Pace senior Beltran goes out with a bang

It is always hard for athletes at every level to walk off the court for the last time, but some are fortu-nate enough to leave behind a legacy worth remembering.

As in the case of The Herald's 2008 All-Metro girls basketball MVP Vanessa Beltran from Pace, who through determination and a lot of hard work simply willed the Viqueens to the District 32-5A champion-ship. In doing so Beltran and the Viqueens wrote a new page in Pace history by wining the first basketball district championship in school history, making the playoffs for the first time since 2004 and by claiming their first playoff triumph since 2003.

"In knowing that most of us were seniors we wanted this to be our year, to make history, something that we could look back and remember." Beltran said. "When I walked off the court (for the last time) I couldn't believe it was over but we made history, we finally did it and it is just an honor to be a part of it."

Her senior campaign was an odyssey of sorts to prove to her friends, her school, her city and most im-portantly to herself that she could lead the Viqueens to a District 32-5A title.

It was no cakewalk for Pace (24-10 overall, 11-3 in 32-5A) though as they had problems out of the gate. After starting district play with a victory, the Viqueens dropped a 44-39 game to Weslaco on Dec. 11 to fall to 1-1 in 32-5A.

"We started off kind of struggling in the beginning, but we came a long way," Beltran said. "After los-ing to Weslaco we came together and asked each other ‘How bad do we want it.'"

The meeting obviously worked as the Viqueens went on a tear, rattling off 10 straight 32-5A wins to sew up the district a week early. Beltran, who had a modest stat line for a MVP, averaged 10.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.7 steals and 1.8 assists per game but contributed in ways that does not show up in the books.

"Vanessa's leadership was a big part of the season's (success)," Pace coach Arnold Torres said. "Hav-ing her on the floor made us a little more confident as a team, when she was off the court the team kind of panicked at times. She came out a little more confident this year, I think she realized that it was her sen-ior year and she wanted to come out and be stronger for the team."

While Beltran's playing career may have ended Feb. 15 in a heartbreaking double OT loss to Laredo Cigarroa, she stepped off the hardwood for the final time as a champion, as 32-5A's MVP and arguably the best all-around girls basketball player in the area.