All Valley Softball: Navarro caps solid career for La Joya

Clarisa Navarro’s first love is baseball. Yes, baseball. The La Joya senior has played since she was 4 years old and she’s a superb player.

But it was only after some prodding from her parents that the five-tool baseball player took up softball in high school.

And she’s still a superb player.

After turning in a senior season for the ages and capping a marvelous career in the process, the Lady Coyote shortstop is the 2010 Valley Freedom Newspapers Most Valuable Player.

“I feel like I accomplished a lot these past four years I've been playing,” Navarro said. “It’s been an awesome journey playing with these girls.

“We did good (this year) even though we only had four seniors. I didn’t think we were gonna win district again because it was tough. But we succeeded and our season was a success.”

Her numbers embody success too. Navarro sported a .647 batting average (62-for-105) with nine home runs, 26 extra-base hits (25 doubles) and 43 RBIs. She also stole 20 bases and struck out just once all season.

The 30-5A MVP was named to the Texas Girls Coaches Association’s 5A all-state team and is the only RGV player invited to play in the state’s all-star softball game next month.

“Baseball is more of a challenge,” she said. “Softball’s all about quickness. They have their differences, but at the same time, I think if you got down everything baseball-wise, softball comes easy.”

No doubt about that.

On top of her on-field exploits, her leadership in the dugout made her a very coachable player, La Joya coach Carlos Rodriguez said.

“It’s pretty easy (to coach her),” Rodriguez said. “She makes plays on the field that most people don’t get to. She has a great attitude and she’s obviously talented.”

BASEBALL FIRST

Since her days at the Palmview Boys & Girls Club, Navarro has made a name for herself not just playing with the boys, but dominating.

“All of the skills that I have are for baseball,” she said. “That’s what I’ve been taught and that’s what I do. Baseball stole my heart.”

Those skills include a cannon for an arm, lightning-fast speed and a bat that could swat BBs.

Her youth baseball days aside, she also played football in middle school, lining up at safety and running back.

And as a freshman at La Joya, she pitched and played shortstop on the freshman team.

But her parents approached her about switching to softball. And with good reason. Her older sister Clara was going to be a senior while younger sister Alisa was on her way as an incoming freshman.

“I was like, ‘Aww, come on!’” Clarisa remembered. “But my mom and dad really wanted the three of us to be on the same team so I said alright.”

The move was like winning the lottery for Rodriguez and the softball team.

La Joya kept a string of district titles and made the Sweet 16 in 2008, Clarisa’s first year on the squad.

LEAVING HER MARK

On a young Lady Coyote club, Navarro was easily the leader of the pack. She batted leadoff and did everything in her power to keep La Joya in ballgames.

“Early in the year we kinda as a group figured we needed to score runs because we had a pitcher improving, and she just led the way,”

Rodriguez said.

Besides making big league type putouts at shortstop, Navarro’s bat also shined.

“She was phenomenal. It was hard to keep her off base. Her speed put pressure on the defense,” Rodriguez said. “She had 25 doubles. When she hit that ball she came out of the box thinking two bases. If you took your time in the outfield, she was gone.”

WHAT’S NEXT?

After tryouts for the USA women’s baseball national team in Arizona on June 19-20, Clarisa is taking her game to the collegiate ranks.

She’ll play at Butler Community College in Kansas before a prearranged agreement to play for the University of Arkansas and she’s already got plenty of attention.

“I sincerely believe that she could be the best shortstop in the country.” Butler coach Doug Chance said in a press release. “I don’t mean just junior college, she could be the best shortstop in the entire country including NCAA Division 1.”

“I am very excited about that!” Clarisa said.

Clarisa’s older sister Clara is already entrenched as a solid performer at West Point, undoubtedly serving as quite the inspiration.

“That school really opened my eyes. She made it!,” Clarisa said of her sister. “I said ‘If she can do something that big, why can’t I?”

There’s no reason to think she can’t.

ESPARZA GUIDES YOUNG LADY HAWKS TO GREATNESS, NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR

It might have been Debbie Esparza’s first season as Harlingen South’s softball coach, but she’s no rookie.

And her team didn’t play like rookies despite fielding some new faces.

The Lady Hawks took everyone by surprise as they stormed their way to a 31-5A co-championship with Edinburg.

But the eye-openers didn’t stop there. Facing elimination, South rallied very late to beat Los Fresnos in Game 2 before winning Game 3 of their bi-district series. Then they swept Eagle Pass Winn in area.

The capper was a one-run regional quarterfinal win over stalwart Brownsville Porter to make the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999. South finished 23-11 for the year.

Plenty of accomplishments on the season lead to one more: Esparza is the 2010 Valley Freedom Newspapers All-Valley Coach of the Year.

“I’ve been doing this a long time,” Esparza said. “But it was a very enjoyable season. You couldn’t ask for a better honeymoon season. The kids took me on a great ride in my first year as their head coach.”

Esparza just completed her 29th year of coaching and was an assistant for the Lady Hawks the past eight seasons. Prior to that she helped start the softball program at Raymondville and was the head coach.

But when she took over South’s team this season, she had plenty of work to do in a very tough district.

The Lady Hawks graduated a bevy of seniors, most of whom were three or four-year starters. Just three starters (Ariel Guevara, Alyssa Romero, Joslynn Benavides) were back for Esparza and her assistant America Cavazos, who both coached South’s junior varsity. The trio came in after the season started since they were members of the basketball team.

So early on, South plugged in plenty of players who hadn’t played varsity yet.

One of them was junior pitcher Chelsie Alejandro, who more than came into her own in her first year in the varsity circle. She finished 23-8 with a 0.42 ERA with 133 strikeouts.

Alejandro wasn’t alone. Freshman Priscilla Loa, a first-team All-Valley pick, was outstanding in center field. Freshman shortstop Stephanie Lugo was a major contributor as well. Other first-year varsity players came on and established themselves as well. But that’s not to say it was easy.

“There were a couple of times I had to sit them down and give them some speeches,” Esparza said. “But they all understood that they had to work hard every day. With that attitude, they worked hard all season.”

Esparza saw promise at a preseason tournament at La Joya, where her club played competitively despite all the new faces.

But it was in the district campaign that she saw progress.

South was unbeaten in league play heading into a game against Edinburg North.

“I felt like if we could get out of that one, I thought we had a good shot,” Esparza said. “We didn’t clobber anybody in district. The fact that the girls were able to stay competitive in all the district games was great. They knew what it took to get wins.”

With her girls winning games and making plays, Esparza never hesitated to show them praise or join in on the celebration.

“I think the girls respond real well to negative when you give them lots of positive,” she said. “I’m a coach who’s in the game as much as the kids are.”

Wins aside, it was the growth of her club that perhaps had Esparza equally as proud.

“As the season kept progressing I felt like the kids were getting better and better,” she said. “I thought they were coming along real well.

“When we lost to Austin Bowie, the girls realized that team was better and saw what we had to work on.”

Lyford’s Zamorano, Porter’s Valles, Edinburg’s Hinojosa head up first team

Katrina Zamorano just keeps getting better as the years go by.

And that can’t be good for her opponents.

The Lyford junior pitcher added another sparkling year to her re-sume, going 27-5 with a 0.91 ERA. She also amassed 201 strikeouts to just 29 walks. In addition, she fired six no-hitters and 12 shutouts as the Lady Bulldogs got back to the Sweet 16.

For her magnificent sea-son, Zamorano is the 2010 VFN All-Valley Pitcher of the Year.

"It was a great year that we’ll all remember for a very long time,” she said. “I became extremely con-fident out there because I learned to trust my team-mates on offense and defense.”

Zamorano was the workhorse for a Lyford club that was the Valley’s top-ranked team for most of the season.

Offensive Player of the Year

Call it the “Three Peat.”

For the third straight year, Brownsville Porter’s Rocio Valles was the most dangerous hitter in Valley softball and led her to capture VFN’s Offensive Player of the Year honor.

The Cowgirls’ senior catcher capped her high school career with a re-sounding bang, setting the RGV single-season home run mark with her 14 bombs.

The 32-5A co-MVP bat-ted .451 with 41 hits and 30 runs batted in. Her num-bers would most certainly have been even more terrific had she seen more pitches. She was inten-tionally walked 26 times this season.

“She could’ve set a (home run) record that wouldn’t be broken if they would’ve pitched to her,” Porter coach Luis Guevara said. “It was kinda frus-trating for her. But she’s one of the best and she’ll fit right in at Texas South-ern.”

Valles is committed to the Houston school where she will continue her soft-ball career. She is expected to step in as a starting catcher.

Newcomer of the Year

As half of a 1-2 freshman punch for the Edinburg Lady Bobcats, Myranda Hinojosa made quite the splash in her first year of high school ball.

Teaming with fellow frosh Samantha Arciba, Hinojosa went 10-1 with a 0.94 ERA and averaged more than eight strikeouts per game. She saw time as a middle infielder and in the outfield in addition to the circle.

She was exceptional at the plate as well, hitting .316 with 10 extra-base hits, including team-high three triples.

Her contributions to Edinburg’s first Sweet 16 team garnered her the VFN Newcomer of the Year nod.

“She was a pleasant sur-prise. We knew she could play when we saw her in summer and winter ball,” Edinburg skipper Jesse Banda said. “She did real well for us and she was too good to keep on the bench. She held her own against everybody.”

All-Valley First Team

A host of familiar names dot this year’s All-Valley first team.

A super pitching trio featuring two MVPs leads the way.

Porter’s Cheryl Vasquez (251 strikeouts) was the 32-5A co-MVP while Edinburg North’s Iliana Hinojosa finished a superb career by winning the 31-5A honor.

Another senior saying goodbye is San Benito’s Jo Ann Herrera, who was once again the catalyst for the Lady ’Hounds.

Handling the catching duties is Lyford’s Maria Lopez, whose big bat was a great asset as well as her solid presence behind the plate.

At first base, Edinburg’s Sarina Rios came on, no-tably in the playoffs to secure the stop.

Rounding out the infield is Lyford’s Michelle Romo (second base), Harlingen South’s Ariel Guevara (third) and Harlingen sophomore Lynette Her-nandez at shortstop.

The outfield consists of Rio Grande City standout Anabel Rodriguez, Edinburg’s Claudia Salinas and South freshman Priscilla Loa, who showed a knack for nailing runners at home plate.

Lyford phenom Maggie Vasquez is the utility player after playing a vari-ety of positions, while Porter’s Lauren Berletch brings her nine home runs to the designated hitter spot.

ALL-VALLEY FIRST TEAM CAPSULES

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

CLARISA NAVARRO

School: La Joya

Position: SS

Grade: Senior

Stats: Batted .647 (62-for-105) with 9 home runs, 26 extra-base hits (25 doubles) and 43 RBIs batting in the leadoff spot. Stole 20 bases and struck out only once all season.

Notable: 5A all-state selection; District 30-5A MVP; only RGV player invited to state’s all-star game

What her coach says: “She made plays that nobody else could make. Not only was she our leader out there on the field but she showed tremendous leadership as well. She’s ready to play at the next level and she should be fine up there (college),” Carlos Rodriguez.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

ROCIO VALLES

School: Bro. Porter

Position: C

Grade: Senior

Stats: Batted .451, set Valley single-season home run record with 14. Had 41 hits, 9 doubles, 2 triples, 30 RBI. Led league in intentional walks with 26.

Notable: District 32-5A co-MVP

What her coach says: “She could’ve set a (home run) record that wouldn’t be broken if they wouldve pitched to her. It was kinda frustrating for her. But she’s one of the best and she’ll fit right in at Texas Southern,” Luis Guevara

PITCHER OF THE YEAR

KATRINA ZAMORANO

School: Lyford

Position: P

Grade: Junior

Stats: Went 27-5 with a 0.91 ERA. Notched 201 strikeouts to just 29 walks. Racked up six no-hitters and 12 shutouts in leading Lyford back to Sweet 16.

Notable: District 32-3A Defensive MVP

What her coach says: “It’s been a blessing to have her. Her dedication and commitment to the sport are second to none. She’s always looking to get better. She’s not complacent and she does whatever she has to do. She’s a very strong young lady and mentally tough. That’s her biggest asset,” Eloy Perez.

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR

MYRANDA HINOJOSA

School: Edinburg

Position: P/OF

Grade: Freshman

Stats: Did a little of everything for Lady Bobcats. Went 10-1 with a 0.94 ERA and averaged over 8 strikeouts per game. Also batted .316 with 10 extra-base hits, including team-best 3 triples.

Notable: District 31-5A Newcomer of the Year

What her coach says: “She was a pleasant surprise. We knew she could play when we saw her in summer and winter. She did real well for us and she played short and outfield as well as pitching. She was too good to keep on the bench. She held her own against everybody,” Jesse Banda

COACH OF THE YEAR

DEBBIE ESPARZA

School: Harlingen South

1st season

Notable: With just three starters returning, longtime assistant led Harlingen South to a share of the 31-5A title and guided the Lady Hawks to the regional semifinals for the first time in 11 years.

FIRST TEAM

CHERYL VASQUEZ

School: Bro. Porter

Position: P

Grade: Senior

Stats: Went 29-3 overall with school-record 251 strikeouts. Tossed 18 shutouts with 6 no hitters for Cowgirls’ third straight district champion team.

Notable: District 32-5A co-MVP

JO ANN HERRERA

School: San Benito

Position: P

Grade: Senior

Stats: Was workhorse for Lady ’Hounds by going 24-7 with 215 Ks and had a 1.17 ERA. Had 13 shutouts and 4 no hitters and had 31 complete games.

Notable: First team 32-5A pitcher

ILIANA HINOJOSA

School: Edinburg North

Position: P

Grade: Senior

Stats: Four-year starter had a 17-9 record with 182 Ks and a 2.00 ERA… Had 3 shutouts on the season for Lady Cougars.

Notable: District 31-5A MVP

MARIA LOPEZ

School: Lyford

Position: C

Grade: Senior

Stats: Veteran started batted .462 with 5 home runs and 20 extra-base hits. Also led team with 46 RBIs.

Notable: First team 32-3A catcher

SARINA RIOS

School: Edinburg

Position: 1B

Grade: Senior

Stats: Batted .369 with 21 RBIs and led team with 5 home runs (3 in playoffs) and 11 doubles for Lady Bobcats’ Sweet 16 club.

Notable: First team 31-5A first baseman

MICHELLE ROMO

School: Lyford

Position: 2B

Grade: Junior

Stats: Batted .357 with 8 extra base-hits…committed just four errors in the field and showed excellent range at second notably in the postseason.

Notable: First team 32-3A second baseman

ARIEL GUEVARA

School: Harlingen South

Position: 3B

Grade: Senior

Stats: Batted .423 with an on-base percentage of .459 Led club with 26 stolen bases and had a .905 fielding percentage playing a couple different spots.

Notable: 31-5A Defensive Player of the Year; 5A all state selection

LYNETTE HERNANDEZ

School: Harlingen

Position: SS

Grade: Sophomore

Stats: Batted .484 and led club with 9 HRs and 33 RBIs…had 44 total hits in addition to making just 3 errors all season.

Notable: First team 31-5A shortstop

ANABEL RODRIGUEZ

School: Rio Grande City

Position: OF

Grade: Senior

Stats: Catalyst of Rio’s outfield. Has great speed to track down flys and laser arm enabled her to fire home for several big putouts. Batting average hovered around .300

Notable: First team 30-5A outfielder

CLAUDIA SALINAS

School: Edinburg

Position: OF

Grade: Senior

Stats: Led the team in batting at .387 with 11 extra base-hits. Athletic outfielder with great range.

Notable: First team 31-5A outfielder

PRISCILLA LOA

School: Harlingen South

Position: OF

Grade: Freshman

Stats: Hit .325 and had 23 putouts from center field. Has a .958 fielding percentage and nailed 5 runners at the plate to preserve wins, including in regional quarters.

Notable: First team 31-5A outfielder

MAGGIE VASQUEZ

School: Lyford

Position: Utility

Grade: Freshman

Stats: Hit .427 for the season with 41 hits, 10 of them for extra bases. Was also 24-for-24 on steal attempts. Played eight positions in the field (including pitcher) for Lady Bulldogs over the course of the season.

Notable: First team 32-3A outfielder

LAUREN BERLETCH

School: Bro. Porter

Position: Designated hitter

Grade: Senior

Stats: Excellent first baseman with top-rate bat. Led dangerous Porter lineup in batting (.462) and RBIs (43). Hit 9 home runs and had 18 extra-base hits.

Notable: District 32-5A co-MVP

SECOND TEAM

Pitcher

Chelsie Alejandro, Harlingen South

Olivia Ruiz, Weslaco East

Samantha Arciba, Edinburg

Catcher

Krista Leal, Harlingen

Alyssa Romero, Harlingen South

First base

Renee Chavez, Lyford

Karissa Garcia, La Joya

Second base

Mariah Ozuna, Edinburg

Third base

Tori De Leon, Edinburg

Shortstop

Stephanie Lugo, Harlingen South

Melisa Cruz, Rio Hondo

Outfielders

Felicia Flores, Edcouch-Elsa

Christina Amador, RGC

Lydia De Leon, Mercedes

Utility

Stephanie Flores, Mercedes

Designated hitter

Karen Lozano, Valley View