CORPUS CHRISTI — Heading into penalty kicks with the Region IV-4A championship and a Class 4A state semifinal berth on the line, Hidalgo sophomore goalkeeper Sergio Castaneda looked at his team and delivered a message.
“He came up to us and said he was taking us to state,” Hidalgo head coach Esteban Alegria said. “He had that confidence. He believed in himself and everyone else did too. The coaches and the community had his back. We love him for it.”
Castaneda delivered his promise.
The sophomore goalkeeper came up with saves on two of Boerne’s four penalty attempts, helping the Pirates knock off the reigning Class 4A state champion 4-2 in penalty kicks Saturday at Cabaniss Soccer Field in Corpus Christi.
The victory advances the Pirates to the Class 4A state tournament for the first time since 2009. Hidalgo captured the state title that season, becoming the first Upper Valley team to do so.
“I put that weight on my shoulders for my team,” Castaneda said. “This is my team, and our goal was to go to state. We got this far, and we weren’t ready to be done. I wanted to stop them all. I only stopped two but that was enough to win. I dreamt about this yesterday and this morning. Now we’re here going to state.”
The road to state wasn’t smooth sailing for the Pirates. A goal off a corner kick by Brett Hettie gave Boerne a 1-0 lead heading into the break.
The Pirates didn’t net the equalizer until the 64th minute, with senior striker Rey Cantu firing a rocket from outside the box to send it to OT.
In overtime, the Greyhounds struck again on a set piece, with freshman Ezekiel Price netting the go-ahead goal five minutes into the first OT period.
The lead was short-lived with senior captain Joaquin “Picho” Rosales tying the game again just 30 seconds later with a laser shot from the top of the box.
“At the end of the day it came down to our leaders,” Alegria said. “The captains came up and motivated them to get through. We came back and turned it around to send it to PKs.”
Rosales’ goal set up Castaneda’s heroic efforts inside the box, with the sophomore goalkeeper making a pair of diving saves on Boerne’s first and third attempts to put the Pirates in position to win.
Senior defender Rey Treviño followed up Castaneda’s save with the go-ahead penalty kick to send the Pirates to the Class 4A state semifinals.
The Pirates’ victory gives the RGV a pair of teams in next week’s UIL state tournament, with Brownsville Rivera just missing out on making it three after falling 2-1 to Dripping Springs in the Region IV-6A championship game.
Hidalgo joins Sharyland High in advancing to the UIL state tournament. The Rattlers punched their ticket with a 2-1 victory over Leander Rouse in the Region IV-5A championship game at Brownsville Sports Park.
Both teams are seeking their second state championship, with the Pirates winning in 2009 and the Rattlers in 2012.
“We still go two more,” Alegria said. “The job isn’t done. We came here to win state and that is still the goal.”
