By EDWARD SEVERN, Staff Writer
BROWNSVILLE — The McAllen High Lady Bulldogs defeated the Brownsville Pace Lady Vikings 59-31 in the bi-district round of the playoffs.
“The girls came out, they were excited and they executed,” Lady Bulldogs coach Stephanie Cantu said. “They ran the offense to perfection, and defensively our 2-3 (zone) has been amazing.”
McHi forward Celina Saenz was money from beyond the arc during the first half. Her triples provided a nice double-digit advantage for the Lady Bulldogs.
“Honestly, I am not the type to shoot 3s,” Saenz said. “I am more of a post player, but when I was out there I felt confident, and if I was open I took the shot.”
Pace’s Ashley Gonzalez and Ariel Barrientes kept the Lady Vikings in the game. The duo scored 17 of their team’s points during the first half.
With the Lady Vikings creeping back in the game, McHi guard Cianni Bowen sparked an 8-0 run to give the Lady Bulldogs a 36-20 lead going into the break.
The Lady Bulldogs continued their run during the second half. McHi built an insurmountable lead, going up 43-20 before Gonzalez answered with a pair of free throws.
“The girls came to play,” Cantu said. “Pace is a good ball club, and we told the girls coming in that even though we beat them twice, they were not going to roll over.”
Saenz led the Lady Bulldogs in scoring with 20 points, and Adi Fleischmann added 12.
“Of all my four years in high school, we have never made it past Round 1,” Saenz said. “It is really an exciting moment to get past the round.”
Gonzalez finished with 19 points to lead the Lady Vikings in scoring.
“It was definitely a success making it to the playoffs,” Pace coach Eddie Lozano said. “Our girls played hard all season long. Unfortunately, we ran into a good McHi team.”