”
That message easily sums up the Del Rio Queens basketball season.
After dropping their first four district games, Del Rio rallied to win four of its final six games and claim the final playoff spot in District 30-6A, sealing the deal with a 47-29 win at Eagle Pass Tuesday night.
Del Rio needed to win its game and have Laredo LBJ, with who they entered the night tied in the district standings and had split the season series with, lose to district co-leaders Laredo United South.
South did its part, winning 68-42 to claim a piece of the district championship and knock LBJ out of the playoff picture on the final day of the regular season.
Now the Queens will face San Antonio Brennan, the sixth-ranked Class 6A team in the state according to the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. The two will square off Tuesday, Feb. 14, at 7 p.m. at the DSAC Gym at Devine High School. According to San Felipe Del Rio CISD Athletic Director Frenchey McCrea Jr., there will not be any streaming at the game. Tickets are available at https://events.ticketspicket.com/agency/83ede1d8-fd42-4e02-9839-c879f547578e/events/b046bbd7-4c97-48a5-8a41-745465cffddf
The Queens put themselves in a position to clinch a playoff spot with wins over Eagle Pass, LBJ and Laredo Alexander. After the Alexander game, the Lady Bulldogs’ head coach was overheard wishing Queens head coach Marisa Soto “good luck” in the playoffs. When asked what that meant, Soto just smiled and shrugged her shoulders before joining her players for photos.
The truth was Del Rio still needed to beat Eagle Pass a second time and get help from United South. With South fighting for a district title, the Queens were left to face longtime rivals Eagle Pass on the Lady Eagles’ home court.
The first quarter was slow as Del Rio rolled out to a 9-4 advantage. Eagle Pass hung around in the second quarter and stayed within striking distance as the teams went into halftime with the Queens holding on to a 17-14 lead.
But Del Rio took control in the third quarter with 16 points while holding Eagle Pass to just six. The Queens iced the game in the fourth to do their part in the winning equation.
At 9:27 p.m., Soto sent out a simple text. It read, “Good evening! Picked up the dub! South won, playoff bound!”
The win over Eagle Pass helped end a seven-year playoff drought for the Queens. It also sends Soto to the postseason for the first time in her second year as head coach. She’ll lead the team against a tough Brennan squad without senior Marina Jimenez, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the win against LBJ, but she will look to her other leaders like Joselyn Gonzalez, Alexia Muñiz and Allie Rodriguez to guide the team.
Muñiz and Gonzalez each had 13 points against Eagle Pass. Makayla Lewis had nine points, Karolina Alderete and Annette Betancourt each had four points and nine rebounds, and Rodriguez and Alizandria Garcia each had two points. Gonzalez also had nine steals and five assists.
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Contact the author at drnhsports@gmail.com
