COPPERAS COVE — The No. 9 San Perlita Trojans were defeated by No. 3 Rocksprings 79-46 in the Class 1A Region IV championship game Saturday.
Trojans coach Nataniel Garza said his team struggled to hit shots, and that was the biggest factor in the game. Even with the season coming to an end, San Perlita is looking at the positives from the year and shooting for more next season.
“We didn’t play as well today, but it wasn’t because of lack of effort. They competed to the end, and I couldn’t be more proud of my team,” Garza said. “We just didn’t shoot the ball well. Shots that were falling (Friday) night just weren’t falling (Saturday night). That’s how it goes sometimes. Can’t win them all, and we did struggle today, but we are extremely blessed to be able to make this kind of run.
“We were in a very tough region, it was probably the deepest and toughest in the state,” he added. “We played state-ranked teams the whole playoff run, so the fact that we were able to be one of the last two teams standing in the region, that’s amazing. I told the guys, I didn’t want them to sulk in defeat, I wanted them to celebrate the season that we had.”
San Perlita hung around early and only trailed by three at the end of the first. But while the Trojans couldn’t hit shots, Rocksprings cleaned up the rebounds and turned those possessions into points. Rocksprings opened a 15-point lead at halftime and kept building on it during the second half.
Garza was proud of the way San Perlita continued to fight to the end despite the large deficit. He said this year’s team was special and had a lot of heart, and the players showed it to the final minute.
“Rocksprings is a very good team, well-coached, and credit to them because they did well and I wish them nothing but the best of luck going forward,” Garza said. “I wouldn’t trade this team for the team that beat us today or any other team. We not only wanted to represent San Perlita Trojans basketball, but we wanted to represent Valley basketball as well. We never gave up, and I’m proud of them for that.”
