WR’S MATA, GLADEWATER’S WATTS | Next-level performances to capture the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week!

Bella Mata (12, pictured here in this fantastic graphic from WEST RUSK RAIDER ATHLETICS Facebook page, had a pair of great playoff performances for the Lady Raiders’ volleyball team last week, and Gladewater’s Trayvion Watts, just a sophomore, rolled up 350 yards and five touchdowns in the Bears’ final game against White Oak. Mata and Watts are the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com Players of the Week for Nov. 4-9! (Photo courtesy of WEST RUSK RAIDER ATHLETICS Facebook)

The high school volleyball playoffs have started, and are actually three rounds in, and the football playoffs begin this week.

That means athletes are stepping up their intensity, stepping up their level of play, just stepping up, period, more than usual.

And it was evident with the first two rounds of the University Interscholastic League (UIL) volleyball postseason over the last week, and in the final weekend of football’s regular season, that there are many, many talented student athletes in the ETBlitz.com coverage area – maybe even more than we knew.

Two performances, though, stood out above all others this last week, and those two were Gladewater running back Trayvion (Tray) Watts, and West Rusk volleyball standout Bella Mata, the Whataburger Players of the Week for the week of Nov. 4 through Nov. 9.

Intensity is something in which Bella Mata is very well-versed.

Her grandfather, C.G. Mata, was an athlete, a football player at Kilgore College. Her grandmother, Nina Mata, was not only a Kilgore College Rangerette, but also a teacher and a coach for many years. Her brother, Andon, is a track and field athlete at the University of Houston. And her dad, Rafe, was not only a high school quarterback in the pressure cooker that is Kilgore football, but also coached at the college level and is the head football coach and athletic director at West Rusk right now.

Intensity? Yeah, we figure Bella probably knows a little something about that.

And she and the other members of the West Rusk Lady Raiders volleyball team brought it to a different level last week, winning both a first-round matchup with Edgewood, and a second-rounder with DeKalb.

And Mata was a major reason why. The senior, playing setter for coach Melissa Abrams’ team, had 44 assists and 13 digs in the Lady Raiders’ 26-28, 25-17, 25-14, 25-23 win over Edgewood, and then added 32 assists, 13 digs and three aces in their 26-24, 25-13, 25-21 sweep of DeKalb in round two.

For her fantastic two games against Edgewood and DeKalb, West Rusk’s own Bella Mata is the Whataburger / ETBlitz.com girls player of the week! Congratulations, Bella (who is also a talented photographer, by the way)!

Now, about Mr. Watts…

The Gladewater running back had a difficult task: get the energy level up for a game that meant only pride, and keep it up, giving it your all even though the playoffs were without reach.

That’s what Trey Watts had to face on Thursday.

Watts and the Bears traveled to White Oak last Friday to close out the 2024 football season. Neither team had a playoff possibility, as both had good seasons, but with a gauntlet in front of them: state-ranked and unbeaten Jefferson, state-ranked and once-beaten Liberty-Eylau, Atlanta with a running back headed to the University of Arkansas, and Tatum, state-ranked on and off throughout the season and wins over other state-ranked teams.

In short, District 8-3A, Division I was unbelievably difficult this season.

Still, Gladewater and White Oak both wanted to win that last game, of course – rivals facing off, White Oak trying to pick up its sixth win of the season after no wins in 2023, just an amazing achievement in itself, and coach Johnny Louvier’s Bears attempting to sweep rivals Sabine and the Roughnecks.

Somebody, Louvier likely told his team, somebody’s got to step up.

And they did, but especially Watts.

Watts got the call, was handed the ball, 20 times, and “all” he did was carry for 350 YARDS and FIVE TOUCHDOWNS. Watts averaged 17 ½ yards a carry (!), a long of 78 yards, and was part of a Gladewater running game that finished with 474 yards Friday night. And the best news for Louvier and the Bears fans: he’s just a sophomore.

For that performance, Trayvion Watts is our Whataburger / ETBlitz.com boys Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 4 through Nov. 9. Congratulations, Tray!

In the ETBlitz coverage area at the end of each week, we choose a male athlete and a female athlete, based on performance in all games played, considering statistics and level of competition. Our coverage area, in alphabetical order, includes Arp, Gilmer, Gladewater, Henderson, Kilgore, Kilgore College, Leverett’s Chapel, Overton, Sabine, Tatum, Troup, West Rusk and White Oak.

We’ve had some incredible young people win the award this year already, and here’s the list:

And we do it with a fantastic sponsor, the world’s greatest fast-food chain, Whataburger.

Who else is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, serving quality food – breakfast from 11 p.m. until 11 a.m. every day – and is the first choice of Texas high school sports fans?

NOBODY.

That’s because they do it better than anyone else.

Whether it’s the original Whataburger – Number 1 on the menu and Number 1 in your hearts, so to speak – or new items like the WhataWings or just a good ol’ sausage biscuit, nobody beats Whataburger.

Check out their menu here before you go, Whataburger | Order Online with Curbside and Delivery, and there’s a better-than-average chance you’ll see the ETBlitz crew there!

And congratulations again to Bella Mata and Tray Watts!

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