Weslaco surges to win in La Joya

LA JOYA — On a day when each team appeared sluggish early after a six-day Christmas break, all it took for Weslaco was one big run to wrap up a non-district win over La Joya on Thursday.

The Lady Panthers broke out of their funk late in the first quarter, and the Lady Coyotes had no answer for the surge. Weslaco continued to pound La Joya during a run over three quarters, picking up a 48-35 road win.

“We just kind of woke up,” Lady Panthers coach Griselda Fino said. “We started so slow. It was like we were still on the bus. Finally we came alive there.”

It took La Joya (8-13) into the third quarter to find its rhythm, but by that time the Lady Coyotes were dealing with a double-digit deficit.

“Part of it was the layoff,” Lady Coyotes coach David Villarreal said. “It seemed like everything we tried to do today went wrong. Eventually we had to go man-to-man. That is something you don’t want to do against Weslaco, because they are quick.”

Weslaco (12-10) trailed 6-2 when guard Clarissa Villarreal hit a 17-foot jump shot with 2:43 remaining in the opening frame, triggering a 25-5 run that continued into the third quarter.

“That is what broke the game for us, right there.” Villarreal said. “That run at the end of the first seemed to have been the key for them.”

During Weslaco’s hot streak, the Lady Panthers hurt the Lady Coyotes from the outside.

“I think one of the keys for us was having good outside play,” Fino said. “With us being able to hit the outside shot, we were able to mix it up and go inside.”

Weslaco’s Amber Povado, who left the game after a collision with La Joya’s Kimberly Salinas in the third, tied the game at 7 with a 3-pointer with only 33 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Povado gave the Lady Panthers the lead for good with another 3 that put Weslaco up 12-9 with 5:04 to play in the second quarter.

Kimberly Armstrong and Ronnie Muñoz took care of the rest in the first half, combining for Weslaco’s final 10 points of the opening quarters. Muñoz’s jump shot while falling down with 1:21 left in the second frame gave the Lady Panthers a 23-11 lead at the half.

When La Joya finally woke up in the third quarter, it was too late. After Armstrong hit two free throws with 6:20 left in the game, the Lady Panthers held a commanding 36-21 lead.

Armstrong led all scorers with 14 points. Fino was somewhat surprised Armstrong finished as the top scorer.

“It must have been a really quiet 14 points,” Fino said. “She averages about 20 points for us. She didn’t have the big game we are used to.”

Armstrong was feeling a little under the weather but praised her team’s bench play for helping maintain the lead once Weslaco took control. Ten different Lady Panthers scored in the contest.

“Our second team really did a good job for us,” Armstrong said. “They really stepped it up. When Amber went down, our second-string players picked it up for us.”

Perla Reyes led La Joya in scoring with 12.

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