EDINBURG — Finish the dance.
That is what Edinburg Harvest Christian head coach Jaime Gonzalez has been preaching to his team heading into the postseason.
The past two years, the clock has struck midnight for the Eagles right as they were knocking on the door of a state title, falling in the TAPPS 2A Elite Eight in 2021 and in the TAPPS 2A Final Four last year.
The Eagles are still dancing this season, getting back to the final four for a second straight year, with hopes of finishing it this time around.
“I really feel confident this year,” Harvest Christian junior Samantha Munoz said. “I know the saying is, ‘Third time is the charm,’ but we’re not overconfident. I’m just super excited. I don’t think we’ve felt nerves once this year. This is the playoffs. It is go big or go home. We’re all just ready to see everything we’ve done in the offseason pay off and work out.”
This year, the Eagles are competing in TAPPS 1A, making the drop from 2A after realignment during the summer. They’ll take on San Marcos Hill Country Christian in the TAPPS 1A state semifinals at 10 a.m. today at Robinson High School in Robinson.
Most players on the team are no strangers to the big dance, most playing on the team during last year’s 56-42 loss to Shiner St. Paul in the 2A final four.
Among those returners is The Monitor’s reigning offensive player of the year, Ashley Gonzalez. Like last season, Gonzalez led the team in scoring this year, averaging 21.9 points per game to go along with her 7.6 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 3.4 assists.
The Eagles aren’t a one-trick pony, however, with several players capable of taking over a contest at any moment.
Junior point guard Lexi Garcia is one of those playmakers capable of lighting up the scoreboard on any given night. On paper, her scoring numbers saw a slight dip from last year, dropping from 14.1 per game to 11.6.
The scoring numbers don’t tell the story of the three-year floor general’s impact on the court. Garcia dished a team-high 4.1 assists per contest this season, a testament to her ability to defer to her teammates.
“Lexi is one of the top point guards in the Valley, in my opinion. I would go to war with my point guard on any day,” Gonzalez said. “Just the way she can handle the ball and see the court. Her points are down this year, but that isn’t because she’s having a bad year. She just got more weapons. The fact that she can get the ball to the right weapon at the right time is an indication of how good of a point guard she is. Her IQ is just off the chart.”
Another impact player for the Eagles is sophomore forward Riley McClaugherty, a do-it-all playmaker for the Eagles. McClaugherty led her team in rebounds this season, averaging 8.6 per contest.
Her impact can be felt beyond the boards, capable of taking control offensively on any given night. Last season, the then-freshman helped spark the team’s comeback attempt in the state semifinals, finishing with a team-high 16 points.
“Last year, I didn’t get to play a lot until district,” McClaugherty said. “I had fractured my leg the summer before the season started. It was a lot of conditioning leading up to the state tournament last year. I was finally able to get back, but it was a lot of work. This year, if they try to shut down Ashley or Lexi, we know that it is my turn or Jamie (Gonzalez’s) turn to step up.”
Added into the mix this season is Jamie Gonzalez, the youngest of the head coach’s daughters on the team. The freshman guard has given Harvest Christian another weapon for its already lethal arsenal, ranking second on the team in scoring (12.8) and steals (3.5), and also ranking third in assists (3.4).
“When people try to shut us down, we have two or three other girls who can score,” Garcia said. “Like our game against Heritage Christian, they tried to take away Ashley and me. We didn’t have a lot of points, but it is good to have three other main scorers to fall back on so they can’t stop us.”
The Eagles enter the final four with a 33-7 overall record, with all of their losses coming against UIL Class 4A-6A postseason teams.
Their last loss came Dec. 30, 2022, falling 55-47 against the Aledo Bearcats, a Class 5A playoff team. Since then, the Eagles have rattled off 11 straight wins, including back-to-back playoff wins over state-ranked opponents.
The goal now is finishing the dance, with just two wins standing in the way of their first state championship.
“Third time has got to be the charm,” Gonzalez said. “Honestly, I know it is clichè, but we’re just taking it one game at a time. We are not letting the moment get too big for us. We’re going to play Eagles basketball. It has to fall in some time. We think this is the year to do it. I think we have the pieces and experience. The body of work is there. I’m not putting anybody down or overlooking anybody out there up North, but if we do what we can do, we are confident that we’ll like the end result.”
