McALLEN McAllen High came out swinging during its Region IV-5A Division I semifinal playoff matchup against Corpus Christi Veterans on Friday at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The Bulldogs landed the first two blows of the bout by forcing a three-and-out and scoring on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Joaquin Valdez to Christian Echazarreta.

The start signaled Corpus Christi Veterans to be ready for a four-quarter dog-fight. In the end, however, the Bulldogs didn’t have enough to take down the Eagles, losing 49-14 and bringing their season to an end.

“I thought it was a good football game. We did extremely well in the first half,” McHi head coach Patrick Shelby said. “The kids played extremely well offensively, defensively. We did like we always talk about we want to be able to start fast and I feel like we did come out and start fast today. In the second half, they’re a good football team across from you. Our kids, they just have to continue to keep learning and keep grinding this is what it’s all about.”

McHi, which finished the regular season as District 15-5A DI’s No. 3 seed, ends its year with a 7-6 record. Corpus Christi Veterans (11-2) will face the winner of Brownsville Veterans and PSJA North’s regional semifinal contest next week in the regional final.

The Bulldogs went into the break trailing 21-14 as Valdez connected with running back Jayden Herrera on a 10-yard swing pass for McHi’s second score of the first half.

The Eagles’ rushing attack proved too much to handle during the third and fourth quarters as Corpus Christi Veterans running backs Jaiden Castaneda and Luke Moya went to work.

The Eagles rushed for 319 yards as a team to McHi’s 95.

Valdez threw for 212 yards and two touchdowns. Herrera ran for 75 and caught one touchdown. Echazarreta finished with five receptions for 37 yards and a score.

McAllen High defender Max Alvarez (12) stops the run of Corpus Christi Veterans’ Alejandro Guerrero (17) in a Region IV-5A Division I semifinal playoff game at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, in McAllen.

This year’s group of Bulldogs ended several droughts during their run to the regional semifinals. McHi won its first city championship since 2007, won its first playoff game since 2014, and made its first appearance in the regional semifinal round of the playoffs for the first time since 2000.

“Last year we were able to get into the playoffs, not really knowing with a young group that we had how to handle it. This year, they exceeded expectations,” Shelby said. “Not only did they fight through adversity to get into the playoffs, but to go three rounds is amazing. To be 1-of-16 teams still playing in the state of Texas in 5A Division I football, it’s huge. To build off it next year, now we know. Now we know.”

Corpus Christi Veterans awaits the winner of Friday night’s Region IV-5A DI semifinal showdown between Brownsville Veterans and PSJA North in next week’s Region IV-5A DI final. Game details are to be determined.

It’ll be the third Valley team the Corpus Christi Veterans Eagles will face in row during the playoffs with wins over Edinburg Vela (14-7) in the area round and McAllen High in the regional semifinals.

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