The Sharyland Rattlers''s recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fourth straight loss. They took a serious blow against Pioneer, falling 42-7. Sharyland was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 21-0.
Leading Pioneer to victory were Julian Valdez and Dylan Tijerina. Valdez rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns, while Tijerina rushed for 197 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.6 yards per carry. Tijerina is on a roll when it comes to rushing touchdowns, as he's now punched in two or more in the last four games he's played. Nicholas Jimenez made the highlight reel by snagging an interception and taking it all the way to the house.
Another reason for the win was Pioneer's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. Leading the way was Kaleb Hernandez and his two sacks.
Sharyland's loss was their fourth straight at home, which dropped their overall record down to 3-6. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 9-0 Roma and 9-0 Weslaco (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 91.7% over those games). As for Pioneer, the victory makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 8-1.
Sharyland will head out on the road to face off against Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest is coming into the matchup on a five-game losing streak. As for Pioneer, they will look to defend their home field on Friday against Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Memorial at 7:00 p.m.
