Area high school girls basketball report, state polls, team, top player of the week
Net notes
Austin High won their thirteenth straight game and seventeenth overall by defeating Buda Johnson 68-40 and improving to 4-0 in District 26-6A. The Maroons are tied for first with Westlake, who defeated Anderson 67-26. Austin High will host Westlake on Friday afternoon, Dec. 30, following the holiday break in their first round district meeting.
Jade Clack led the Maroons past the Johnson Jaguars as the senior scored 23 points with four rebounds, three steals and a pair of blocked shots. Peyton Freiermuth added 14 points and two rebounds while Kemah Shaw scored nine points with five assists and two steals in the win. Aubrey Reid contributed eight points and six assists while Senaida Barrientos added five points and two boards. Shanel Reid scored five points with three rebounds.
Bella Hesse scored 18 points and running mate Gianna Angiolet added 17 points as Westlake remained perfect in district play by beating Anderson 67-26. Iliana Liverpool added 10 points for the Chaps. Claire Kolkhorst scored 12 points as Lake Travis raced past Del Valle 68-23. Oklahoma State University pledge Mia Galbraith played only 11 minutes as Cavaliers head coach Kevin Bussinger substituted freely. In her eleven minutes, Galbraith scored 11 points with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Kat Ford garnered nine rebounds for Lake Travis.
In 25-6A, Vista Ridge beat Cedar Ridge 44-33 while Stony Point defeated Vandegrift 34-27 in a tough defensive contest. Aima Ofunrein doubled up for the victorious Tigers with 10 points and 11 rebounds plus three steals and three assists. Mary Bortels added eight boards and three steals while Haviland Booker notched six points with five steals and three assists. Leann Bellow finished with four points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block for the Tigers who are tied for second in district play with a 2-1 record.
Manor, McNeil and Round Rock also have 2-1 district marks in 25-6A. Round Rock beat Westwood 63-50 as Deja Zuniga poured in 27 points while Bailey Featherstone added 15 points and Kendall Griffin finished with eight points. Manor handed McNeil their first district loss 53-42 as Nevaeh Jones scored 16 points with 10 rebounds and Janiya Davis added 15 points for Manor. Lauren Rowan scored 14 points for McNeil and Taylor Snyder added 13 points.
Emy Chen scored 21 points with seven steals and four assists as first place McCallum defeated Eastside Early College 63-18. Sam Cowles had 11 rebounds in the win. Earlier, the McCallum Lady Knights beat Liberal Arts & Science Academy 38-13 as Chen led the Lady Knights with 14 points and six steals while Cowles had 12 rebounds and Miranda DiGiovanni recorded three assists. In other district action, LASA beat Northeast Early College 73-6 and Lago Vista beat Crockett 45-8.
Pflugerville improved to 16-3 overall, and 3-0 in district, tied with Hendrickson and Georgetown, after the Panthers beat Bastrop 75-13. Aamaria Wright and Jaida Gomez scored 12 points each for the Panthers with Gomez adding five steals. Jordynn Watts scored 11 points with seven rebounds while Chey’anne Frazier had 10 points and six boards. Avari Berry chipped in eight more points in the victory.
Hendrickson won twice in the week as the Hawks beat Cedar Creek 78-14 and Elgin 77-30. Mikalah Buckley led the scoring against Cedar Creek with 15 points while Niyah Waters added 12 points with Amya Edwards scoring 11 points and Aliyah Carter adding 10. In the Elgin win, Carter scored 14 while Maci Quiller scored 12 and both Waters and Buckley finished with 11 points each. East View beat Elgin 49-32 while Georgetown maintained their perfect district record by blasting Connally 62-15. The Eagles limited the Cougars to nine first half points and zero points in the third quarter.
Lampasas beat Florence 73-24 to improve to 18-7. Earlier the Badgers lost to Salado 57-49 as they struggled with player injuries. Brooke White had 16 points for the Badgers against Salado and 15 points in the win over Florence while Abigail Williams had seven blocked shots in the Salado game. Hays improved to 18-2, 2-0 by beating Leander 69-16. Mahlaina Arias led a balanced Hawks offense with 14 while Neela Castillo added 13 points, Naya Burleson had 11 points and Jivi Caceres finished with eight points.
Evie Bruce scored 20 points with three blocked shots while Gabby Mundy added 17 points with six steals as Liberty Hill beat Rouse 48-29. Ella Granda added six points for the Panthers while Lily Gonzales scored seven points for the Raiders. Liberty Hill led by three at the half 18-15, before outscoring Rouse 30-14 in the second half. Glenn beat Lockhart 56-39 while Cedar Park took a 23-8 first quarter lead and cruised past Lehman 76-27. Weiss beat Harker Heights 56-49 behind 21 points from Kimora McClure and 15 points by Jahmareah Linville-Finley. Jordyn Barrera added seven points for the Wolfpack.
Player of the week
Gabby Mundy, sophomore, Liberty Hill: Mundy had a prolific week as the sophomore point guard scored 27 points when the Panthers opened district with a 44-33 win over Cedar Park, ending the Timberwolves’ 60 game district win streak. Friday evening, Mundy scored 17 more points with six steals as the Panthers improved to 2-0 in district by beating Rouse 48-29.
Team of the week
Vista Ridge: Big week for head coach Keith Allen and his Rangers as they defeated Round Rock 58-53 on Tuesday then beat Cedar Ridge 44-33 on Friday night to take over sole possession of first place in 25-6A with a 3-0 record. Vista Ridge trailed Round Rock 21-11 and trailed Cedar Ridge 16-11 before a second half surge in both contests led the Rangers to victory. In the Round Rock win, Sayler Bourland led Vista Ridge with 13 points while Ella Nixon added 11 points, Kianna Wormly notched 10 points and Abby Seitz chipped in nine more. Reagan Pavesi added 10 points. In the Cedar Ridge win, Wormly had 12 rebounds and 10 points while Nixon had eight points and eight rebounds. Seitz had 10 points with six rebounds while Bourland had five points with seven steals and four rebounds.
State polls
Hays and Austin High each moved up a spot in the Texas Girls Coaches Association polls following a week of upsets in the state. The Hays Hawks moved up to No. 2 in Class 5A behind Amarillo after previously top ranked Lubbock Monterey lost to Lubbock Cooper. Austin High advanced to the fifth spot in Class 6A with a pair of wins while DeSoto dropped after a district loss to Duncanville.
Pflugerville is No. 6 in Class 5A with district rival Hendrickson No. 9. Liberty Hill sits at No. 11 and Glenn at No. 14 in the Class 5A rankings. Marble Falls is No. 11 in Class 4A while Lampasas dropped to No. 19. Jarrell is No. 23 in Class 4A and Burnet sits at No. 25. Vista Ridge moved up to No. 21 in the Class 6A poll after a pair of impressive district wins and Stony Point entered at No. 24 after beating Manor and Vandegrift.
Games to watch
Tuesday
Cedar Park at Lockhart, 12:15 p.m.
Taylor at La Grange, 12:30 p.m.
Austin Achieve at Giddings, 6:15 p.m.
Glenn at Hays, 7 p.m.
Wednesday
Westlake at Dripping Springs, 5 p.m.
McCallum at Travis, 6:30 p.m.
Akins at Austin High, 7 p.m.
Lake Travis at Anderson, 7 p.m.
— Butch Hart, American-Statesman correspondent
Fab Fives
Class 6A
1. Austin 17-3
2. Vista Ridge 14-6
3. Westlake 9-8
4. Stony Point 15-3
5. Round Rock 14-4
Class 5A
1. Hays 18-2
2. Pflugerville 16-3
3. Hendrickson 15-3
4. Liberty Hill 16-4
5. Glenn 13-3
Class 4A and others
1. Marble Falls 12-6
2. Lampasas 18-7
3. St. Dominic Savio 13-5
4. Jarrell 14-5
5. Burnet 10-4
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Area high girls basketball report, with polls, team, player of week
