Lady Rattlers win Area title, advance to Regionals for the first time since 1993
For the first time since 1993, the Lady Rattlers will be playing in the Regional Semifinals.
Using a 16-2 run in the second quarter, San Marcos defeated the Harlingen Cardinals 61-45 to capture the Area championship for the first time since 2001.
It was a chaotic start for the Lady Rattlers and Head Coach Cooper Haralson, which saw the game pushed back two hours due to a lack of officials.
“I just made sure the girls understood that there’s only certain things you could control,” Haralson said. “We can’t control the two hour delay. All we can control is our attitudes about it, and how we came out playing the game of basketball.
“At the end of the day, we had some really great moments that pushed us over the top. We were able to be more consistent and execute.”
It was a thrilling backand- forth affair between the Cardinals and the Lady Rattlers, which both play similar styles with full-court press defenses, making big plays in transitions and being hot from three point range all while playing with high intensity.
At the end of the first quarter, Harlingen led San Marcos 12-10 after senior Brooklyn Harris scored the bucket down low on the back to make it a one possession game.
During the second quarter, San Marcos was down 16-12 in the middle of the period.
Despite the deficit, the Lady Rattlers’ answer turned out to be the defining moment in the game.
A 16-2 run by San Marcos, holding Harlingen to just two free throws, flipped the game on its head, allowing the Lady Rattlers to enter halftime with a 28-18 lead.
One of the keys during the run was the Lady Rattlers’ adjustment on shots underneath the basket, which became the message at halftime.
“It was just refocusing and execution,” Haralson said. “Even in that run, we had multiple missed baskets right around the rim, where we just didn’t focus on finishing. That was one of my messages that halftime was just to execute and then when we get to the basket, focus on just finishing.
“We don’t need to focus on contact, just focus on putting the ball in the basket. If the contact happens, we get to the free throw line or we [get] the and-one. That was one of the big things that led to us being able to overcome them being up 16 to 12, and it’s just consistency and execution.”
Harlingen attempted to make their comeback in the third quarter but San Marcos had an answer for the Cardinals at every turn.
Going into the fourth quarter, San Marcos led 45-35.
Harlingen ran out of gas in their comeback attempt as the Lady Rattlers went on to win 6145.
Senior guard Ezra Tobias finished the game with a team high 14 points followed by junior forward Azariah Fennell with 12 points. Sophomore Rileigh Good was third with 11 points. Fennell also led the team in rebounding with nine rebounds followed by Good with seven rebounds.
As the Lady Rattlers celebrated with the coveted gold ball trophy, Haralson let his team enjoy the moment.
“It’s all about them and what they do,” Haralson said.
”I just guide the ship a little bit. They’re the ones that go out and execute. I just watch them celebrate, you know what I mean?
It’s their moment, and I’m just happy that I get to be part of it and be part of this group of girls that’s fought so hard to get to this spot. We’re gonna keep on fighting and keep on trying to advance.”
San Marcos will battle the Austin Vandergrift Vipers Tuesday night at Austin Bowie High School. The Vipers enter the game with a 29-8 record with a second place finish in district behind Cedar Park Vista Ridge. In their playoff run, Vandergrift defeated Austin Westlake in Bi-District before beating San Antonio Sotomayor in the Area round.
Tip-off for San Marcos- Vandergrift is set for 7 p.m.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
Freshman Rileigh Good attempts to make the shot in the lane against the Harlingen defense. Daily Record photo by Colton McWilliams
