Grand Oaks runs past Davis
Over the summer, Oak Ridge coach Deidre Vasquez regularly fielded concerns from her players.
The COVID-19 pandemic had shut down the spring sports season and athletic programs were limited and careful about how they ran offseason training.
Flash forward to Thursday night at Grand Oaks, and the War Eagles soaked in the moment.
With a 52-17 victory over Davis, Oak Ridge won the Class 6A Region II bi-district round and advanced to the area round for the third straight season.
Vasquez stepped back and enjoyed seeing her players celebrating afterward.
“I had girls calling me in the summer and texting me ‘Coach, are we going to get to have a season?’ ” Vasquez said. “It was so unnerving because I didn’t know the answer to that. I was thinking probably not. But kudos to them. They’ve worn their masks religiously and done what it takes. We’ve also been lucky to stay away from that. We feel blessed to have the chance to comRidge pete (next week).”
Oak Ridge (24-3), ranked No. 25 in the latest Texas Girls Coaches Association poll, played one of its most complete games of the season to eliminate the Falcons (5-13).
The War Eagles forced 32 turnovers and the 17 points allowed are by far the lowest amount on the year.
Aside from Nikki Petrakovitz’s 10 points, Kylie Weeks finished with nine points and Taylor Jones had eight. Nine Oak Ridge players contributed offensively.
Oak Ridge, which hasn’t passed the area round in 18 years, awaits the Cypress Springs-Klein Collins winner in the area round.
Ridge Point tops Seven Lakes
Ridge Point bested Seven Lakes 66-60 in Class 6A Region III action Thursday. Ridge Point scored the game’s final eight points en route to victory.
Ridge Point hopes for second consecutive regional tournament run and awaits the Heights-Cypress winner in the area round next week.
Memorial breaks 16-year drought
Memorial earned its first playoff win since 2005 after ousting Bellaire 71-43 on Thursday in the Class 6A Region III bi-district round .
Memorial moves to 19-7. The Mustangs finished third in a tough District 17-6A featuring Jersey Village and Cypress Creek, the top-ranked team in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 6A poll.
Memorial meets Tompkins, which defeated Travis in a 68-37 win on Thursday, in the area round at 5 p.m. Tuesday at the Merrell Center. Memorial hasn’t played in a regional quarterfinal since 2002.
Weather disrupts games in Dallas
Freezing rain in North Texas rescheduled many bi-district playoff games in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Texas is amid a spreading winter storm. Monday’s temperatures in Houston are expected to hit a low of 16 degrees with possible snow and ice.
The area round of the girls basketball playoffs starts Monday and ends Tuesday.
Cypress schools begin runs today
Cypress Springs, which hasn’t won a playoff game since 2003-04 and never advanced past the second round, meets Klein Collins at 6 p.m. Friday at Cy-Fair High School.
Back-to-back District 18-6A champion Heights meets Cypress Ridge at 6 p.m. Friday at Delmar Fieldhouse. Cypress Ridge, which opened in 2002, is in the girls basketball postseason for the first time.
Undefeated Dulles (6539 over Katy) handled its bi-district playoff opponent. Another undefeated team in 24-0 Kingwood Park meets Magnolia at 6:30 p.m. Friday at The Woodlands High School in Class 5A Region III.