McAllen Rowe downs Edinburg High to win Lady Cats Tournament title

EDINBURG — Just like a good goalkeeper should, McAllen Rowe sophomore Andrea Alvarado exudes confidence and is rarely intimidated. Those qualities came up big for the Lady Warriors on Saturday as she stopped two penalty kicks that helped Rowe tally a 2-0 victory over Edinburg High in the championship of the Lady Cats Tournament.

Alvarado’s big saves and a pair of goals from junior forward Savannah Martinez were enough for the Lady Warriors, who captured their second tournament championship and improve to 12-0 this season.

“We’ve got a perfect season and two championships,” said Rowe coach Barbara Torres-Garza, whose team won the McAllen ISD tournament last weekend. “I couldn’t ask for anything more right now. I expected us to be in the top five in the Valley. I expected us to be competitors, but I don’t know if I expected this much. The girls look really, really good so far.”

Alvarado stopped the first penalty kick in the first half at the 25th minute after No. 2-ranked Rowe had a 2-0 lead. The second save came in the second half at the 38th minute of the match. Edinburg High kicked the shot right at her and she saved it with no problem. Both penalty kicks came as a result of Rowe handballs in the 18-yard box.

“I just try to intimidate them and look into their eyes,” Alvarado said of her strategy in stopping penalty kicks. “I anticipate how I’m going to stop the ball. It’s just me and them. Really, I’m not too much under pressure. I just don’t think about it much.”

Alvarado was named the tournament’s defensive MVP.

“I don’t think Andrea’s been tested in a PK situation before,” Torres-Garza said.  “The fact that she saved both of them is a big confidence-builder for her, and it allows our team to have confidence in her in case that situation happens again.”

Ninth-ranked Edinburg High (6-3) needed to convert those chances because the Lady Cats didn’t generate much offense outside of that. Rowe out-shot Edinburg High, 12-5. Two of the Lady Cats’ shots came on the penalty kicks. Another came when one shot bounced off the post after Alvarado deflected the shot from the first penalty kick.

“PKs are like free throws,” Edinburg High coach Martin Gonzalez said. “You expect those to be automatic. Like free throws, it’s a pressure situation and sometimes you aren’t going to get the touch you want to get on that ball. … Soccer is a cruel game. If you don’t take advantage of the opportunities you do get, you are going to come out on the short end.”

Martinez’s scores came at the seventh and 21 minutes. She gave the Lady Warriors a 1-0 lead when she caught up to a pass along the right sideline and made a charge to the goal. Her shot from about 15 yards caught Edinburg High’s goalkeeper flat-footed and out of position. It softly nestled into the net. On her second score, Martinez tapped in a deflection off a shot by teammate Katia Trevino.

“I thought it was going to go in, but the goalie grabbed it and then she dropped it,” Martinez said. “I saw the open shot, and I just kicked it in.”

Converting that type of goal is typical for Martinez, Torres-Garza said.

“She knows what runs to be making,” Torres-Garza said. “She knows how to anticipate the shot, and she always gets in there. She’s one of those that we know is going to be at the right place at the right time.”

David Hinojosa covers high school sports for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4442 or via email at dhinojosa@themonitor.com