Progreso’s Magallan leading sixth team to state semis, eyeing first title

PROGRESO — Progreso head coach Damian Magallan is no stranger to Final Four appearances. The longtime soccer coach led Valley View to five state tournament appearances during his 15 years on staff, with four coming as the team’s head coach and once as an assistant.

Despite five state tournament appearances, one thing has evaded the longtime coach — a state title. Magallan is hoping the sixth time’s a charm, with the second-year Progreso head coach set to lead the Red Ants into a Class 4A DI state semifinal Friday at 7 p.m. at Comalander Stadium in San Antonio.

Magallan’s fifth state tournament appearance as a head coach ties him with Brownsville Lopez’s Amadeo Escandon for most among RGV head coaches.

Progreso head coach Damian Magallan. (Andrew Cordero | Special to RGVSports)

“First and foremost, there is a happiness getting to the state tournament for a sixth time,” Magallan said. “Year after year you gain experience going to state. Now we’re going with a stronger mentality to be able to do things the best way we can. We know what we need to tell the boys to do. How we need to do things with precision so the results can be better.”

The Red Ants’ journey to the Final Four is a one began more than a year ago after a 1-0 loss to Boerne in the Region IV-4A final. The state quarterfinal loss lit a fire in the Red Ants, who entered the 2025 season with a “state-or-bust” mentality.

The championship mentality was on full display from the moment the season got rolling, kicking off their 2025 campaign by capturing the championship during the Sulphur Springs 4A Elite Invitational at Gerald Prim Stadium in Sulphur Springs.

The Red Ants snapped a two-year championship streak by Celina while also establishing themselves as a state title contender.

Progreso’s boys soccer team poses after winning the 2025 Sulphur Springs 4A Elite Tournament. (Courtesy Photo | Sulphur Springs 4A Elite Invitational Twitter)

“The biggest thing was the experience we took away from there,” Magallan said. “It was important for the kids to have that experience playing at a tournament of that level where you have a lot of schools that have won state. Now that we have the chance, the kids don’t have the nerves and they have the experience for whoever comes our way.”

The momentum from the tournament carried over into their non-district slate, as they added another tournament championship during the Santa Maria Invitational a week later. Progreso finished its non-district slate with a 12-0-0 mark, outscoring its opponents 27-3 during that span.

The Red Ants’ dominance continued into district play as they posted a 14-0-0 mark to capture their third straight district title and enter the postseason with a perfect 26-0-0 overall record.

“This year was a little more difficult,” Magallan said. “After our regular season, we knew the kids could be disillusioned thinking it was always going to be like that, when the playoffs we knew were going to be closer games. This is what we wanted. We wanted them to see what level we needed to be at so we could reach our goal of a state title. The experience is one thing, but the most important thing is getting them ready mentally.”

The postseason has been a different challenge for the Red Ants, who have shown both their dominance and mental resiliency.

Progreso opened the playoffs with a tight 1-0 win over Port Isabel. It followed it up with a dominant 7-1 victory over Pharr IDEA in the area round.

The third round proved to be Progreso’s biggest challenge, as it had to play from behind for the first time all season. The Red Ants responded to the 2-0 deficit with a dominant three-goal second half to come back and take down La Vernia 3-2.

In the regional final, Progreso dominated once again, scoring three second-half goals to march past Hidalgo 3-0 and secure a spot in the Final Four.

Progreso head coach Damian Magallan, right, is embraced by his team after defeating Hidalgo 3-0 during the Region IV-4A DI finals Tuesday at Tiger Stadium in Mercedes. (Joel Martinez | The Monitor)

“I’m so happy for this team,” Progreso’s Cesar Meza said after their regional final win over Hidalgo. “We know what we’re capable of. Last year we saw our season end here, but we knew this season was going to be different. We knew we were coming out strong and with a vengeance mentality. Our objective has been clear all year. This is just another step. We’re going for that state title.”

The Red Ants’ state semifinal berth is the fourth in program history, after having qualified for the round three straight years from 2016-2018.

Like Magallan, the Red Ants are in search of their elusive first state title, going 1-2 in state semifinal games and 0-1 in state championship games.

For both Magallan and the Red Ants, however, it goes beyond winning their first state title, rather wanting to bring another championship back to the RGV.

“Last year we fell a step short,” Magallan said after the team’s regional final win. “Thanks to God this season we are able to get there. We had to hold them off the first half so in the second half we can attack and make those three goals to win. We’re going to prepare ourselves for whoever comes next. We’re going to play our game so the Valley, the 956, can come out ahead and have another state champion.”

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