Bears outlast Wolverines in Tri-City battle

PHARR — Friday night, PSJA High (2-3, 2-6) pulled out a closely contested 14-7 victory in a Tri-City grudge match against District 31-5A foe PSJA Memorial at PSJA Stadium. The Bears played solid defense against a usually prolific passing game, holding the Wolverines to a mere 21 yards through the air.

“You’re 1-3 and you’re looking for some answers — you’re looking for a vote of confidence,” PSJA High coach Mel Rios said. “Inner-city rivalries always bring the best out in you. … We knew we had to step it up on defense, which I thought we did, and make some big plays.”

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half. Wolverines quarterback Louie Gonzalez was a stale 3  of 11 passing for 21 yards, while his rival, Bears quarterback Johnny Lopez, did not complete a pass.

However, a 6-yard touchdown run by halfback Osvaldo Cantu with 31.1 seconds left in the first quarter gave PSJA (2-6, 2-3) a 7-0 advantage, which the Bears carried into halftime. Running back Gilbert Espino also stayed relatively quiet in the first and second quarters, save for a 52-yard scamper to set up the Cantu run.

But Espino’s short TD run with 10:41 remaining in the game proved to be the difference.

Neverthless, PSJA Memorial (3-5, 1-4) gave the Bears a few scares late. Gonzalez spotted the Wolverines’ biggest playmaker, wide receiver Gilbert Gutierrez, streaking behind defenders, only to overshoot once and suffer a dropped ball on another with 2:38 left to play.

“We had some missed opportunities. We had a couple of missed plays that could have made a big difference,” PSJA Memorial coach Gus Cavazos said. “Drops are part of the game. It’s just going to magnified because of the way the game ended, but we can’t blame the loss on one play.”

Gutierrez did deliver early in the second half however, as he dashed 11 yards on a textbook end-around, maneuvering through defenders to tie the game at 7-7. But the Wolverines couldn’t muster enough quite enough offense to keep pace.

“They are a very explosive team,” Rios said. “As far as it being a big game, it’s a big game down the stretch. It’s a time in the season where a lot of things can happen; you never know where the ships are going to fall.”