The Mason High School girls basketball team split District 29-2A games last week. The Cowgirls beat Junction 59-21 January 21 after losing to San Saba 67-63 January 14.
The first half against San Saba 'was really close,' head coach Alicia Cummings said.
The Lady Dillos had a six-point advantage at the half. But the Cowgirls cut it to two.
San Saba responded with a run to extend the lead to 15 points, but Mason refused to go away.
'We cut it to three toward the end,' Cummings said. 'We had a chance.'
She tried to call a timeout but 'officials didn't see me,' and San Saba got the ball back.
The coach called it 'a real physical game,' which is part of the rivalry between the two programs.
'We went over there the first game of district and got beat. It was never really a game,' she said. 'It was a different battle at home. Our kids played through a tough situation.'
The difference in the contest may have come down to three factors.
'We turned the ball over a little too much and gave up too many offensive rebounds that truthfully was the difference in the game,' Cummings said. 'A lot of the scoring came from turnovers or extra chance opportunities. I thought we did a pretty good job on defense.'
In addition, the Cowgirls missed 12 free throws in the contest.
'In a game like that, that's tough,' she said. 'You have to be good in those areas when you play a tough opponent.'
Still, the Cowgirls played with tremendous effort, a staple of the program.
'Our kids came and played and never gave up,' the coach said. 'We had a chance at the end. We had sophomores step up, and I thought they played some big minutes for us. You can see the growth throughout the season for them. There were a lot of good things that will help us.'
That was apparent in the victory against Junction. 'We controlled that game and did what we needed to do,' she said. 'It's a big rivalry for us.'
Three games remain in the regular season beginning with a road trip to Goldthwaite Tuesday, January 28, with the subvarsity playing at 4:00 p.m. and the varsity taking the court at 6:30 p.m. The Cowgirls have a bye Friday, January 24.
'They'll give us good experience and put us in good situations,' Cummings said.
