Lady Dragons fall to Coronado In Abilene, a tough second half really hurt the Carroll Lady Dragons as they fell in their Class 5A Region I quarterfinal game to Lubbock Coronado, 62-48, Tuesday at McMurry University.
Carroll (23-10) saw its 14-game winning streak snapped. Leading 29-26 at the half, Coronado took control of the third quarter. The Lady Mustangs (34-1) outscored Carroll, 19-12, and then pulled away in the fourth quarter. The Lady Dragons trailed by seven in the final moments in the final moments before fouling and sending Coronado to the free throw line.Senior power forwards Suzzy and Lizzy Dimba combined for 25 points, while point guard Bailey Wompf added 12.“We had a good gameplan,’’ Carroll coach Teri Morrison said. “We shot 61 percent in the first half. But they increased the pressure and we made some mistakes. We couldn’t find Gretchen [Morrison].’’In Teri Morrison’s four years at Carroll, she’s taken the program to the postseason but hasn’t been able to get this group to the regional tournament.“Winning district championships is expected around her, but we have to get to the regional tournament,’’ she said. “We’re probably going to do some things differently in the offseason. We’ll learn from it.’’The good news is that the bulk of her team returns in point guard Kennedy Leonard, Gretchen Morrison and post Madison Drescher. Carroll will only lose senior guard Kami Mickens. But Mickens finished her career on a good note with a game-high 18 points. Leonard and Drescher each scored 10, while Morrison only had eight.Nelson boys first playoff game in program historyAt Keller Central, Byron Nelson’s bi-district playoff frustrations are now a thing of the past. The Bobcats (27-5) easily handled Fort Worth Poly, 59-33, and advanced to the Class 4A area round and will face Waco University. It’s Nelson’s first boys basketball playoff victory.While there is significance, there are expectations for this program to make a deep postseason run. Nelson has won five consecutive games.“The kids definitely earned this,’’ coach Scott Curran said. “They’ve done a great job and just continue to play with confidence. It’s a big win for us. The kids are really excited.’’Nelson led 27-18 at the half and then pulled away in third quarter. They took a 42-27 to the final period. Their defense forced 19 Poly turnovers and held them to 25 percent shooting.Emmanuel Nzekwesi set the pace. He led the way with 22 points as he was 11-of-12 from the field. He also collected 11 rebound. Keyunta Watkins added 18 and 10 assists.“Emmanuel had a huge game for us,’’ Curran said. “He was very active. And Keyunta just does what he normally does.’’Keller boys defeat Lamar to advanceKeller held off Arlington Lamar in their bi-district game Tuesday night, withstanding a late fourth-quarter scoring barrage from the Vikings to win 49-43.The Indians advance to face El Paso Bel Air in the area round.With about a minute left, the Indians held a 10-point lead over Lamar, but the Vikings cut that lead to six in the waning seconds on the strength of six consecutive three-pointers.Carroll boys downed by MartinThe Carroll boys basketball team was eliminated in bi-district by Arlington Martin, 65-51, Tuesday night at Saginaw High School.Martin was able to extend its lead slightly over its first half, at the end of which the Warriors led the Dragons 34-28.Grapevine boys lose to Flower MoundThe Mustangs dropped their bi-district playoff game to Flower Mound on Tuesday night. The final was 60-55.Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
