High School Girls Basketball: Moody holds off Carroll in District 29-5A zone playoff thriller

Moody senior Mia Galindo could have easily taken more time on the bench after injuring her knee midway through the second quarter of Friday's District 29-5A South Zone playoff game against Carroll.

But not being on the court with her teammates was the last thing Galindo wanted with the Trojans' postseason hopes on the line.

Moody needed a win against the Tigers on Friday to secure third place in the South Zone of 29-5A, and Galindo's performance helped the Trojans succeed in doing so.

Moody overcame a halftime deficit and held off a late Carroll rally to escape with a thrilling 49-48 win at the King High School Gymnasium.

"I hurt my knee, but I wanted to come back and help my team win," said Galindo, who scored 12 of her game-best 18 points after her setback. "It means a lot because it's my last year playing. I wanted to come out big and do a lot so we can make the playoffs."

The win moved Moody into third place in the south zone, where it will play a crossover playoff game against Gregory-Portland, scheduled for 7:30 p.m Tuesday at Gregory-Portland High School.

The Trojans improved to 19-13 overall but more importantly, they earned a chance to play for a goal of making the playoffs — a goal Moody head coach Myra Nerios set out when her nine seniors were freshman.

"These girls have been in my program since the beginning and they've worked hard all summer," Nerios said. "I want this so much for the girls... For them to make the playoffs in their senior year."

The Trojans are hoping this is the season they get over the hump of playing late into February.

Moody has been within reach of the playoffs the last two seasons after missing out by one game each season.

"Last year we messed up and fell by one game," Galindo said. "This year, we've come back strong and we wanted to win. We overcame injuries and just wanted to win."

Friday was the third meeting between the two squads with both teams splitting victories on the opposition's home court.

Early turnovers plagued both teams, but it was the Trojans, who managed to grab a 10-6 lead against the Tigers after the opening quarter.

Genesis Barnhart gave Carroll its first lead with a 3-pointer, which sparked a 10-1 run to give the Tigers a 23-20 halftime advantage.

"Going into halftime up three, we had a good game plan coming back out," Carroll coach Lauren Bell said. "Moody caught some fire in the third and we had a hard time scoring and rebounding in the third and fourth quarter. Our girls fought to the end. We made a little run to come within one point and hit a big 3 from Lyric Carpenter, but couldn't get it done in the end. It's disappointing, but proud of our effort."

Moody outscored Carroll 12-3 in the third period before the Tigers rallied in the fourth. Carroll scored six points in less than 10 seconds on two consecutive baskets by Janaisha Kelley and another by Barnhart to bring the Tigers withtin two. But the Trojans free throws in the final seconds were enough to hold off a 3-pointer from Carpenter to secure the win.

"The girls played really hard," Nerios said. "The third quarter was a big quarter for us. They came out really good and we adjusted some things at halftime."

Nerios said Moody will begin preparing for Gregory-Portland on Monday with the hope of winning and advancing to the playoffs for the first time since the 2013 season.

"We have our next game against G-P and we're going to practice hard and do everything we can to win," Galindo said. We're going to work hard."

Friday's top performers

Boys

Juan Guevara, Moody: Scored a game-best 32 points against Veterans Memorial.

Jordyn Heard, Veterans Memorial: Led the Eagles with 22 points in a win against Moody.

Cedric Vial-Nadeau, Flour Bluff: Finished with 13 points in a win against King.

Malachai Calderon, King: Scored 14 points against Flour Bluff.

Truman Thompson, Ray: Finished with 19 points against Victoria West.

Eric Edison, Ingleside: Led the Mustangs with 14 points in a win against Sinton.

Triston Handson, Sinton: Scored 20 points against Ingleside.

George Acosta, Aransas Pass: Led the Panthers with 23 points in a win against Taft.

Ashton Quesada, Mathis: Scored 12 points against George West.

Josh Trevino, Tuloso-Midway: Finished with 18 points in a win against Kingsville.

Terrell Jackson, Kingsville: Led the Brahmas with 24 points against Tuloso-Midway.

Kristopher Jones, Port Aransas: Led the Marlins with 13 points against Skidmore-Tynan.

Girls

Mia De La Pena, Veterans Memorial: Led the Eagles with 14 points in an overtime win against Flour Bluff.

Mia Galindo, Moody: Scored 18 points in a win against Carroll.

Janaisha Kelley, Carroll: Finished with 15 points against Moody.

Leslie Pena, Ingleside: Led the Mustangs with 20 points in a win against Sinton.

Logan Borchardt, Bishop: Scored 13 points in a win against Alice.

Kaylin Cervantes, Alice: Finished with 16 points against Bishop.

Madison Ybarra, Tuloso-Midway: Scored 18 points in a win against Kingsville.

Angelina Zepeda, Aransas Pass: Led the Panthers with 24 points in a win against Taft.

Jackie Garcia, Mathis: Scored 14 points in a win against George West.

Mikaela Boyd and Arianna Mejorado, Kingsville: Each scored 15 points against Tuloso-Midway.

Emma Longoria, San Diego: Finished with 21 points in a win against Santa Gertrudis Academy.

Ellayna McNorton, London: Scored 18 points in a win against Falfurrias.

Mia Perez, Banquete: Led the Bulldogs with 20 points in a win against Hebbronville.

Maggy Moreman and Neddia Gonzales, Skidmore-Tynan: Each scored 10 points in a win against Port Aransas.

Lexi Moss, Port Aransas: Led the Marlins with 10 points against Skidmore-Tynan.

Miryna Villarreal, Premont: Delivered 21 points in a win against Ben Bolt.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Moody holds off Carroll in District 29-5A zone playoff thriller