On the night of Feb. 12, the Lady Warriors’ varsity basketball team traveled to the Delco Center to take on the Del Valle Cardinals in their first round of playoffs. The Lady Warriors never lost their lead throughout the game which enabled them to win 80-61 and advance to the next round of playoffs.

“We were very excited to start playoffs, but we knew we had to stay focused because it’s the most important part of the season,” post McKenna Lindley ‘18 said.

The Lady Warriors stepped onto the court with determination which showed as Meaghan Hendricks ‘18 quickly scored a three-pointer followed by a shot off a rebound by Makayla Coy ‘19. The game was fast paced as there were multiple turnovers during the quarter. Hendricks scored another three along with Annalise Gulliguez ‘20. With this accurate shooting, the Lady Warriors were up 20-8 after the first quarter.

The points flooded in during the second quarter as multiple players sunk three-pointers. However, the Cardinals gained points as the Lady Warriors began accumulating several fouls, but the team’s aggression allowed them persist and went into halftime leading 48-30.

“At halftime we felt that just because we have the lead doesn’t mean we need to let off the gas pedal,” Coy said. “We knew we were doing good offensively, but we weren’t containing on the other end.”

Overall, the third quarter was low scoring compared to the others for both teams. Due to consistent rebounds from Coy the Lady Warriors kept possession of the ball. With only a minute left in the quarter, Allyah Beaty ‘18 shot four free throws due to technical fouls called on the Del Valle coach and finished the quarter 67-43.

In the final quarter, both teams pushed for dominance, but the Cardinals were unable to top the Lady Warriors. Three of the Lady Warriors fouled out of the game, but the loss of players did not shake the team as they continued just as strong. With a final free throw made by Kooper Giles ‘20, the Lady Warriors won 80-61. Throughout this game Coy earned 33 points as her new high school career record in a single game.

“Our defense needs to improve quite a bit,” Beaty said. “We got away with some things tonight, but with our next game those things won’t fly. Solid defense wins games without a doubt.”

The Lady Warriors will continue their playoff journey Friday, Feb. 19 in Giddings against the Klein Bearkats at 7 p.m.. Go Wood.