She indeed is a young lady that comes from a local family who are not only near and dear to this reporter's heart, it is one of the families with the deepest and richest sports traditions in our fair city.

Her grandfather, who I have mentioned several times in this forum, was not only the starting quarterback for Coach Cozel Foster's first teams, he was also a National Champion with my Uncle, the late, great Enrique "La Gorilla" Ibarra at then Texas A&I University. Both his sons, and one grandson (Who is presently at the now named, but the same school, Texas A&M-Kingsville) continued the tradition as Eagle signal callers and her grandmother, along with my mother and wife, is one of the most important women in my life.

I give you Eagle Pass Lady Eagle Utility Player Riley De La Garza. 

First of all congratulations for being selected Player Of The Week by your Coach. What can you tell our readers about last week's game and your performance?

I knew it was important to be quick on my feet and not let any balls hit the floor. This was a very important game and I was on my A game ready to take the win.  

What position do you play? What's your jersey number?

I am a utility player. Jersey #2

 Who do you look up to? Who are your heroes?

3. My parents are Elizabeth Chisum and Oscar De La Garza. My brothers are Clayton and Coy. A person I look up to would be my older brother Clayton because when he sets his goals he will accomplish them regardless the struggle. My heroes are my mom and dad because they live life with such grace and they’re always there for me with open arms and full of love. Apart from my parents my biggest supporters are my grandparents my grandma Anna Maria Chisum (That's her! Vita...) has always encouraged me to be the best I can and not let other people tear me down and get into my head. She refers to things my grandfather Frank Chisum (That's him!) said to say to my mother and uncles. She also tells me this she thinks he would say under certain circumstances.  My grandparents from my fathers side have always encouraged my cousins and I to just work hard for what we want and be the best we can be 100% of the time. 

What's your career highlight?

My career highlight would probably be sophomore year because i came in as only a defensive player and when our starting setter got hurt i became the all around setter.

Who's your favorite college team?

The Texas A&M Aggies (A girl after my own heart...).

Offense or defense, it's up to you, give me your favorite play during a match?

My favorite play to run offensively is when I set a quick ball to Paola Sesatty because I know it will be a highlight hit of the game! 

Why do you like this kind of play, what do you do? What's your responsibility?

I like this play because I know it will finish off in a kill.  My job on these plays is setting up the ball and serving up for our attacking players. 

Any hobbies?

Reading, conditioning, watching movies with my family, vacationing with my family, get togethers with both sides of my family where I see my cousins, and playing with my pets.

Favorite food?

Italian foods.

What makes a good teammate?

A good teammate is someone vocal on and off the court, someone who people find easy to come to for advice, the captain of the team, someone who will bring up the team even when they are losing.

Talk to me about your Coach.

The coaching staff of the Eagle Pass High school program teach us to be the strong women of the future.  They help us by bringing us together as a team and push us to work together on the court. Another coach I'd like to talk about is my travel team coach from San Antonio Force Jordan Ruiz she taught me how to play a more efficient game of volleyball. She changed me not only physically in the game but mentally and helped me have more confidence in myself when I step on the court. She is such an amazing coach and I'm glad I got to experience a season with her and I'm looking forward to more seasons to come.  I know she expects a lot from me and i can’t wait to play for her again.

What's on your playlist? (Be specific. Artist and song.)

My music playlist consists of a variety of genres from music from the 80s & 90s to country music and 2000s music some of my favorite artists would be George Strait, Cody Johnson, my cousin Dustin De La Garza, Guns n’ Roses, Bon Jovi, Bryan Adams, Taylor swift, Shania Twain, Enrique Iglesias, Shakira, AC/DC, Kenny Chesney, and Alan Jackson.

What advice would you give a young lady playing volleyball for the first time?

I would tell a first time player to just have fun in the game. I feel like for the most part some of us forget that the sport we play is supposed to be because we enjoy it not because its a job.  And I would probably tell every player to try and play a little bit of each position because if you want to be on the court it won’t always be for the position you want to play but more for what the team needs you to play.

What do you think of when you hear our fight song?

When I hear the Eagle War Cry it reminds me that our school mascot is a leader at the top of the food chain and it encourages me to want to be the person people look up to and want to be like.

Who's your favorite female athlete and why? The sport does not matter. 

I like Serena Williams because she has such a great mentality towards her sport and she always strives to be better everyday.