Girls HS Basketball Playoff Fast Break: Argyle downs Summit in UIL area; more

By Darren Lauber

Updated February 22, 2026 4:51 AM

Welcome to The Fast Break, girls playoff edition. A Star-Telegram series featuring the top Fort Worth-area high school basketball news, performances and results from the UIL area and TAPPS regional rounds.

Argyle holds off Summit in slug fest

Argyle junior guard Wrigley Green took over in the fourth quarter of a close game to help the Eagles pull away late for a 58-49 win over Mansfield Summit in a Class 5A Division II area-round game on Thursday at Saginaw High School.

Argyle (30-5), No. 5 in the state in Class 5A according to the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, moves on to the regional semifinals and a date with either El Paso Hanks (19-10) or Amarillo Palo Duro (27-10) next week.

The game was close throughout, but Summit (23-11) was playing catch up from early in the second quarter. Argyle pushed the lead to 35-29 after a pair of free throws by Green with 3:56 left in the third quarter.

But Summit finished the third quarter on an 8-2 run to tie the game at 37 entering the final frame. Green took over after that, however, scoring the first 7 points of the fourth quarter and the first 10 for Argyle in the period.

Summit wasn’t able to counter as the Eagles hit 11 of 14 free throws down the stretch to put the game away. Green led all scorers with 19 points, 11 in the fourth quarter, and added 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

Lexi Ehrhardt and Landry Murphy had 11 points each with Ehrhardt contributing 4 rebounds, an assist and 2 steals while Murphy had 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots.

Madison Jones and Maya Williams led Summit with 13 points each with Kyleigh Smith chipping in 11. Jones added 7 blocked shots, 6 rebounds and 2 steals while Williams had 7 rebounds and 2 assists.

The Argyle girls basketball team celebrates after a hard-fought game against Mansfield Summit in a UIL Class 5A Division II area-round playoff game on Thursday, February 19, 2026 at Saginaw High School in Saginaw, Texas. Darren Lauber Fort Worth Star-Telegram

No. 2 Denton Ryan too much for No. 16 Cleburne

No. 2 Denton Ryan broke open a close game midway through the first quarter then cruised to a 56-41 win over No. 16 Cleburne in a Class 5A Division I area-round game on Friday at the Arlington ISD Athletics Center.

Ryan (33-4) moves on to the regional semifinals to face No. 21 El Paso Americas (29-4) early next week. Americas downed Wichita Falls Legacy 56-43.

Cleburne (26-9) hung with Ryan early. A three pointer by Lily Sheppard for the Yellow Jackets cut Ryan’s lead to 10-8 with 3 minutes left in the first quarter, but a 13-2 run by the Raiders gave Ryan a comfortable cushion at 23-10 with 5:05 left before halftime.

Ryan kept the lead at or above 10 points for the remainder of the game. Cleburne was able to cut the lead to 40-30 on a made free throw by Alyssa Franklin with 1:21 left in the third quarter, but that was as close as the Yellow Jackets would get.

Sheppard led Cleburne with 12 points with Franklin chipping in 10, 7 of which came in the third quarter when the Jackets rallied. SMU signee Kaylin Jackson and Jamyla Anderson had 15 points each to pace Ryan with Atiya Everett contributing 12 for the Raiders.

Keller reaches regional semis with win over Eastlake

Keller got 15 points from Mia Arnold as the Indians steadily pulled away from El Paso Eastlake for a 47-32 win in a Class 6A Division I area-round game on Friday at Lubbock-Cooper High School.

Keller (25-7) continues its march through the playoffs and will face Flower Mound (26-8) in the regional semifinals early next week. Flower Mound left South Grand Prairie in its wake 52-17 on Friday.

Keller led 9-3 after one quarter, 25-12 at the half and 39-19 after three before coasting to the finish. Lila Russell and Klohe Morris had 8 points each for the Indians with Karisa Mench and Audrey Heibel chipping in 6 points a piece.

Ari Galvan had 10 points (2 threes) for the Falcons and Karina Ramos-Jurado and Amanda Aragon had 9 points each for Eastlake (19-14).

The Keller girls basketball team poses with the trophy after defeating El Paso Eastlake 47-32 in a Class 6A Division I area-round playoff on Friday, February 20, 2026 at Lubbock-Cooper High School in Lubbock, Texas. Courtesy to the Star-Telegram

No. 19 Frenship takes down No. 7 Southlake Carroll

Wolfforth Frenship, No. 19 in the state in Class 6A according to the TABC, got 17 points from Jada Jackson 17 as the Tigers methodically marched through No. 7 Southlake Carroll 55-46 in a Class 6A Division II area-round game on Friday at Abilene Christian University

Frenship (29-8) will take on Frisco Rock Hill (22-13) in the regional semifinals. Rock Hill defeated South Grand Prairie 66-44.

Whitney Jense led Carroll with 13 points with Angelina Bouley adding 11 and Kamea Christ tossing in 9. Madison Phillips scored 14 points for Frenship with Addisyn Bollinger throwning down 12.

The Dragon’s incredible season comes to an end at 31-2.

Top-ranked Decatur takes care of No. 15 Frenship Memorial

Decatur, No. 1 in Class 4A according to the TABC, kept its march toward San Antonio in tact with a 61-46 win over No. 15 Lubbock Frenship Memorial in a 4A Division I matchup on Friday at Stamford High School.

Decatur (33-4) will get another stern test in the regional semifinals early next week when the Eagles face No. 10 Seminole (31-4), which trounced El Paso Irvin 74-23 on Thursday.

Sayler Peck led Decatur with 16 points and Cece Davis added 11 for the Eagles.

No. 2 North Crowley rolls to win over Franklin

North Crowley trailed after one quarter, but the Panthers turned it on after that to pummel El Paso Franklin 81-37 in a Class 6A Division I area-round game on Thursday at Lubbock Christian University.

North Crowley (29-4), the TABC’s No. 2 in the state in Class 6A, advances to the regional semifinals and will meet the winner of Friday’s game between Allen (24-10) and Dallas Lake Highlands (25-9).

El Paso Franklin (22-11) led 7-4 after one quarter, but the Panthers exploded in the second and third frames to out score the Cougars 52-19. Mecca Crawford poured in 25 points to lead North Crowley.

Jamari Milton tallied 14 point for the Panthers while Eden Johnson and Sukari Kinney chipped in 9 points each.

Joshua stuns No. 14 Aledo in area round

Joshua and No. 14 Aledo battled from wire to wire, but the Bearcats missed a three pointer from the top of the key at the final buzzer to give Joshua a 33-31 upset in a Class 5A Division I area contest on Thursday at Godley High School.

Things don’t get any easier for Joshua (35-4) as the Owls move on to the regional semifinals and a date next week with No. 10 Amarillo Tascosa (31-3), which defeated El Paso Chapin 62-20 on Thursday.

Joshua led 9-4 after one quarter, but Aledo (25-8) went on an 11-0 run to open the second quarter as Elizabeth Griffin hit 3 of the Bearcats’ 4 threes in the period to go up 20-16 at the half. Griffin led Aledo with 12 points (4 threes) on the night.

Joshua was finally able to tie the game at 26 on a Hadley Soto three in the fourth quarter. But after an Elexee Ray three gave Joshua a 31-28 lead with 4:30 left, the teams went cold from the floor with neither scoring for almost 4 minutes.

Joshua’s Chloe Griswell (14) drives to the basket against Aledo in a girls UIL Class 5A Division I area playoff game on Thursday, February 19, 2026 at Godley High School in Godley, Texas. Courtesy to the Star-Telegram

Following Soto hitting 1 of 2 from the free thrown line with 33 seconds left, a banked in three by Aledo’s Tiara Butler cut the Joshua lead to 32-31 with just 8.4 seconds remaining. Chloe Griswell then hit 1 of 2 free throws with 7.8 remaining to go up 33-31.

Aledo inbounded the ball in the front court with 3.4 left, but the three from the top of the key hit the front of the rim just, just short.

Griswell led Joshua with 12 points with Ray scoring 5 of her 10 points in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Dempsey finished with 10 points for Aledo.

The Joshua girls basketball team poses with the hardware after defeating Aledo in a girls UIL Class 5A Division I area playoff game on Thursday, February 19, 2026 at Godley High School in Godley, Texas. Courtesy to the Star-Telegram

No. 3 Brock starts hot, blasts Krum

Junior guard Jacee Riddle made 4 three pointers to start the scoring for Brock as the Eagles jumped out to an early lead then coasted to a 66-25 win over Krum in a Class 4A Division II area-round game on Thursday at Saginaw High School.

Brock (29-5), No. 3 in Class 4A in the latest TABC state poll, led 23-2 after one quarter and 44-6 at the intermission. Riddle finished with 7 total three pointers that led to a game-high 23 points.

Brock finished with 11 total three-point baskets. Laney Hudson had 1 three as part of her 17 points and Savanna Hatcher had 2 threes and 9 points.

Hudson completed a double double with 10 rebounds and added 4 assists. Hatcher pulled down 6 boards and had 2 assists and 3 steals.

Jitoria Thompson and Mallory Moore had 6 points each to lead Krum (20-17). Ma’Kylah Henderson recorded 9 rebounds for the Bobcats.

Brock will face the winner of Friday’s game between El Paso Mountain View (22-12) and Amarillo Randall (17-16).

GIRLS SCORES

North Crowley 81, El Paso Franklin 37

Keller 49, El Paso Eastlake 32

Flower Mound 52, South Grand Prairie 17

Trophy Club Byron Nelson 59, El Paso Montwood 40

Wolfforth Frenship 55, Southlake Carroll 46

Frisco Rock Hill 66, Arlington Bowie 44

Joshua 33, Aledo 31