Lady ’Stangs face Stockdale for third place playoff berth

Apparently 12 games weren't enough.

After finishing its 12-game slate in District 29-2A play, the Nixon-Smiley girls team finds itself in a predicament. The Lady Mustangs are tied with Luling and Stockdale for second with identical 8-4 records in league play.

Nixon-Smiley (20-9, 8-4 in 29-2A) finished the regular season with a 48-24 drubbing of Brooks Tuesday at Nixon-Smiley High School. Luling (13-12, 8-4 in 29-2A) won at Randolph, while Stockdale (17-11, 8-4 in 29-2A) defeated Cole on the road.

Luling already sealed its playoff berth by winning an odd-team-wins coin toss Wednesday. This means the Lady Mustangs must face Stockdale for the third-place playoff berth at 1 p.m. Saturday at Cole High School in San Antonio.

In Tuesday's win, Nixon-Smiley led 15-4 at the end of the first quarter and 25-11 at halftime. The Lady Mustangs used a 15-5 third-quarter run to take a 40-16 lead after three periods.

Hailey Boatright led all scorers with 9 points. Alena Alvarez, Jazmin Erskine and Jennifer Flores all had 8 points.

The winner of Saturday's third-place play-in game faces 30-2A runner-up Karnes City in the bi-district round of the 2A state playoffs. The time, date and site of the bi-district contest have yet to be determined.

Gonzales

After trailing most of the game, the Gonzales girls basketball team closed out the season on a positive note as the Lady Apaches rallied for a 36-35 over La Vernia Tuesday at Gonzales High School. Gonzales (11-21, 6-6 in 28-3A) went into the fourth quarter trailing 22-21 before closing out the contest on a 15-13 spurt to claim the one-point victory.

La Vernia led 11-6 after one quarter of play and 18-14 at halftime. The Lady Apaches outscored the Lady Bears, 7-4, in the third quarter to pull within a point, 22-21, entering the fourth.

Vancheska Russell led Gonzales with 10 points, while Brittney Pakebusch and Donniqua Sanders each had 9. Tuesday's contest was the final high school basketball game for Pakebusch, Sanders, Jessica Cantu and Mariah Hastings.

The Lady Apaches finished fourth in the district standings. Yoakum, Sam Houston and La Vernia will represent 28-3A in the playoffs as Yoakum won the district, Sam Houston is the runner-up and La Vernia took third place.

Shiner

An 18-1 second-quarter run was enough to lift the Shiner girls basketball team to a 63-29 victory over Louise in the regular season finale Tuesday at Shiner High School. The Lady Comanches finished the regular season with a 25-6 record overall, which includes an 8-0 mark in 28-A-Division I.

Shiner led 12-6 after one quarter of play before outscoring Louise, 18-1, in the second to build a 30-7 lead at halftime. The Lady Comanches then used a 15-4 third-quarter spurt to build a 45-11 advantage after the third quarter.

Ryah Michalec led all scorers with 14 points. Amanise Coleman had 12, while Hannah Koenning posted 8.

Shiner will receive a bye in the bi-district round of the Class A-DI playoffs. The Lady Comanches will face either the runner-up of 25-A-DI or the third-place team of 26-A-DI in the area round.

Waelder

Meghan House's first season at Waelder came to a close as the Waelder girls basketball team suffered a 69-10 setback at the hands of Moulton Tuesday at Waelder High School. The Lady Cats ended their first season under House with a 4-16 record overall, and a 2-8 mark in 30-A-DII play.

Chelsa Nichols led Waelder with 4 points. Jackie Garcia, Tatiana Garcia and Marissa Ramirez all had 2 points.