By Ramiro Paez

Special to 956sports.com

WESLACO – As surprising as it may sound, Weslaco East’s Darek Martinez didn’t make too much of his interception that came on the final play of the first half. Not that the pick wasn’t of significance to Martinez, but the junior cornerback had reason to downplay the worth of a play that wouldn’t have cost the Wildcats anything.

What Martinez did know mattered most was his second interception that saved Weslaco East. Martinez picked off Alice quarterback A.J. Perez late in the fourth quarter as the Wildcats withstood a furious rally by the Coyotes to preserve a 21-14 victory during Friday night’s Class 4A Division I bi-district game at Bobby Lackey Stadium.

“The second interception meant a lot more because it was an important stop,” Martinez said.

The Wildcats had to hang on even after Martinez’s timely interception after Alice recovered an Aaron Munguia fumble. But the Coyotes’ chance at a shocking comeback was thwarted after Perez lost the ball on fourth down.

“Gotta make plays, you know. Whether it’s the offense or the defense,” Weslaco East coach Armando Cuellar said. “We’ve been able to come through in games like this. We were tested and they responded like champions. I am very proud of the way they hung in there. They did not lose their composure. They kept fighting til the end and the end result was that win.”

Though Perez’s fumble is what ultimately ended the game, Alice never seriously threatened on that final drive, unable to cross midfield. No play was bigger than the one Martinez made with less than five minutes remaining.

The Coyotes drove to the Weslaco East 18 and looked poised to tie the game at 21 – a position that almost seemed unlikely after the Wildcats rolled to a 21-0 third-quarter lead – but Martinez read Perez’s throw and made the game-saving catch.

“It was a pretty tough game, but we came out with the victory,” he said. “We had to stop them a lot. The second (interception), I felt a lot of joy because I made a big stop on defense.”

It was also a stop that gave the District 32-4A champions its third playoff victory in two years and sends it to its second straight area-round game, where it will meet Victoria East next Friday night in Kingsville at 7:30 pm.

“We’re starting to get the idea of what it takes to be champions,” Cuellar said. “Everybody’s got to step up to the plate and get the job done. Like I told them earlier, this is not a one-man show. It’s a team thing. When we play together, we’ll be tough to beat.”

Perhaps, as Cuellar stated, the Wildcats are finally starting to get it.

Because despite a few second-half hiccups, Weslaco East (10-1) dominated through much of a game that was reminiscent to its home bi-district playoff against Corpus Christi Ray last season. But unlike in that game, which saw the Wildcats rally from a 14-point deficit, Weslaco East led from the start and held on for the win.

It did so behind its effective ball control game, which produced two touchdowns on the Wildcats’ only two first-half drives.

Munguia, who rushed for 138 yards and two touchdowns, opened the scoring on his 9-yard run in the second quarter, which capped a 17-play, 75-yard drive. After quarterback John Arevalo’s 1-yard sneak with 51 seconds remaining in the first half, Munguia gave the Wildcats a 21-0 lead after adding his second score on the opening drive of the second half.

The Coyotes then made it interesting, responding with two touchdowns in less than eight minutes in the third quarter. Alice running back Lucas Almaraz scored on a 4-yard run and after a successful onside kick, Perez punched it in from a yard out to slice the deficit to 21-14.

It was as close as the Coyotes (4-7) could get, though, failing to cash in on their opportunities and ending a subpar year for a traditional playoff power.

“Coach Cuellar and his staff did a good job,” Alice coach Chris Soza said. “They got a real good ballclub. They weren’t 9-1 for nothing. We knew we had our work cut out for us. I thought our kids played as hard as they could tonight.”

Tags: alice, weslaco east