Athlete of the Week: Andrea Ortiz

3 months ago 115

WESLACO, Texas (ValleyCentral) — One swing of the bat from sophomore Andrea Ortiz created a moment that will go down in Rio Grande Valley sports history.

Ortiz captured national headlines from her walk-off grand slam in the UIL 6A State Title Game as Weslaco brought home the first-ever softball state title to the RGV.

Not only was it their first state title but it was the RGV's first state title in any girl's sport.

Ortiz knew what was at stake with a 3-2 count, and she spoke her home run into existence.

"The whole at-bat, I told my coaches, I told my teammates, I told them I got it. I got it," Ortiz said. "I kept just repeating it and repeating it. I put it in my head, and I knew I was going to come through for my teammates because I have a certain love for them, and I had to do it for them."

Chaos spread across Red and Charline McCombs Field following Ortiz's grand slam. To her team, however, the moment didn't come by surprise.

Senior Elizabeth Craig said, "I told her, her hitting was going to come in time, and it’s going to come at the right time, and oh my God, it came at the perfect time."

Sophomore Clarissa Mejia was in the dugout for Ortiz's infamous hit. She said, "I called it. I told one of my teammates she’s going to hit a home run right now, and she hit a home run, and we all ran out and celebrated for her."

One of Andrea's closest teammates, senior Mia Rodriguez, was at a loss for words after seeing the ball head over the fence.

All Rodriguez could do was soak in the moment.

"It was just a moment that you watch," Rodriguez said. "I’m so proud of her. I mean, she’s worked so hard for this moment."

Before her at-bat, Andrea struggled at the dish. She was 0-3 in the ball game with two strikeouts.

Something had to change for Ortiz, and what changed was her mindset.

"I had a whole different mentality going into that," Ortiz said. "I knew I wanted to do something for my teammates, and I knew I couldn’t just give up, so I told my coaches and I told my teammates that I had their back."

It's been non-stop phone calls, text messages, and social media DMs for Andrea since her grand slam. However, Ortiz knows the moment is bigger than her.