The Texas High Tigers took on the Longview Lobos to close out their season. One last game at Grim Park for the seven seniors for Texas High. Seniors Javier Mendoza, Aidyn Bennett, Korben Hoffmeister, Austin Miller, Michael Bradshaw, Anderson Escobar and Armando Hernandez suited up at Grim one last time for the Tigers. 

“It was sad to play my last game at Grim and I will miss playing there.” senior forward Austin Miller said.

The Tigers faced a formidable opponent in their last match and the Lobos had no intentions of taking it easy on the Tigers for senior night. The game started off rough for the Tigers as junior midfielder Joseph Minor and junior goalkeeper Matt Delk misplayed a pass back to goal that gave the Lobos their first goal. The Tigers quickly struck back,  scoring in the opponents goal Junior winger Samuel Tettamanti dribbled up the right side then found Miller across the middle of the field for the goal in the eighth minute.

The Lobos found the net again in the 18th minute by heading the ball into the corner of the net. The Lobos did not wait long to score again as they scored in the 22nd minute. The Lobos scored off a rebound after a great save from junior goalkeeper Matt Delk. The Texas High defense kept fighting and played more physically for the rest of the half. An open man slipped through the Texas high back line and chipped a goal in. Texas High almost found the net again with Seniors Miller trying to assist Hoffmester but missed a shot just to the right. 

The Lobos attack were quick out of half as they picked up right where they left off. The Lobos outscored the Tigers 5-0 in the second half. A tough game for the seniors to go out on, but this year’s team took a huge leap in the right direction.

“The expectation for next year will be held to a much higher standard as we have been left with a good start to the season but did not finish how we wanted and we look to fix that next year,’’ junior winger Jackson Haltom said.

The Tigers so far are 1-10 in district play but they did get their first district win in 2 years and secured a trophy winning the Pittsburg Tournament trophy and beating cross town rival Pleasant Grove in non-district play. With 19 seniors returning next year, leadership opportunities abound for this year’s underclassmen.

The Tigers will finish out their season against Mount Pleasant on Friday, March 10.

“We just need to build on what we’ve done this year and make sure the only direction from here is up,” senior Michael Bradshaw said.