By EDWARD SEVERN, Staff Writer
MERCEDES — The Brownsville Lopez Lady Lobos pulled out a grimy 35-31 District 32-5A victory against the Mercedes Lady Tigers on Tuesday night.
The cagey affair produced a lot of fouls early. Both teams chose the more physical rout to establish their dominance.
“Oh, they did great, that is all I ask of them is to play tough and grind it out,” Lopez coach Ray Montes said. “Every quarter means a lot. We got to go out and perform every quarter.
“It is a big win for us,” he added. “Our goal is playoffs. That is our goal this year, and this win gets us a step closer.”
Lopez got the ball down low to D’arrah Howard early in the first quarter, and she had a few points during the first half. Fellow starters Judith Rodriguez, Kassandra Aguirre, Sofia Castillo and Christy Garcia all chipped in defensively and hit the occasional free throw.
Mercedes received a big 3-pointer from Cerina Limas. Randi Lara always provides a deep threat, Leah Adame drove well, and Danielle Barraso and Jayda Luna also contributed.
The teams did not separate from each other and went into the half tied at 13.
The game never really got a rhythm going. There was a constant stop-and-go because of shooting fouls and turnovers. Missed free throws plagued both teams.
The Lady Tigers grabbed a 24-21 lead at the end of the third quarter. Howard kept the Lady Lobos in the game, rolling well on the pick-and-roll and finishing at the basket.
Mercedes’ Limas and Adame hit big shots early in the fourth quarter. When it looked like the Lady Tigers were going to pull away, the Lady Lobos’ Rodriguez hit a big basket and finished the three-point play at the line to cut the lead to 29-26.
The Lady Lobos hit big shots down the stretch. A layup by Sophia Carrizales with a little more than one minute left in the game gave Lopez the lead.