Lipan, Holliday, Nazareth claim state UIL basketball championships
The state of Texas’ girls basketball championships are scheduled on Saturday, March 4, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Here’s a recap of the games and the schedule. This story will be updated throughout the day with results and highlights.
? 2A: Lipan 53, Gruver 48
In a game that featured eight lead changes and nine ties, Lipan upended defending champion Gruver.
Lipan held a 34-32 lead entering the fourth quarter. Gruver pulled ahead 46-45 with 1:24 left on a pair of Kimber Whitehead free throws. However, Lippan scored the next six points off four free throws by Hanna Gaylor and a pair by Trinity Benetiz for a 61-46 edge with 19 seconds left.
Allie Sparks made two free throws with six seconds left to pull the Grehyounds within 51-48 with six seconds remaining. Gaylor then sealed the game with two more Indians free throws with four seconds remaining. Gaylor finished with eight points, six on those free throws in the final 90 seconds.
Chelsea Lott led the Indians with 16 points and six rebounds, Taylor Branson added 12 and Benitez had 10.
Whitehead led the Greyhounds with 14 points, Allie Sparks added 13.
One of the biggest differences of the game was turnovers. Lipan had just five compared to Gruver’s 13.
Lipan finishes its season with a 35-3 record, Gruver finishes 30-6.
? 3A: Holliday 58, Fairfield 47
Holliday scored 15 of the game’s final 18 points to beat defending champion Fairfield.
Holliday led 19-7 after the first quarter. However, Fairfield battled back, leading 44-43 with 3:29 left. However, Holliday outscored Fairfield 15-3 the rest of the way to claim the win.
Fairfield finished the season with a 40-2 record; Holliday finished 33-4.
Jaylynn Bristow led Holliday with 21 points, making 8 of 11 field goals. She also grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. Kenna Woods added 14 and Katy Jo Piper added 11.
McKinna Brackens and Shadasia Brackens had 22 and 20 points, respectively, for Fairfield.
? Class 1A: Nazareth 30, Huckabay 20
Nazareth overcame a 10-0 deficit and held Huckabay to six points in the second half en route to the 1A title.
Huckabay led 10-0 early in the second quarter, when the dramatic Nazareth comeback began.
Huckabay led 14-9 at halftime, but Nazareth went on a 13-3 scoring run in the third quarter for a 22-17 edge.
Brooklyn Dyer led Nazareth (40-9) with 10 points, including two of the team’s four 3-point field goals. Pressley Wheeler added nine.
Rion Baccus had a team-high seven points for Huckabay, which finished the season 40-3.
? 5A: Frisco Liberty 57, Lubbock Cooper 52
Liberty overcame a nine-point first-quarter deficit on its way to beating Cooper.
The Fighting Pirates led 17-8 after the first quarter. However, the Redhawks used a 15-4 edge in the second quarter to take a 23-21 halftime lead.
The Redhawks then extended the lead in the third quarter, before holding off a fourth quarter Liberty rally in the fourth.
Keyera Roseby led the Redhawks (29-10 with 21 points, including three 3-point goals. Jacy Abii added 15.
Majik Esquivel led the Fighting Pirates (31-7) with 16, also making four 3-point goals. Carisa Cortez added 15.
? 4A and 6A finals
The Class 4A final (Waco La Vega vs. Sunnyvale) and the Class 6A final (Northside Clark vs. DeSoto) ended after the Star-Telegram’s print deadline on Saturday. Those results are online at star-telegram.com and will be in Monday’s print editions.