Benavides leads top-ranked South into volleyball playoffs

Learning to adjust to change has made Joslynn Benavides a constant force for Harlingen South’s volleyball program. Coach Steve Lunsford has had enough confidence in her athletic ability that he’s changed her positions not once, but twice, during her tenure with the Lady Hawks’ program. And she’s handled it seamlessly.

"She’s very unselfish," Lunsford said. "She will be one of your hardest workers day after day. Overall, she’s a great player and a great young adult."

The senior outside hitter brings a wealth of experience to a team loaded with nine seniors. And no one on her team has seen the court from as many angles. Benavides played setter as a freshman on the Lady Hawks junior varsity. She was moved to middle blocker on the varsity squad as a sophomore. Benavides made the move to outside hitter her junior season.

Along the way, she earned all-district newcomer of the year as a sophomore and was voted all-district MVP last season. Personal accolades aside, Benavides is determined to lead Harlingen South to the Region IV-5A tournament for the fourth time in the last five years. The top-ranked Lady Hawks (32-1) begin that quest at 7:30 Monday by hosting San Benito (18-10) in a Class 5A bi-district playoff.

"Our goal is to make it to the Sweet 16 (regional semifinals) every year," Benavides said. "(If we don’t make it) that would be the hugest disappointment. We feel like this is our year. We have the most chemistry this year because we have been together for so long. But, we are going to have to take each game one by one."

Lunsford said Benavides has embraced the role of go-to scorer. Recently, she tallied a staggering 27 kills against Edinburg High, showing when she’s on, she very difficult to stop.

"She’s obviously a great hitter," Lunsford said. "She’s explosive with her offense and a good back row player. She’s brought a lot of leadership to the team as well. We knew coming into the season, we were going to have some depth, but we always needed to have that outside gunner, and she has fulfilled that role very well."

Benavides isn’t a one-dimensional player by any means. She excels in the back row too. When it comes to playing defense, Benavides is her biggest critic.

"I take a lot of pride in defense," Benavides said. "In practice, when I let the ball hit the floor, I give myself a headache because I scream a lot (at myself)."

David Hinojosa covers high school volleyball for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4442 or via e-mail at dhinojosa@themonitor.com.

GLANCE AT THE PLAYOFFS

VALLEY’S BEST

Harlingen South (5A): Aims for a fourth trip to the Region IV-5A tournament in the last five seasons.

Los Fresnos (5A): Young team showed its depth by winning district without injured star middle blocker.

Edcouch-Elsa (4A): Rolled through district play undefeated, but competition was weak.

La Feria (3A): Beat several 5A teams and earned first-ever state ranking.

TOUGHEST PATH TO STATE

Region IV-5A: Nationally-ranked San Antonio Reagan (No. 6 Prepvolleyball.com) will be a probable semifinal opponent if a Valley team (best bet is Los Fresnos) advances to the regional tournament. State-ranked San Antonio O’Connor (No. 7 Lonestarvolleyball.com) and Austin Westlake (No. 8) are also in the region.

SLEEPERS

McAllen Rowe (5A): Heads into the playoffs riding some huge momentum with wins over McAllen Memorial and McAllen High.

Santa Maria (1A): Making seventh-straight playoff appearance, the Lady Tigers have shown not all the sports news coming from the school is bad.

BEST FIRST-ROUND MATCHES

PSJA High at Brownsville Pace (7 p.m. Monday): Ninth-ranked Pace will have its hands full with a red-hot Lady Bears team that has won eight of its last nine.

McAllen Rowe vs. Laredo Alexander (7 p.m. Monday, Roma): Alexander dropped from first to fourth in 29-5A by losing its last two games. Not exactly a gimmie for the Lady Warriors.

WELCOME BACK

Teams that have ended playoff droughts with previous appearance in parenthesis.

Rio Grande City (1995): The Lady Rattlers qualified just in time before the school breaks up into two high schools next year.

Weslaco (1999): First-year coach Nelly Willson has infused life into a moribund program.

Mercedes (2004): Clinched playoff spot on final night of District 32-4A play.

>> David Hinojosa