By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
RIO HONDO, TX—After one week, the Rio Hondo Lady ’Cats’ Basketball Team has once again started their season strong, now holding a 3-0 record.
Following their opening season win at home against the San Benito Lady Greyhounds, Rio Hondo defeated the Port Isabel Lady Tarpons (77-34) and the Brownsville Lopez Lady Lobos (49-41).
They began play in the Santa Rosa Tournament this week. Their second tournament, scheduled for December, will be held at Lyford High School.
The Lady ’Cats, led by Head Coach Victor Sauceda, are facing district rival IDEA Riverview in the tournament opener. They will then play P-SJ-A Memorial.
“We’ll see how the tournament plays out after we play these two opponents,” Coach Sauceda said.
The Lady ’Cats are anchored by sophomore Carlie Rodriguez, who is treading on familiar waters.
The second-year varsity player has led the team in scoring in each of the three games, earning 23, 35, and 26 points. She has made 34 field goals thus far.
Complementing her play on the court is sophomore Evan Ayala, who has scored 28 points total.
Senior Abigail Atkinson, in her two games against San Benito and Port Isabel, also contributed by scoring 25 points in the latter, including five three-pointers.
On the defensive side of things, it appears that senior Rhianna Villarreal is shaping up to be the best rebounder for the team.
She has led the Lady ’Cats in this category twice. She had 12 rebounds against San Benito and eight more against Lopez, a team high.
She leads Rio Hondo with 25 total rebounds.
Rodriguez has led the team in steals in two of the games. Rio Hondo is averaging just over 16 steals per game. Those thefts lead to easy points the other way.
The Lady ’Cats have six blocks total.
Among the other players on the Rio Hondo roster are juniors Ximena Gonzalez, Jillianna Sauceda, Izabella Zuniga, and Samantha Flores; sophomore Klarissa Padilla; and freshman Erin Ayala.
The Rio Hondo Bobcats began their season on Tuesday, Nov. 18, at Sharyland Pioneer High School.
With the football season having just concluded, Bobcats Head Coach Michael Alvarez is utilizing several of those athletes to get them in basketball shape.
The varsity roster has not been announced yet. However, the junior varsity has played home games against Mission Veterans and Harlingen South.
The JV team is also traveling to Sharyland to compete next week.
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