By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
KINGSVILLE — The La Feria Lionettes saw their season come to an end in the bi-district round after a 46-30 loss to Corpus Christi Calallen on Friday in Kingsville.
La Feria senior Sabrina Castaneda kept her team fighting to the end despite a large deficit. She led the Lionettes with 18 points and played solid defense to record steals and force turnovers. Castaneda was emotional after the final game of her career, but she was proud of how she and her teammates battled.
“I really tried my hardest, I really pushed the girls, also. I was trying to give everybody energy, telling them, ‘Let’s go, let’s keep pushing. I know me and all my teammates really put a bunch of heart into this, especially me because it’s my last year,” Castaneda said.
The Lionettes struggled to match Calallen’s energy and suffered from long stretches of not being able to score. The Calallen Lady ’Cats were the more aggressive team from the jump and opened an 11-0 lead en route to a 16-4 advantage after the opening quarter. La Feria struggled with its footing and ball control during the first quarter, keeping the Lionettes from finding a rhythm offensively.
Calallen’s Lauren Mata (12 points) and Makenzie Mounts controlled the boards on both ends of the court throughout the contest. The Lady ’Cats weren’t hitting shots with great efficiency, but their rebounding prowess earned them multiple scoring opportunities on each possession. Carsyn Odom (10) and Karlie Haigood (16) were hot from behind the arc, combining to hit five 3-pointers to get Calallen a 28-13 lead at halftime.
Calallen came out of the locker room with all the momentum and energy to open its advantage to 41-16 after three quarters of play. The Lady ’Cats kept the Lionettes off the board for the first three minutes of the frame, and Megan Eichner’s effort off the bench helped Mata and Mounts dominate the paint and pull down a plethora of rebounds. Calallen’s defense held La Feria to a game-low three points in the third.
Despite the lopsided scoreboard, Castaneda and the Lionettes turned up their intensity in the fourth quarter and played their best basketball during the final eight minutes. Castaneda, Lillian Martinez and Allison Rosales swiped steals and executed on defense. Alani Garza, Alena Benjamin and Alexis Villarreal also played well, and got stops and turnovers against Calallen’s offense.
“Even though we were down a lot, we kept pushing and pushing, and it meant a lot to me. I didn’t want to go out with a bad last quarter, I wanted to keep playing to the end,” Castaneda said.
But the Lionettes struggled to take advantage of their chances all game. They were 16-for-32 at the free-throw line, failed to finish a multitude of layups and shots from the field fell short, keeping them from mounting a comeback.
Castaneda scored seven points in La Feria’s 14-point fourth. Martinez finished the game with seven points. Martinez and Benjamin are two freshmen who put in solid minutes in the final game of the season and have Lopez confident in the future of the program.
“My girls did not let up at all. They had a rough start the first half, but they didn’t let up,” Lionettes coach Delia Lopez said. “(Castaneda) fought through, and I knew she was tired. She stayed with it. She’s just all heart. Lillian Martinez, her father calls her a spark. She’s got it, and you can tell she loves to play. (The underclassmen are) willing to learn, they’re willing to be coached, so I’m looking forward to seeing them grow.”