Former Hidalgo Pirate nets four goals and helps RGV Grandes to first win of season

EDINBURG — If anyone was going to help the RGV Grandes out of their six-game losing slump, it’s fitting he is a Valley native.

Former Hidalgo Pirates forward Juan Nava’s four-goal performance helped the RGV Grandes grab their first win of the season, a 6-2 triumph over the Chivas El Paso Patriots on Saturday night.

RGV had netted only four goals in its previous six games, but Nava, who helped Hidalgo won the Class 4A state championship in 2007, scored the same amount of goals playing in only 66 minutes on Saturday.

Before Saturday, things had not gone the Grandes’ way this season. Last week, midfielder Fredrik Ekvall left the club to return home to Sweden for the summer, which came on the heels of coach Gary Hamilton suddenly announcing his resignation. Despite the turmoil, things seem to be falling into place for the Grandes, who have now held full practices with all the players.

“I’m glad I was able to help the team out, but it takes time since we hadn’t played together except the (UT-Brownsville) players on the team,” Nava said. “After losing six straight games, you expect the mentality of the team to go down, but our morale has stayed up.

“I’m pretty sure the team is gonna move forward with this win.”

Ever since Oteo took full coaching responsibilities after Hamilton resigned in early May, the Grandes have been a seemingly more structured team. Oteo attributes this to his youth coaching background at Pumas UNAM in Mexico.

“It’s good, you get experience from youth teams, but at this next level, it helps you flourish as a coach,” Oteo said. “We planned and practiced for this game during the week, and I gave the players my vote of confidence.

“Luckily things went out way tonight.”

Midfielder Mario Perez was glad to finally get the monkey off their backs.

“Now that we’re getting to know each other better and understand where our players like to move, it’s helping us play a lot better,” Perez said. “I think that the pressure is gone, and we’re ready to win more games.”

Both teams went back-and-forth with the lead in the first 45 minutes. Nava tied the match for the Grandes in the 19th minute after Chivas took the lead three minutes earlier.

Perez cut to his left and shot from outside the box to put RGV up at the 26-minute mark, but a defensive bounce inside the Grandes’ 6-yard box gave Chivas the 2-2 draw in the 29th minute.

But after El Paso’s goal, its players looked visibly tired, and Nava made them pay.

Nava added his last three goals in a span of 14 minutes, while Ariel Barraza put the final dagger in the 69th minute off a corner deflection.