Bobcats blow past Mustangs in Pat Leal tourney

McALLEN — With the wind at their back in the first half, Kristov Martinez scored twice for the Edinburg High Bobcats as they beat the McAllen Memorial Mustangs 3-0 in an opening round game of the Pat Leal Memorial Tournament at De Leon Middle School.

Though the Bobcats were the superior team Friday, there’s no denying the role played by the gusty winds in favor of Edinburg.

Bobcats coach Luis Cardenas was pleased his team adjusted to the playing conditions, but he was also aware of the true significance of these tournaments.

“It’s extremely tough to play with these conditions,” Cardenas said. “We had the wind to our backs but we were able to score the first two goals. There are a lot of adjustments that come with playing like this, but we were more focused on getting our players some playing time.

“You want to see what your players can do in these types of games.”

Preseason soccer tournaments can, at times, be a burden for some teams, especially when it comes to cramming two or even three games in a matter of hours.

The condensed schedule for Edinburg and Memorial includes playing Grulla and San Benito in Pool C.

Mustangs coach Oscar Ortiz cited that, and games of 20-minute halves as a factor for his team’s lack of focus against just one team.

 “It doesn’t feel like a real game. For one, (you’re) playing on a very small field,” Ortiz said. “On a regulation-timed game, you have to adjust and make changes. With these games, it’s hard for us to get (mentally) into the (games).

“You focus so much on one team. You play one team for 40 minutes then take your shoes and everything off to relax a bit once the game is over. Next thing you know, you have to put your cleats back on and get ready for the next game.”

Even when Edinburg had the wind against it in the second, Javier Alonso was able to push in a long cross into the net for the third and final goal.

Cardenas simply said that wind or no wind, his team played better.

“I think we played intelligent in the second half,” Cardenas said. “To get that goal with the wind, it takes skill to control it.”