Lady Mustangs’ defense leads to win

The Lady Mustangs, ranked No. 10 in the latest Class 4A poll of the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Association and 8-4 overall, allowed only six points in the second half.

McCallum scored six in the first period and 18 in the second.

Though Marble Falls had a 27-24 lead at the half, players said they believed they could play much better in the final 16 minutes.

“I did better and the team did better,” junior post Lindsay Ansley said. 

Senior point guard Katy Cooke was equally pleased with the second-half performance.

“We played like we should have,” she said. 

The Lady Mustangs seemed to use the first half as a warm-up, Cooke said.

“We still slept-walked,” she said. “We looked like we’d just come off the bus. It took us two quarters to come out and play.”

Ansley was most proud of the way she and her teammates competed in the second half.

“I had more rebounds and I played better defense and didn’t allow any dumpdowns,” she said.  

The Lady Mustangs committed to making McCallum work for each point, the post said. They also decided not to give up multiple shots attempts with each possession.

Making sure each Lady Mustang knew which McCallum player she had to defend, Ansley said, made the defensive rotations easier. 

“We did better communicating and knowing who we have,” she said. “We did better on, if a teammate got beat, helping them and rotating back.”

Cooke was happy with the way Marble Falls pushed the tempo of the game.

“We played defense and we pushed the ball up the court and converted,” she said. “We just allowed one shot.”

Offensively, the players stopped doing things that hurt the squad, she said.

“We had less turnovers in the second half,” the guard said.

Ansley led all scorers with 17 points followed by Katie Mosher with 13 and Cooke and Amanda Gray added eight each. Diana Fonseca scored five, while Erica De La Hoya scored three and Shannon Bendas added two.

Now the Lady Mustangs prepare for a showdown with Del Valle, ranked No. 12 in the same TABC poll.

Cooke said she was glad Marble Falls faced McCallum before playing the Lady Cardinals.

“This was a good game to get us ready for Friday, to get confidence,” she said. 

The Lady Cardinals are led by Shanay Washington, who committed to Baylor University. 

Washington is a forward.

Ansley said she is looking forward to the matchup against Del Valle.

“We know where we stand and what we need to work on more better,” she said. “We’ll know where we’re … at.”