McHi, South tops in Valley

Harlingen South girls basketball coach Dawn Engleman is dishing out compliments about her team and McAllen High like assists from John Stockton to Karl Malone.

Each team, she noted, has the talent and experience.

The Hawks sport arguably the best player in the Rio Grande Valley in Bianca Torre, and McAllen High has a strong starting five Valley coaches only dream about.

So is there a big non-district game is the works? The answer is a resounding no. The top two ranked Valley teams are not scheduled to play each other this year unless they meet in a tournament or somewhere down the line in the playoffs.

“We really don’t want to play each other a whole lot,” Engleman said. “We had a chance to scrimmage each other in (Corpus Christi) last week, but we decided against it because when you play someone too much you lose that respect factor. All you are thinking about is beating that other team.

“(McHi coach Teresa Casso) and I want our teams to be able to sit back and admire each other’s teams and respect each other’s talents.”

The Lady Bulldogs and Lady Hawks start the season as The Monitor’s No.1 and No. 2 teams, respectively, and likely will dominate the headlines this year. The 2007-08 season begins with non-district play Tuesday.

“It is friendly rivalry between us and South,” Casso said. “Both Coach Engleman and I are absolute disciplinarians. We make sure our teams work hard. It would be awesome to meet in the playoffs.”

Another commonality between the teams is the bulls-eye they have planted on their backs. Each team knows there is no shortage of Valley squads looking to knock them off.

District 30-5A

The Lady Bulldogs only got stronger with the addition of Hidalgo transfer and All-Valley first-team point guard Damaris Rodriguez, who averaged 11.9 points per game and 6.0 steals per game last season. Rodriguez rounds out a stellar cast.

McHi returns All-Valley post Andi Garza (16.8 ppg, 11.1 rebounds per game), all-district forward Rebecca Valdez (11.8 ppg, 10.2 rpg), wing Ali Bills (12.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg) and wing Lyndsie Currie (14.2 ppg, 5.5 assists per game).

“I think the number of kids we have returning and the respectable job they did last year, I think, is the reason people have picked us as the favorite in our district,” Casso said.

Casso said her team will need to look out for McAllen Memorial, McAllen Rowe and Sharyland.

“I saw Sharyland scrimmage, and they looked fairly quick,” Casso said. “They might have lost some people, but they should be right there again.”

District 31-5A

Engleman expects competition from district foes Edinburg High, Edinburg Economedes and Harlingen. Casso cautioned the tradition-rich programs of Edinburg and Harlingen can not be counted out.

“I think, honestly, Edinburg is going to be strong,” Engleman said. “(Harlingen) is going to be a good team. (Cardinals coach) Nora Zamarripa always does a good job. She is always going to get her kids to play well.”

District teams will have their hands full with Hawks guard Torre. Last season she finished second in the Valley in scoring (20.6 ppg) and assists (7.3 apg). She was tops in the Valley in steals (9.4 spg).

District 32-5A

The southmost league could be the most competitive and probably is the most wide open of the Class 5A districts.

Brownsville Rivera is the favorite going in, but there are potentially six playoff teams in the district.

The biggest reason for Rivera’s favorite status is that the Lady Raiders return leading rebounder Laura Ochoa (10.6 rpg) and leading scorer Vero Hinojosa (16.3 ppg).

“There is a little bit of pressure being picked to the win the district,” Rivera coach Rolando Izeta said. “It’s tough because we have a real tough district.”

Izeta thinks Los Fresnos and Brownsville Pace can sneak into the playoffs, and that Brownsville Hanna always is a contender because of the amount of girls Lady Golden Eagles coach Willie Brown has come out for the sport.

District 32-4A

Mission Veterans Memorial looks to have the inside track in this district.

The Lady Patriots return all-district first-team senior forward Brandi Taylor and the district’s co-newcomer of the year Sarah Benavides for the 2006-07 district-winning team.

It was the first in the Lady Patriots’ history.

“Any time you are picked to finish first in your district, there is a lot of pressure,” Lady Patriots coach Rafael Cantu said. “I tell my girls that being picked to finish first is only on paper at this point. We still have to go out and prove ourselves.”

Hot on the Lady Pats’ heels will be Valley View and Weslaco East, which had a surprising year under 2007 All-Valley Coach of the Year Chris Kromer. The Lady Wildcats finished 27-8,

12 -0 in district.

Valley View’s Valerie Venegas (13.7) is the returning leading scorer for the district.

Sub 4A

Expect another tight battle in District 32-3A between La Feria and Hidalgo. The schools have developed an intense rivalry.

Even with the loss of Rodriguez to McHi, Lady Pirates coach Monica Rodriguez is confident her team can finish well.

“Right now we have a young ballclub, but we are looking good,” Rodriguez said. “We are taking a look and evaluating everyone.”

The Lady Pirates return junior post Victoria Gonzalez, who led the team in scoring (13.7) and the Valley in rebounding (13.9) last year.

District 32-A’s La Villa lost all but three players from last year’s district-winning squad, including its leading scorer Pam Romero (13.9 ppg). But Lady Cardinals coach Rene Duque said the luxury of having a JV squad should pay dividends.

“We are lucky to have a JV,” Duque said. “A lot of teams in our district don’t have a JV. We have mostly a junior team, but they have a solid base.”

Peter Rasmussen covers high school girls basketball for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4448.

The Monitor's Preseason Girls Top 10

1. McAllen High

2. Harlingen South

3. McAllen Memorial

4. Brownsville Rivera

5. Mission Veterans

6. Hidalgo

7. Edinburg High

8. Harlingen High

9. Weslaco High

10. Brownsville Hanna

The Monitor’s predicted district finishes

District 30-5A

1, McAllen High

2, McAllen Memorial

3, Sharyland

4, McAllen Rowe

5, La Joya

6, Donna

7, Rio Grande City

District 31-5A

1, Harlingen South

2, Edinburg High

3, Harlingen High

4, Edinburg Economedes

5, Edinburg North

6, PSJA North

7, PSJA High

8, PSJA Memorial

District 32-5A

1, Brownsville Rivera

2, Weslaco High

3, Brownsville Hanna

4, San Benito

5, Brownsville Pace

6, Los Fresnos

7, Brownsville Porter

8, Brownsville Lopez

District 32-4A

1, Mission Veterans

2, Valley View

3, Weslaco East

4, Edcouch-Elsa

5, Mission High

6, Roma

7, Mercedes

District 31-3A

1, San Diego

2, Zapata

3, Raymondville

4, Lyford

5, Falfurrias

District 32-3A

1, Hidalgo

2, La Feria

3, Port Isabel

4, Progreso

5, Rio Hondo

District 32-2A

1, Riviera-Kaufer

2, Banquete

3, Bishop

4, Santa Rosa

5, Hebbronville

6, Freer

7, Premont

District 32-A, Division I

1, La Villa

2, Ben Bolt

3, Kingsville Academy

4, Santa Maria

5, Bruni

6, Benavides

7, Donna IDEA Academy

District 32-A, Division II

1, San Isidro

2, Tilden

3, San Perlita

4, Aqua Dulce