Lady Highlanders pull away from Conroe for 46-40 victory
The Woodlands pulled away in the second half to beat Conroe 46-40 on Friday in District 12-6A play.
The Lady Highlanders (16-12, 3-2) led by a basket at the halftime break, then senior Emma Warnsman scored 10 of her game-high 16 points in the third quarter as The Woodlands took control.
“She’s definitely a good leader on the floor,” coach Trista Tatsch said of Warnsman. “When she gets determined, she’s going to get in there and score. She usually does a good job of that. Having her making some of those baskets calmed us down a little bit.”
The Tigerettes (7-16, 1-4) had a few chances to get back in the game late as The Woodlands struggled to put it away at the line, but the home team’s shots didn’t fall.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got to be able to make baskets,” coach Tamisha Houston said. “Shooting 26 percent from the floor is not going to get it done.”
Both teams struggled offensively early. With 3:51 to play in the first quarter, Conroe held a slim 3-2 lead and only one field goal had been made between the two teams.
The Woodlands started the game 0-for-7 from the field but was still in the game thanks to its defense. Tori Vezza had three steals in the first quarter alone for the Lady Highlanders.
“Our defense is our livelihood right now,” Tatsch said. “It’s something they do a great job of and they continually do that. Our defense is normally our strong point.”
Conroe’s Gabriela Morazan hit a shot late in the opening quarter to give the hosts a 7-6 lead after eight minutes.
The Tigerettes led by as many as four in the second quarter, but a late rush gave The Woodlands an 1816 edge at halftime. Miima Mpagi’s driving layup with about 30 seconds to go was the final bucket of the first half.
Mpagi had nine points and 10 rebounds on the night. Her rebounding effort was second on The Woodlands behind Madison Morton, who had a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Conroe’s Riley Halloran and The Woodlands’ Vezza traded 3-pointers to open the second half, then Warnsman had a momentum-shifting play.
On the wing near her own bench, the senior drained a 3-pointer and was fouled. She sunk a free throw to complete the four-point play and the Lady Highlanders led 25-19 with 7:10 to play in the third quarter.
Victoria Ratcliff, who had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Conroe, hit a jumper in the final minute of the third to bring the Tigerettes within three points. But back-toback buckets from Mpagi and Warnsman extended The Woodlands’ lead to 3730 after three quarters.
The Lady Highlanders kept Conroe at a safe distance in the fourth quarter, but didn’t grab a doubledigit lead until Joanne Gabriel passed the ball to Mpagi for a layup with 68 seconds to play.
Both teams reached the halfway point of district play with Friday’s game. For The Woodlands, the win over Conroe was much needed after a 51-48 loss to Oak Ridge on Thursday.
“The enthusiasm and determination that I saw today to finish after the first half of that game — I couldn’t have asked for anything better,” Tatsch said. “Especially after the tough loss [Thursday to Oak Ridge].”
The Tigerettes have a 1-4 mark in district play, but the average margin in those games is less than five points.
“We’ve played everybody close and we’ve had the lead on everybody at some point, so those are the positive things,” Houston said. “We just have to figure out how to finish. We’ve had opportunities to win every ballgame that we’ve played in district. We just have to capitalize on the good things and stop making the same mistakes. The girls shouldn’t hang their heads as far as play is concerned. We should just be frustrated with ourselves for not finishing.”
Both teams begin the back half of the 12-6A slate Tuesday. Conroe is at Montgomery, while The Woodlands is at College Park.