WESLACO — Weslaco High had high expectations for the 2022 softball season after reaching to the third round the previous year.
However, with 11 underclassmen, including nine sophomores, nothing was certain for the Panthers.
Weslaco High exceeded expectations, making it to the fifth round before losing to eventual state champion San Antonio O’Connor in the Region IV-6A finals.
The young Panthers, led by head coach Mario Rodriguez, finished 34-8 overall and advanced further than any Valley team in this year’s softball playoffs.
For his job at the helm, Rodriguez is The Monitor’s 2022 All-Area Softball Coach of the Year.
“It feels good to win,” he said. “Really, it’s a combination of having a good coach staff and having good players to be able to coach and have that success.
“I think a lot of the kids bought into the motto of the year, which was that an individual can impact a game, but a team can make a miracle,” Rodriguez said. “I think our kids just bought into that and played like a team. We showed it at different times throughout the season different girls were stepping up and playing their part. It just shows. With girls like Kat (Reyes) and Jules (Garcia) they’re impact players, but when you combine them with other girls who can contribute, the whole team will have success.”
Rodriguez and his coaching staff loaded the Panthers’ non-district schedule with competition from across the state, competing in tournaments in Houston and Seguin prior to the start of district play.
The Panthers’ growth was evident during their first district contest, Rodriguez said, coming from behind and picking up a 6-3 victory over Los Fresnos in nine innings.
“We set up of schedule that way for a reason,” Rodriguez said. “We wanted to challenge them and see how they’d face adversity. That first district game when we played Los Fresnos at Los Fresnos, we had to come from behind. We ended up winning the game in the ninth inning. It showed that our kids were resilient and they were going to come through.”
The Panthers continued to grow throughout the season, finishing 12-2 in district play to capture the District 32-6A crown. They continued their success into the postseason, sweeping their first four opponents en route to the regional finals.
The regional final appearance marked the second time Weslaco High has advanced to the fifth round, both under the direction of Rodriguez.
“If you look at our record from 2015 this way, we’ve gotten better as a team and a program,” Rodriguez said. “I think a lot has to do with trying to stay on top of the game. The game is always changing. We’re just trying to change with it and trying to stay on top of it.”
Expectations will be high once again going into next season, with the Panthers returning 11 of their 16 players from this season’s regional finalist squad.
Still, Rodriguez understands nothing is given, with next year’s squad needing to leave their own mark.
“We tell our teams their footprint or what they leave behind in this program will be defined by basically your playoff run,” he said. “District championships are nice. But if you’re stuck in a weak district and win district, what good is that? We really base what we do off bi-district and on. Each team is different, so they’ll have to write their own chapter in the book.”
