East gives Calallen late scare but comes up just short

WESLACO — The hurdle will have to wait for at least one more year.

Three minutes and 56 seconds was how close Weslaco East was to capturing the school’s first playoff win and dethroning many years of coming up short to Coastal Bend power Calallen in the playoffs.

Entering Friday night’s Class 4A bi-district Division II matchup, the Mid-Valley school lost its previous two playoff games by single digits. Against this Corpus school, Weslaco East (8-3 overall) lost once again in a dramatic nail-bitter, 22-18, Friday night at Bobby Lackey Stadium. The shock in many of the players’ faces was obvious as some let the tears fall while others just simply had a look of dejection.

Wildcats coach Armando Cuellar has been a part of all three losses and words were hard to come by after the game. His body language suggested this one was the hardest loss of the three.

“Anytime you lose, it’s frustrating,” Cuellar said. “The worst thing you can do is come up with questions. We’re not going to do that. We’re going to keep working to get over this hurdle.”

Calallen (10-1) quarterback Tanner Sparks (17-of-31 passing, 225 yards, two touchdowns) orchestrated a 74-yard drive in nine plays that ended in a 26-yard touchdown throw to Ben McVeigh (eight receptions, 149 yards, one touchdown) with 58 seconds left. The junior signal caller completed passes of 13, 10 and 12 and added a 13-yard run to set up the game-winning score.

“I told him ‘We’ve got plenty of time and stay calm,’” Calallen coach Phil Danaher said. “The last pass was right on the money.”

With no timeouts remaining, the Wildcats had one last crack from their own 31, but advanced no further than its 44. Calallen, which will play Medina Valley in the next round, played a dime defense and kept everything in front of it.