LYFORD — The stage is set for the final day of the Lyford Girls Basketball Tournament, with Harvest Christian and La Feria set to collide in today’s championship game at Lyford’s Memorial Gym.
The teams’ path to the finals differed heavily. The Eagles picked up convincing wins during each of their three wins en route to the championship, averaging a margin of victory of 36.3 points per contest.
Harvest Christian dominated Brownsville IDEA Riverview 74-15 during the opening round Thursday, following it up with a pair of impressive showings against reigning District 32-4A champion Rio Hondo (64-36) and Class 6A foe Edinburg North (66-44) on Friday to secure a spot in the championship game.
“These tournaments are huge for us,” Harvest Christian head coach Jaime Gonzalez said. “I keep telling the girls we’ve already played top competition this year. I think we’ve played teams better than anything we’ll see in the playoffs. I could be wrong, but I hope I’m not. To have them go against teams like Harlingen, Los Fresnos, Rio Hondo and Wimberly, that makes us battle-tested.”
Junior Ashley Gonzalez, The Monitor’s 2022 All-Area Girls Basketball Offensive Player of the Year, demonstrated her offensive prowess during the Eagles’ three victories, averaging 24 points per game.
Her biggest showing came during Harvest Christian’s quarterfinal victory over Rio Hondo, erupting for 34 points, including 27 during the second half to close out the game.
“In the huddle at the half, our coach told us to wake up or we were going to lose this tournament,” Gonzalez said. “That first game decides the whole tournament. There is no point in us coming out here just to lose the first game. That woke us up. They ended up going to man in the second half, so I knew the inside was open. I felt more comfortable and just did that the rest of the game.”
Meanwhile, La Feria opened tournament play with a dominant showing against Weslaco IDEA Pike on Thursday, cruising into the quarterfinals with a 59-37 victory.
The Lionettes’ quarterfinal and semifinal contests Friday provided bigger challenges, taking down Class 6A foe Edinburg Economedes 39-28 before beating tournament host Lyford 52-48 in overtime in their semifinal to secure a spot in the championship.
La Feria’s Reandra Castillo and Mariah Patlan came up big during the overtime victory, combining for 29 points, including eight during the extra period.
The final day of tournament play begins at 9 a.m. today, with games scheduled at Lyford’s Memorial Gym and Veterans Gym. The championship game between the Eagles and Lionettes is slated for 1:30 p.m. at Memorial Gym.
For full Day 2 results and final-day pairings, visit RGVSports.com.
