Lower Valley powers Brownsville Veterans and Lyford are headed to the Coastal Bend this weekend as the Chargers and Bulldogs enter the regional quarterfinals of the Class 5A and Class 3A state playoffs, respectively.
Brownsville Veterans (25-4-2) will meet Victoria East (28-9) in a three-game Region IV-5A quarterfinal series beginning with Game 1 at 7 p.m. Friday at Cabaniss Stadium in Corpus Christi. Game 2 will be played at 5 p.m. Saturday at Cabaniss Stadium. Game 3, if necessary, will follow 30 minutes following the conclusion of Game 2.
Meanwhile, Lyford (21-9) is set to lock horns with state-ranked Corpus Christi London (26-3) in a best-of-three series beginning with Game 1 at 7 p.m. Friday at Whataburger Field in Corpus Christi. Game 2 is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday at Whataburger Field, with Game 3 to follow 30 minutes after the conclusion of Game 2, if necessary.
BATTLE-TESTED BULLDOGS
Lyford is making its first third-round playoff appearance in 30 years after winning a three-game dogfight against Goliad in the second round.
All three games were decided by one run, with Lyford taking Game 1 6-5, Goliad stealing Game 2 13-12 in eight innings, and Lyford bouncing back in Game 3 for a 3-2 victory to take the series.
The battle-tested Bulldogs are now set to face off against state-ranked Corpus Christi London in the regional quarterfinals.
Sophomore Gael Silva leads Lyford at the plate with a .477 batting average, 42 hits, 41 RBIs and 17 doubles, all team highs. The big man also has stolen 16 bases.
Pitchers Aiden Olivas-Romo and Jacob Reyna have formed a steady 1-2 punch all year with freshman Diego Medina delivering a key performance in Game 3 against Goliad to help lift Lyford into Round 3. Olivas-Romo has scored 46 runs with 35 steals and a 5-2 record on the mound. He has a 2.75 ERA with 38 strikeouts in 40 2/3 innings pitched. Reyna is 4-1 with a 3.45 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings.
Senior Isaias Gonzalez also has been big for the Bulldogs, hitting .388 with 31 RBIs, four home runs, 48 runs and 22 steals.
Lyford is an underdog on paper, but the Bulldogs are ready for another dogfight against Corpus Christi London, a 2023 state qualifier.
CHARGED UP
Brownsville Veterans has been one of South Texas’ most dominant teams all year and has opened the 2024 postseason with back-to-back sweeps of Sharyland High and Rio Grande City.
Now in the third round of the playoffs for the first time in program history, the Chargers are looking to keep the run going as they head into a three-game series against Victoria East.
The Chargers are three-deep with solid starting pitching in Carlos Garza, Alfonso Bueno and Victor Beltran. The senior Garza’s 126 strikeouts this year set a single-season program record to go with a team-best .90 ERA in 70 innings. He’s 10-1 on the year and has pitched nine complete games, five shutouts and one no-hitter.
Bueno, a sophomore, is second on the team with 43 1/3 innings pitched, a 7-2 record, 1.29 ERA and 43 strikeouts to only eight earned runs. He’s thrown three complete games, one shutout and picked up two saves. Junior Victor Beltran is 3-0 in eight appearances and has pitched 28 1/3 innings this year with a .99 ERA and 21 strikeouts. Jose Jimenez also has pitched well in big games for the Chargers this season.
Brownsville Veterans is just as dangerous at the plate, with eight of nine regular starters batting north of .300. Garza leads the Chargers with a .457 batting average, 43 hits, 20 RBIs and 28 runs scored. Senior catcher Oscar Rodriguez bats a team-high .486 with 34 hits and 27 RBIs.
Victoria East is coming off a three-game series win against Sharyland Pioneer, and if this series with Brownsville Veterans should go all three, the Chargers have the pieces to match East.
