A bright star in South Texas softball was lost over the weekend.
Angelina Terrazas, a Southwest High School Dragons softball standout, died Saturday after a battle with ovarian cancer.
Assistant coach Taylor Doege, who worked with Terrazas as her pitching coach, said the team is deeply saddened and grieving the loss of not just their team leader but also a friend they cherished like a sister.
Doege remembered how Terrazas’s powerful competitive spirit was evident to everyone and inspired her teammates to emulate it in every game.
“She was a fierce competitor. They played hard behind her because they knew her work ethic,” she said. “She would call them out and like hold them accountable, and that is like what you need in the leader, somebody who’s going to lift everybody up.”
Doege said Terraza loved the game of softball so much that earlier this year, unbeknownst to the coaching staff, she played through pain.
It happened in February during the team’s district opener win.
“She pitched our first district game in pain; she hadn’t gone to the doctor yet. We as coaches didn’t even know, but she came out and she struck out 14 girls,” she said.
That pain finally sent Terrazas to the doctor.
Weeks later, the 17-year-old revealed she was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer.
“We had to tell the team like what was going on. They were scared at first,” Doege said. “But it brought them together even more so as a team because it’s like, ‘OK, now we’re playing for something or somebody bigger than the softball,’” she said.
The coach said Terrazas fought hard to beat the disease.
This past Saturday, her teammates and the softball community at large came together to celebrate with Terrazas as the school district presented her with her high school diploma.
That same night, Terrazas passed away.
Heartbroken that she is no longer here, coaches consoled the girls and reminded them that their sister and teammate was now able to rest.
“We just kept reminding them that she isn’t in pain anymore, and they kind of understood that,” she said.
Doege said Terrazas’s strength, heart and selflessness touched everyone she knew.
“She was just a great friend to these girls, a great teammate, and she represented this community so well on this field when she was in class.”
Learn about Angelina Terrazas’ legacy in the video below
Terrazas had earned a full scholarship to the University of Cumberlands in Kentucky.
Soulshine Industries, the company that personalized the caskets for victims of the Robb Elementary shooting, will personalize her casket.
On Wednesday, the scheduled “Prayer Circle” for Terrazas will proceed as planned, offering an opportunity for those who loved her to gather and pay tribute to her. It is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the Southwest softball field.
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