Apaches clinch District 26-4A title

AUSTIN — Needing a win or a tie to clinch the District 26-4A title, the Gonzales Apaches (10-1-1) came back down 3-1 to tie the game with four minutes left against the Austin Eastside Memorial (9-1-2) Panthers and ultimately be named champions of the district.

Spirits were down when the game clock flashed 16:39 in the second half, not because of anything specific with those numbers but because at that very moment Austin Eastside Memorial scored their third goal of the night to go up 3-1 against Gonzales.

But as this year in sports has shown us, 3-1 is an unsafe lead.

The Apaches pushed on and were able to score their second goal of the game with 12:01 left and then their third one with 4:10 left to tie the game at 3-3, which was more than enough to win the district championship.

“They have heart,” head coach Greg Ramirez. “That’s how you win these type of games, with heart.”

Last season the Apaches needed a win or a tie over Giddings to win the district championship outright. They would lose that game 1-0 which then forced a tie at top. This season, the Apaches wanted that title all to themselves.

Down two goals on the field, the Apaches attacked and found openings behind Eastside Memorial’s back line, though the side judges called the Gonzales’ forwards offside during multiple occasions. Santiago Escoto found Rogelio Sanchez who drilled the ball to the back of the net with about 18 minutes to go, but the goal was disallowed after the offside call.

“We had to adjust to that,” Ramirez said of the high defensive line. “They had that plan for us.”

Eventually the Apaches did break through and sophomore midfielder Anthony Veliz found Escoto on the edge of the penalty box. Escoto took a shot that slid into the inside of the far post to cut the lead to 3-2.

“Veliz did an outstanding job today coming in and opening up more holes for us to be able to go through,” Ramirez noted.

The Apaches continued to press, drawing fouls to set up free-kick opportunities. Eight minutes later and Gonzales was again on a breakaway, this time after a blown-scoring opportunity by the Panthers.

Escoto dribbled by their goal keeper, took the shot which was deflected, then landed near Sanchez who finished with the score from inches away to tie the game up 3-3.

Although there were four minutes left in the game, Ramirez had a sense of relief, knowing that his team would be able to defend the tie that would ultimately clinch the district title.

“Those two goals were big,” he said.

As the Panthers pressed, the Apaches were able to fend off their attacks and finish the game tied 3-3.

Escoto ended the night with two goals while Sanchez had one and Jose Flores had an assist.

The tie now gives the Apaches the top seed out of district as they await a time and location for their first playoff game. Although there was a lot of celebration after the game, Ramirez noted that they haven’t lost sight of their ultimate goal.

“Our next goal is to win the first round of the playoffs,” he said. “We’re going game-by-game. As far as what to do, we’re going to keep playing our game until someone forces us out of it.”

The Apaches will match up against Lampasas, though a date or site hasn’t been determined yet.