Lady Hawks head coach Kelly Garrett picked up the pieces and assured her girls that they needed to be more consistent on both sides of the ball.
Sure enough Harlingen South did just that and defeated East 41-29 to improve to 5-1 on the season.
“The girls have been working hard all season and were disappointed after the Weslaco loss,” said Garrett. “We made it a point of emphasis to pick up the defensive intensity and I think we accomplished that tonight.”
Harlingen South’s full-court press was the key in the first half that lead to their 16-7 lead heading into the second quarter.
“We practice the press very often and tonight we showed what we’re capable of,” said South’s Leah Noe, who led the Lady Hawks on the evening with 11 points and three steals.
Although the press worked very well in the beginning, the Lady Wildcats adjusted and were able to cut the South lead to seven at 19-13 before the half.
“We had several opportunities underneath the basket and didn’t take advantage,” said Garrett “I told the girls that we needed to finish plays and make those easy baskets.”
The Lady Hawks continued to pressure the Lady Wildcats in the second half but only lead by seven at 29-22 at the end of the third.
South’s Noe lead the surge in the fourth quarter with her three steals and six of her 11 points that resulted in their 12-point win. In addition to Noe, Karla Reyes and Cameron Del Angel pitched in with eight points each.
In earlier action at the South gym on Tuesday, the South boys lost in their matchup against Weslaco East in heartbreaking fashion. The Hawks were leading the Wildcats in the final minutes of the game until a late three by East sank the boat for the Hawks in the end.
The Hawks lost the game 45-41 to the Wildcats and are currently 3-2 in district play.