BY JON R. LAFOLLETTE | STAFF WRITER
The PSJA North Lady Raiders advanced the Class 6A regional quarter round of the playoffs Friday after beating the Laredo United Longhorns 49-48 at Alice High School.
Sophomore point guard Sara Serrano hit the game-winning floater as time expired.
“Nobody wanted to win,” North coach Randy Bocanegra said. “In the last minute, there were five lead changes.”
The Lady Raiders inbounded the ball with 11 seconds remaining. Serrano ran the length of the court before hoisting the go-ahead bucket.
“It was like a story book,” Bocanegra said. “I told the kids in the timeout before the inbound, ‘We’re going to win. We’re going to score.’ It was just like that.”
The Lady Raiders trailed by as many as 8 points, but tied the game at 36 with 5 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
“(United was) trying to pressure guards and slow the game down,” Bocanegra said. “We told (our) guards to get out and we started running, and we wore them out. They were gassed.”
Serrano led the team in scoring with 23 points, followed by junior small forward Belle Palacios with 19.
PSJA North will play Laredo Alexander in the next round at a time and location yet to be determined.
CLASS 6A
Del Rio 53, Weslaco High 49: At South San Antonio High School, the Lady Panthers were eliminated from the playoffs and finished the season with a record of 31-5.
Weslaco split the District 31-6A championship with PSJA North after qualifying for the fourth round of the playoffs each of the last two years.
CLASS 5A
Victoria East 57, Mission Veterans 54: At Corpus Christi Miller High School, the Lady Patriots were edged by the Lady Titans. The team trailed by as many as 13, but had the lead during the final two minutes. The team finished the season with an overall record of 21-13.
Victoria West 38, Roma 29: At Tuloso-Midway, the Lady Gladiators lost to the Lady Warriors. Roma placed third in District 31-5A with a district record of 8-4.
Friday’s game marked the first time the team has advanced to the area round under coach Romeo Rios.
Flour Bluff 32, Sharyland High 27: At Texas A&M-Kingsville, the Lady Rattlers were defeated by the Lady Hornets. Sharyland, which beat Mercedes during the area round, finished the season with an overall record of 21-14.