Española ends Lady Tigers’ season
In a do-or-die elimination game against Española on Tuesday (Feb. 21), Taos lost 50-31 to end their season on the road. Taos held a 1-2 record against the Lady Sundevils heading into this district tournament game.
The Lady Tigers held a small 4-2 lead in the first quarter, but after an Española 3-pointer from Alyanna Medina, Taos railed Española in the first half, always within two or three possessions.
The Lady Sundevils ran away with it in the second half.
The Lady Tigers were down 26-17 to start the third quarter. Española scored nine unanswered points to separate themselves further from the Lady Tigers. Shaylee Mirabal was the only Lady Tiger to score with a couple of field goals in the third.
The guards of the Lady Sundevils were quicker. Medina and the other Española guards used their speed to get inside and score a number of layups on Taos. On the defensive side, Española’s speed made the Lady Tigers uncomfortable when Taos tried to move the ball around and get an open look.
Down by double digits, Taos’ Valerie Mares and Ciera Castillo attacked the Española interior defense and got some shots to fall in the fourth, but the lead was too big to overcome.
Taos ends the season with an 8-19 record. The Lady Tigers will lose the services of seniors Autyana Concha, Mares, Tatiana Flores and Mirabal.
As the last team in district 2-4A with an overall record of 7-19 and a district record of 1-7, the Taos Lady Tigers will have to start at the bottom of the District 2-4A Tournament bracket and will need to defeat each of their district opponents to win both the title of District Tournament Championship and sneak into states. On Monday (Feb. 20) the Lady Tigers knocked down the first domino in their 37-34 victory over the Pojoaque Valley Elkettes.
In what was essentially a must-win game for Taos, Concha came through for the Lady
Tigers, scoring their first five points of the fourth quarter to keep pace with the Elkettes. A tough off-balance layup Mares tossed up while falling down gave Taos a 29-26 lead. Pojoaque Valley didn’t score again until near the three-minute mark with a Lauren Salazar field goal that made it 33-28.
Free throws by Mares and Isla Chavez in the final minute secured the win against Pojoaque’s last ditch effort to equalize. The Elkettes’ season now comes to an end with a 9-18 regular season record. The Lady Tigers get to live to ball another day against Española in the district tournament.