BY NORMAN ROZEFF

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the next installment in an ongoing series on San Benito’s Sam Robertson. Find previous articles at www.valleystar.com

The San Benito Sugar Company with Alba Heywood as president took out a full page advertisement. It stated “We cultivate the land and market the crops for the absent owner.”

It then went on to say that the San Benito Land and Irrigation Company had set aside 1,000 acres of choice irrigated land which will be cleared and planted to sugar cane by the San Benito Sugar Company, an organization formed for this purpose. With no qualms about making exaggerated claims, it continued, “Sugar cane has been a demonstrated success in the Lower Rio Grande Valley for over 30 years. It is a staple crop, involving no risk, and yields 50% to 100% net year after year.”

The company was offering the 1000 acres in tracts of five acres or multiples thereof, at $200 an acre, of which the purchaser would pay $100 in cash or easy installments and the crop pay $100. By July of 1910 Robertson was advertising for “Only Experienced Cane Growers to get three year leases of 50 to 500 acres of a 3,000 acre tract. Applicants must have large mules and be able to furnish their own tools and supplies.”

1 of 2

Gunplay and wild west antics were still part of everyday Valley life. In the same July 1910 month as a Harlingen Star printer was shot, a very serious event took place south of San Benito. Sam Robertson learned of a planned attempt on his life. He notified Rangers Carnes and Craighead in Harlingen. They laid plans to capture the bushwhackers. Ten individuals set out from San Benito on a Saturday night. They later split up into smaller parties. One group staked out a hiding place and was soon to encounter unknown contentious individuals.

In the ensuing gun battle Texas Ranger S. B. Carnes, deputy sheriff Henry Lawrence, and sometime Robertson employee, Pablo Treviño, were killed but not J. Zoll, a San Benito Canal Co. employee accompanying them. In continuing pursuit Earl West, who had also been deputized as a special ranger for this operation, was wounded but escaped death. In the dark and with the confusion of split parties, Craighead was later wounded by friendly fire in a case of mis-identification and was lucky to survive. All had been attempting to intercept Treviño’s cousin Jacinto, who, along with others, allegedly was on his way from across the river to conduct the assassination.

Robertson had seemingly extracted a statement from Jacinto’s eyewitness cousin, Hillario, that Jacinto was the murderer of a San Benito Canal company employee. While, at the scene of the confrontation come daylight, pursuers discovered blood from other than the victims; the stalkers, likely three in number, had escaped. Robertson at the time was out of town on business as his substantial San Benito house was about to be built.

In time, Treviño family versions and word-of-mouth of the affair would essentially turn the story on its head. A popular corrido on the subject added to the creation of a folk hero legend.

Briefly the alternative account has Jacinto, son of retired Mexican army Captain Natividad Treviño, seeking revengeful justice for the pistol-whipping leading to the death of his brother Natividad.

The beating, by San Benito Canal construction foreman Jimmy Darwin, had occurred at Los Indios on May 28, 1910. What precipitated this dastardly act was supposedly Natividad’s refusal to work on a particular day after putting in long hours as the carpentry shop foreman.

The day after Natividad’s death, Jacinto, with a borrowed pistol, was to kill Darwin. Two months later Jacinto was then said to have entered into an ambush set by his cousin Pablo, who may have been seeking the $500 reward for Jacinto’s capture. It was here that the lawmen along with Pablo were killed. The exaggerated number of reported rinches (rangers) present grew to 50-60 in some family accounts. Jacinto had previously found sanctuary at his father’s Santa Rosa Ranch in Mexico and escaped again to this site.

Even in Mexico he was leery of retribution by the powerful Rangers and possible some of their Federales Mexican allies. For seven years he was cautious in his movements. For the rest of his 66 years he remained in Mexico, fathering six children from his first wife and, after her death, four with his second wife.

In a footnote to the foregoing it can be added that the Los Indios relatives of Pablo did not claim his body for burial. He is buried in the nearby Las Rusias Cemetery. His grave bears an expensive Rock of Ages granite monument. Written in Spanish, the inscription on it translates, “Pablo Treviño died for a friend.” Obviously that friend was Sam Robertson.

Another near miss was to occur five years later during the height of Bandit Era depredations. On September 9, 1915 a disgruntled individual(s) took the opportunity to waylay Sam Robertson as he drove on Alice Road about eleven miles north of Brownsville at 3 a.m. in the morning. Three or four shots were fired. One knocked off his hat and still another penetrated the middle of the front passenger seat. Once again good luck rode with Robertson, as it did a month and half later when he was twice attacked, this time near the San Pedro Ranch 8 miles from Brownsville. It was well known that he carried sizable amounts of cash on paydays to pay his employees.

By October 1910 a bullish Robertson had purchased 5,000 acres from C. P. Barreda, a Valley resident of Spanish origin. This portion of the Barreda Tract lay directly east of the canal company’s land. The Louisiana Planter revealed some mill details in November. It was to be designed by A. F. Delbert with efficiencies being paramount to generate the least cost per pound of sugar manufactured. The maximum extraction possible would be looked for by Delbert, who had designed the Ohio and Texas Company mill two seasons ago. Part of this would be achieved by a crusher of special design. Delbert estimated that $208,355 would be needed for the turnkey construction job, $90,000 in cash. Conservatively he was assuming a sugar content of 185 lbs. per ton of sugarcane, that the cane would cost $358,636, and that the mill would net $203,333.88 the first year.

With 1,200 acres in cane by mid-November, the goal was 5,000 acres in 1911. The San Benito Sugar Company Plantation alone would have 2,000 acres of the “long sweet”, while the Watts brothers would have an equal acreage and Mr. Cowgill 800. The Cowgill Plantation was three miles north of San Benito near Nopalton. The Interurban railroad would be completed in time to connect to the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico tracks in order to move cane to the mill. The latter would initially furnish cars and motive power for moving the cane crop, but the Interurban would soon have its own locomotives and freight cars.

In its 1/18/11 edition the Brownsville Herald featured a major advertisement from the San Benito Land and Water Company. It was a major promotion for San Benito. It invited prospective buyers to a train excursion, barbeque, music, and land auction. The ad proclaimed: “San Benito — population 1907 — nothing; 1911 — 3500. The wonderful growth of San Benito has astounded the most conservative. Less than four years ago San Benito was nothing but a mesquite brush; today it has a population of 3,500, Water Works, Electric Lights, and will have sewerage in the near future. A $400,000 sugar mill will be in operation by next season. Business houses and residences are going up as though by magic. Fully $100,000 is now being spent in the construction of same. The San Benito and Rio Grande Railroad (sic), an interurban now being built, will make this wonderful city its headquarters. If San Benito has done this in less than four years when the Valley was only in its experimental stage, now that the future of the Valley is assured one can readily see San Benito a city of 10,000.

With the Greatest Irrigating Canal in the South at its very doors we say to you that an investment in real estate here is not a Gamble or Speculation, but a Certainty. The terms ARE EASY – 1/5 cash as soon as sale is made, then 5% per month until 1/3 of purchase price has been paid – balance 1,2,3 years all to bear 6% interest.”

In March S. C. Cowgill left Brownsville for a month long visit to Cuba to study cane cultivation. Shortly thereafter, it was announced that the contract had been let for San Benito’s $500,000 mill. A Mr. Palfrey, a Louisiana expert sugar man was to be general manager. Operating costs for the first year were estimated to be $100,000, consisting of $40,000 payroll and $60,000 labor and material.

Charles Barber canvassed stock for this mill, $150,000 in all. Barber’s plantation was to the west of town near present day North Zillock Road. In the 1980s the San Benito News wrote of the civic-minded citizens of the city in 1910. “The San Benito Commercial Club, the forerunner of the Chamber of Commerce, raised $50,000 (a lot of money in those days) to help provide facilities to refine sugar.”

Sam was a member of this organization. Conceivably the mill was to be designed for efficiencies and year-to-year enlargements.

“Life’s choices are wild and free, but sustaining and elevating, or destructive and debilitating. It’s up to us to choose.”

Mark O’Brian

1949-1999

Mark O’Brian was an American journalist and poet. He contracted Polio at the age of 10, spent most of his life in an isolating iron lung, and passed away at age 50. He was an advocate for the disabled all of his life.

The famous pilot and adventurer Major General Charles “Chuck” Yeager, sustained many broken bones and burns following his many accidents; both in aircraft and his adventures in nature; Currently living in California, in the foothills of his beloved Sierra Nevada Mountains, and still maintaining his positive attitude and health at his current age of 93.

Colonel Dwight Sullivan, injured when his aircraft was shot down over North Vietnam, survived the horrific treatment as a prisoner of war for 7 years, currently residing in Arizona, and maintains a positive and healthy attitude.

Hellen Keller, a person with deafness and blindness, was an American author; political activist, and lecturer.

She was the first person with blindness and deafness in the United States to earn a Bachelor’s Degree and spent her life as an advocate for persons with disabilities. She passed away at age 88.

These individuals serve as testament to the resiliency of the human spirit.

We very often hear stories and tales about the famous people who have overcome their plight of having a debilitating condition or disease, yet we need not look far from home to know or meet someone who is a person with a disability. Theirs, as those who are famous, serve as beacons…advocates for persons with disabilities because of their endurance and attitudes toward their conditions.

That Middle East War veteran with para or Quadra pelage, that Veteran who suffers day to day with his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, that neighbor who suffers from a spinal cord injury sustained in an automobile accident, that person you know who suffers from life threatening Cancer, the person who must trust their seeing eye dog to help them get around, the person with a chronic mental illness, etc., etc.

They not only have the physical pain and discomfort of their condition, but must also have to deal continuously with the psychological pain, anguish, and stigma associated.

Just how do people deal with the psychological pain, Stress, anguish and social stigma associated with their condition? Fortunately, most seem to be doing quite well, but many have difficulties accepting or dealing with their condition. For General Yeager, as he has so often stated, it was a “Press On” attitude no matter what his life’s condition.

And I would most likely make the case for all of those who have managed to care for their condition in healthy manners. But they not only must have a most positive attitude, they have learned about their condition and how to take care of it; have a foundation of hope and faith for their future, and have a trust relationship with others who have helped them along the way.

I am a firm believer in people learning from others stories concerning their disabilities, and I often have imparted my Cancer story to others. In the 19 years I have had Cancer, having undergone radiation treatment, many rounds of Chemotherapy, and multiple surgeries; I continue to “Press On” with my life, out of my choice to do so. I, as with many individuals in my same condition, have a faith system giving me guidance, loving family and friends who are supportive, and hope for the future.

Without faith and hope the struggle would have been difficult, if not impossible. I am a totally disabled American Veteran, but I refuse to accept the “Dis” part of that…I turn it into “Abled” instead, even with my day-to-day struggles with the disease and all of its side-effects I manage to cope. I have learned from my medical treatment team how to take care of myself, I receive added help from my family and friends, and I have a belief system based on faith in a higher power and hope for the future.

Although unable to do many physical things, my spending this wonderful time with family and friends, writing my column articles for the Star, advocating for persons with disabilities, being on the Texas State Independent Living Council, and many other activities…provide meaning to my life; keeping me psychologically, physically, socially, and spiritually healthy.

Persons with disabilities, such as mine, must remain active despite their condition to keep all of their “selves” healthy. We have learned that it is imperative to do so, even during our roughest times. The only thing that a person with a disability has no control over is the stigma and stereotypes assigned to his/her disorder, yet through their own experience and advocacy work that can eventually be overcome as well; such is the case of Cancer which has lost almost the entire stigma attached to the disease over the past 50 years.

People stereotype and stigmatize something because they are unlearned, ignorant of the disability. That is where advocating and education come into play. When people learn about a disability and what it is like for the person who has it, then stigma is reduced. Persons with disabilities do not need to be patronized or sympathized, they just need empathetic understanding and support as requested and needed.

Words and labels do not describe or define the person. Every individual deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless. As Martin Luther King said, “a person should be defined by their character…” We should always remember to focus on the person, not the label. Until next time, Stay Healthy my Friends!

Every day the unexpected occurs in Room 623. This year was no different for Valentine’s Day.

Over the years, the teacher had tried to find easier ways to distribute Valentine’s to the children. With a room full of children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) she knew the more structured the activity, the better the day would go.

More often than not, some of the children would not bring their Valentine’s even after notes were sent home. Others would bring them without any names on them even though a list was sent home.

The teacher learned to always have lots of Valentines on hand for those who forgot to bring them. She had found that one of the easiest thing to do was to have children just write their last names on the back of the Valentines.

It was hard for some of the children to write lots of names on the cards. It wasn’t unusual for students with ASD to have fine motor skills challenges. So the simpler the writing assignment the better. This way, the students could simply walk around the room and give out a Valentine to each of the students.

One Valentine’s Day a few years ago, Brian brought dinosaur Valentines from home. He had already signed all of them without putting the children’s names on them. He waited while the other children wrote names on their Valentine’s. Some zipped through the work while others needed help from the staff.

Then the big moment arrived. It was Brian’s turn to go around the room and give his Valentines out. Well, it didn’t go as expected. Brian was fine on receiving the other boys and girls Valentines.

The problem was he liked his Valentines and did not want to give them up. Give up dinosaurs for Disney or animal cards? Not a chance.

The teacher had a challenge to help Brian learn he had to share. He got to keep one of his dinosaur cards but the rest had to be given out. It brought a lot of tears for his first Valentine’s party.

As time passed, new children came into the room and Brian was no longer the youngest. This year he had dinosaur’ cards once again but the teacher had cool dinosaur Valentines that were 3-D along with 3D Iron Man, Spider Man and some very unusual Peter Max cards.

Because everyone had brought their own cards, she decided to drop her extra ones into the bags early on. The staff passed out some special turtle candy Valentines too. That way, the Valentine bags all had a head start to give the kids a good idea of what exchanging cards meant. It was going well. This time, everyone had the names of “To and from” on them.

The students had to listen for the student names so they would put them in the right bag. For those that read, the pride and independence was fun to watch. This year’s problem was waiting for each child to bring the Valentines to their friends. Brian kept saying, “I want one” as he waited for his to come. Mark was constantly saying, “What about mine?” Another, Randy was already repeating, “Popcorn and movie.” That was because one of the students brought bags of popcorn for all the children and Randy was ready for the next event. We had promised the children a movie and pizza for Valentine’s Day.

The teacher had come to see Valentine’s Day as a great opportunity to learn sharing, to listen to directions and to practice writing. The children had found the day to be a great time for social play and simply having a lot fun with their classmates.

Pamela Gross Downing, a special education teacher can be reached at [email protected].

They call themselves the “Dreamrunners”. They are teachers, library aides, special education instructors and counselors. They work in elementary, middle and high schools in the Brownsville Independent School District (BISD), and they run together. They didn’t always run. In fact most of the 30 plus BISD employees who have participated in this “5K prep class” offered through the district’s wellness program, couldn’t run half a mile when they started back in September.

But after 6 months of walking, training, and eventually running, they have all finished at least one 5k (3.2 miles) race, most have completed a 10k and 10 of them are scheduled to run a half marathon at the end of the month. Their energetic trainer, Cynthia Shears, spends her days teaching social studies to Middle Schoolers, and her evenings helping her co-workers and other district employees get fit and healthy.

“Back in September I started the group with walking. I focused on safety and form, and just encouraged them to run a quarter of a mile. With each day they walked and ran a little further. It’s a mind battle to run and move when you aren’t used to it. Your mind tells you, ‘You can’t!’ so my job is mostly to encourage. In 8 weeks the group had progressed to running a 5k. After another 10 weeks some of them were ready for a 10K. Now they are moving on to half marathons. I’m so proud of them!”

The running group is the brainchild of Anisa Gonzalez, director of BISD Wellness programs.

“I applied for a small grant from the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation in December 2014 and was given funds to start the program for district employees. It has been so popular and successful we are on our 3rd group and have a waiting list to get into the class. I get emotional about this because I didn’t realize this program would have this success! I was blessed with finding the perfect instructor who inspires and motivates these runners to keep going and who took this program beyond my dreams for it.”

Shears emphasizes the importance of educators adopting healthy lifestyles including regular exercise.

“Regardless if we want to be or not, we are role models to the kids. If students see a teacher” running or even walking for exercise, they are inspired. “Ma’am, I’m gonna race you! They look up to you for doing something like that!”

Shears has been teaching for 26 years and has seen a disturbing trend. “Kids are getting bigger; now 6th graders have diabetes. They are just not exercising as much. It’s more important now than ever we model healthy living for them.”

Gonzalez adds that having healthy employees saves the district money on health insurance and reduces staff absenteeism. “The small investment in these types of programs can go a long way.”

Shears shares that several individuals have especially inspired her. “When Martha started she could barely run, but she kept at it and lost weight, and eventually ran a 10k. Mario started with us in the fall and had been injured. He never misses a practice and is now ready to run a full marathon (26 miles)!”

Social support is the key to the program’s success, explains Shears.

“The best part of the program is the encouragement we give to each other. So often we don’t do what we really want to do because we don’t have support from others. This program provides a network. We develop friendships and we’ve really become a team. We catch each other saying negative things and try to help each other be more positive. We do life together. So many of us are lacking that support and motivation to make healthy choices and I think it is the key.”

Tu Salud ¡Si Cuenta! (Your Health Matters!)

BY GARY SMITH

Have you had an orchid that you wished you could keep healthy and reblooming for lasting enjoyment?

Did you wonder why it did not grow or flower?

Orchid experts from the Tip O’ Texas Orchid society are conducting a free workshop that can help you.

Unlike most flowering plants, orchids almost never grow in garden soil; neither in the ground or in pots.

1 of 4

In nature their roots cling to trees and rocks and take moisture and nutrients from the air.

We can create similar conditions by potting or mounting orchid plants using materials and techniques that mimic the orchid’s natural environment.

At this workshop you can learn these techniques.

With appropriate materials and hands-on instruction you will be able to create an environment where your orchid can thrive!

Participants can bring their own plants to repot or mount.

The workshop is free, and orchids and the specialized supplies will be available for a modest cost.

We hope you will come and join us on the patio at the Valley Nature Center.

HARLINGEN — “S-A-N-G-U-I-N-A-R-Y. Sangui-nary.”

That was Clarisse Tu-don’s password to first place yesterday at the Rio Grande Valley 28th Annual Regional Spelling Bee.

The competition at Texas State Technical College was sponsored by AIM Media Texas — par-ent company of the Valley Morning Star — and Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The Los Fresnos eighth grader had out-spelled 52 other students in the com-petition. The winning word arrived in the 13th round, earning her a place in the 89th Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May.

The 14-year-old Clarisse has competed in several other spelling bees but never took first place in regionals.

“I’m excited, surprised,” said Clarisse, a student at Los Cuates Middle School.

“I almost didn’t spell a lot of them,” she said. “I read books with a lot of big vocabulary words.”

For the rest of this story and many other EXTRAS, go to our premium site, www.MyValleyStar.com.

Subscribe to it for only $6.99 per month or purchase a print subscription and receive the online version free, which includes an electronic version of the full newspaper and extra photo galleries, links and other information you can’t find anywhere else.

HARLINGEN — “S-A-N-G-U-I-N-A-R-Y. Sanguinary.”

That was Clarisse Tudon’s password to first place yesterday at the Rio Grande Valley 28th Annual Regional Spelling Bee.

The competition at Texas State Technical College was sponsored by AIM Media Texas — parent company of the Valley Morning Star — and Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The Los Fresnos eighth grader had out-spelled 52 other students in the competition.

The winning word arrived in the 13th round, earning her a place in the 89th Annual Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May.

For the rest of this story and many other EXTRAS, go to our premium site, www.MyValleyStar.com.

Subscribe to it for only $6.99 per month or purchase a print subscription and receive the online version free, which includes an electronic version of the full newspaper and extra photo galleries, links and other information you can’t find anywhere else.

SEGUIN — For the second time in as many days, the Santa Rosa Warriors stormed back after falling into a double-digit hole. Unfortunately, this time their magic ran out.

After trailing by as many as 22 in the second half, Santa Rosa junior Leo Lara found the ball in his hands with his team down one and 23 seconds to play.

Unfortunately for Lara, he missed a shot inside of the arc and after an offensive rebound, missed a three from the deep right corner as the Warriors fell to Aransas Pass 68-67 in the Region IV-3A finals on Saturday afternoon at the Goldie Harris Gym at Seguin High School.

Lara scored 16 in the second half and 28 in the game to lead the Warriors, but the feeling of missing a last-second shot that would have sent the Warriors to the state tournament was all too familiar to the junior guard.

“The only thing I saw was the basket and I really thought it was going to go in,” Lara said of the game’s final shot. “In the end, it was just like the game against Brownsville Veterans. It’s been a great season and I love my team, the coaches and all those guys; we’re going to keep working hard because we wanna come back next year.

“The goal is to come back next year and win state, not just get to this point.”

Aside from that, the Warriors had other missed opportunities late.

AB Losoya, who scored 14 points and racked up eight steals to keep the Warriors within striking distance and tied the game on a pair of freebies with 3:52 to go, fouled out and Lara, after being fouled on a three, missed one of the three free throws.

Making all three would’ve put the Warriors ahead by a point with 47 seconds to play.

That, combined with multiple missed layups on the day, was the difference to head coach Johnny Cipriano — not the lack of effort.

“I told the guys at half that we’ve been down 20 and this is where they like to be, so they should be comfortable,” Cipriano said. “I told them I didn’t care if they all fouled out, they had to go out there and play physical. A couple of more shots go in and we win, but we missed some layups we had there and missed quite a bit off free throws. Still, aside from those last shots, we pretty much executed.”

Early on, the Panthers’ height gave the Warriors problems as they corralled close rebounds and were able to make layups over the smaller Warrior defenders.

Aside from that, the Warriors were a bit calmer to start Saturday’s game than they were in Friday night’s win over Goliad.

Santa Rosa trailed 11-10 in the first, but Aransas Pass, led by 34 points from Coin Hale, ended the first quarter on a 15-0 run and led 42-22 at the half.

Santa Rosa once again came out of the locker room swinging and cut the lead to seven following a 19-6 run. The Warriors won the third quarter 23-10 and began to frustrate the Panthers with their half-court defense.

A 6-0 Warrior run midway through the fourth was topped off by a pair of free throws from Losoya that tied things up at 54 with 5:15 to play.

The Panthers once again took a four-point lead with two trips to the line from Hale and Matt McElroy, but Losoya stole the ball away on the Panthers’ next possession and took it to the hole and then tied the game seconds later at the line.

Unfortunately, the sophomore guard fouled out with 3:52 to play and the Panthers went up again after five straight points from Hale.

Santa Rosa senior Manny Sanchez sank a three from the left corner to bring the Warriors within two and Lara followed making 2 of 3 shots at the line to tie the game, but a free throw by Hale with 26 seconds to go proved to be the difference.

As the Panthers move on, Cipriano hopes his team draws more motivation from the loss for next season.

“It’s tough to do this and if it was easy everyone would do it,” Cipriano said. “I hope not winning this game motivates us even more. You could go either way with a game like this. I just hope the guys that are left are willing to work hard and hopefully, we’ll get back up here.”

The Warriors finished the year 26-9 and are losing six seniors to graduation, but Lara, Losoya and junior Matt Garcia are set to return.

Despite a couple of crucial misses in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s Region IV-3A final loss to Aransas Pass, Santa Rosa junior Leo Lara should not hang his head.

None of the Warriors should.

In fact, they should hold their heads higher because after their performances at this weekend’s regional tournament, there is no doubt in my mind that they have everyone’s respect.

After Lara missed a potential game-winning three, the junior broke down in tears, only to be consoled by the Aransas Pass coaching staff and players before celebrating their own victory.

The state-ranked Panthers knew they had survived a battle. In fact, it was their first real battle in these playoffs after four double-digit wins heading into Saturday’s game with the Warriors.

After AB Losoya gave everything he had and picked up his fifth foul, Lara answered the bell and attacked the rim like a man possessed and had the guts to take those shots in the end.

He missed, but there is no shame in that, just like there is no shame in losing after giving everything you had.

The Warriors may not have gotten to the state tournament like they wanted, but they showed that they possess that championship heart and mentality.

Even if they had rolled over against Goliad on Friday or Aransas Pass would have run them out of the gym on Saturday, nobody would have blamed the Warriors, because they have nothing to prove to anyone after 12 straight district titles and multiple playoff runs under head coach Johnny Cipriano.

However, it’s not about that for these Warriors.

You have to understand that there are no moral victories for a team like Santa Rosa.

The Warriors were one of only two Valley teams left in the playoffs this year, they slayed every district foe by 40 points or more, and won four playoff games. Most schools would kill to have that kind of a season. For the Warriors, however, that wasn’t enough.

They always want more and that’s why they are true champions in my book; they always have something to prove to themselves.

True champions are never satisfied and the Warriors’ tears after falling Saturday proved that.

With a core group coming back and a bad taste left in their mouths after falling short of the state tourney, look for Santa Rosa to make yet another serious playoff run come 2017.

Mark Molina is a sports writer for the Valley Morning Star. Follow him on Twitter at @mmolina0521

PALM VALLEY — Ron “The Killer” Kilby lived up to his nickname Saturday afternoon at the Life Begins at 40 golf tournament.

Kilby defeated 2012 tournament champion Ray Iler 5 and 4 in the championship round of the 64th annual event held at the Harlingen Country Club to win his third straight championship and ninth overall title.

Kilby started the day off with a birdie and almost finished on a birdie. Heading into the 14th hole with a commanding four-stroke lead, Iler needed to win the hole to stay in the match. However, an inadvertent touch of the ball ended Iler’s hopes of picking up his second LBA 40 title.

After the match, Harlingen Country Club golf pro Liz Richardson, touched on the ruling.

“(On the 14th hole) Ray hit his ball up against the (cement) cart path and he gets relief of stance at a club length,” said Richardson. “So when he did his relief and dropped the ball to the ground, Iler’s caddy moved in to give him some information and accidentlly kicked the ball.

“Once he kicked the ball it was a loss of hole. (To do so) is against USGA (United States Golf Association) rules. It was considered, in match play, a loss of hole.”

Kilby started the day by notching a birdie on hole No. 1 while Iler parred. On the second, it was Iler who evened the score by hitting a birdie of his own, while Kilby pared.

On the third hole, Iler had an opportunity to go up one, but he missed a putt from a few feet out and both bogeyed the hole.

Iler’s continued to struggle on the green and bogeyed the fourth, sixth and seventh holes, while Kilby pared all of them.

Up by three heading into the 10th hole, Iler cut Kilby’s lead down to two. However, a bogey by Iler on the 11 put Kilby’s lead back at three.

On the 13th hole, Kilby struck a beautiful shot from 23 feet out to birdie the hole and push the lead to four with five holes remaining.

“It’s hard to beat someone on their own golf course. That’s just very difficult to do,” said Kilby. “Ray didn’t putt that well today and missed some short putts early in the match that he normally makes, and I think that was what allowed me to win.

“I made some really nice putts on 11, 12 and 13, and I think that was ultimately the difference.”