Stefan Modrich | Staff Writer
After tough back-to-back losses against Hidalgo and at Zapata, La Feria was in need of a bounce-back performance to make up ground in district play.
Senior point guard Kayla Lowe and junior guard Maggie Cavazos did just that, putting on a show in front of their home crowd and dispatching Raymondville 62-24 as the Lionettes improved to 4-3 in District 32-4A Friday night.
“We’ve been struggling a little bit offensively,” said La Feria head coach Angel Martinez. “We’ve kind of been on a little cold streak over the last few days. Defensively, we’re always pretty tough. Tonight, Lowe and Maggie totally stepped up; they hit some big shots. I keep trying to explain to the girls, if we can hit some shots outside, it really opens up their defense and we can pound it inside.”
Lowe was lights out from behind the arc — 12 of her 22 points were 3-point field goals. She was quite comfortable setting the tone as a scorer and deferring to her teammates as the game progressed.
“My main focus on the court is to get points on the board,” Lowe said. “As a leader, as a senior, and being here for four years already, I know that it’s up to me to get points on the board.”
Martinez said La Feria’s previous opponents had defended his team well in the paint and taking away opportunities inside, calling their reliance on the 3 “our achilles heel.”
The Lionettes had no trouble scoring from all over the court against Raymondville, as evidenced by contributions from junior power forward Aaliyah Stewart (eight points), junior Alana Rodriguez (six points) and Reanne Fraga (six points).
“In the last few days of practice, we’ve just been really working on our shooting,” Martinez said. “Shooting with pressure on you, shooting when you’re tired, and stuff like that. It showed tonight that with their heart rates up, they were still able to hit some big shots.”
La Feria will need to continue to win games like this one in order move up from the middle of the pack in 32-4A and position themselves for a postseason run.
Cavazos has been playing impactful minutes as Lowe’s understudy, and is trying to absorb as much as she can from her experienced backcourt mate.
“For next year, my seniors are leaving this year and I have to get up there on that level and improve my ball handling,” Cavazos said.
Lowe’s role for the Lionettes encompasses more than just her play on the court.
“I want to improve my dribbling, but also keep my teammates encouraged, keep them in the game, keep the team going, and try to get to the playoffs,” Lowe said.
Raymondville’s leading scorer was freshman guard Amber Tamez (six points). Senior shooting guard Brianna Soria, senior forward Hilaire Perales, and junior guard Ilanie Zamora each had four points for the Lady Bearkats.