Big fourth quarter enables Southlake Carroll girls to claim bi-district championship
By Cody Thorn
NORTH RICHLAND HILLS - A fourth-quarter surge lifted Class 6A No. 8-ranked Southlake Carroll to a bi-district championship on Monday night.
The Dragons pulled away from Euless Trinity in the final quarter and secured a 61-48 win at Birdville High School.
The victory was the 21st in a row for Carroll, a Class 6A quarterfinalist last year that lost to eventual runner-up South Grand Prairie.
“It was a huge battle from start to finish,” said Carroll senior Camryn Tade, who is headed to play basketball at Army next year. “We are down at half and we kind of realize this is it, it is the last 16 minutes so let’s make it count.
"It was a lot of fun. They played super well and kept us on our toes.”
Trinity (21-10) led at the end of the first two quarters, 16-14 and then 31-29 after a 3-pointer by Alisha Nunley with 27 seconds to go in the first half. That made it 30-26, but Caitlin Slowick answered with a trey for the Dragons (29-3) to pull within a basket at the break with 7.5 seconds left.
Tade, one of three seniors on the roster, tried to pick up the Dragons at the break.
“I told my teammates we aren’t done yet, let’s pick it up in the second half,” Tade said. “I just want to enjoy every last minute I have and try to give it all I got however many games I have left.”
Tade and Milania Jordan scored early in the third to forge a 33-all tie.
Then, a 3-pointer from freshman Gianna Jordan broke the tie with 3:54 to go in the third. She added two baskets, including a 3-pointer with 7.9 seconds remaining, to give Carroll a 41-39 lead going into the fourth.
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Each team hit a 3-pointer out of the gate in the final stanza, one from Gianna Jordan for Southlake and Brooklyn Jackson for Trinity, the second of the quarter to make it 44-42 with 7:07 to play.
The next time the Trojans scored, there was only 2:04 left.
Meanwhile, a game-changing 9-0 run gave the Dragons a larger lead and a cushion they never relinquished.
Back-to-back baskets by Jordan, only nine seconds apart, the latter a pull-up jumper after Carroll got a turnover, highlighted the decisive spurt.
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“My No. 10 (Jordan), a little freshman, stepped up and made three big shots and I felt like all I wanted was a little bit of separation to make them come out (and guard us),” Southlake coach Robyn McCoart said. “Once it was a four- or six-point lead, I decided now we are going to pull it out.
"When we are only up by one point, I didn’t feel like we should (hold the ball). A missed free throw here or there and you lost the game.”
With 5:07 left, Carroll got the ball and Jordan held the ball and dribbled by herself for more than a minute. Carroll got a shot off, but maintained possession after Trinity blocked the shot out of bounds.
That drive ended with a layup inside by junior post Taryn Barnes, who was wide open inside the paint and scored with 3:58 to go.
The advantage grew to nine after free throws by junior Natalia Jordan, hitting 3-of-4 attempts only 15 seconds apart.
“I asked them in a time out, what do winners do, they win,” McCoart said. “I told them they have been practicing for this the whole year for this right here.
"We knew it wouldn’t be easy; no one comes to the playoff wanting to lose, there are no easy games.”
A layup by Nunley finally got Trinity its second basket of the quarter, but 5:03 had ticked off since the initial 3-pointer.
Tade made two free throws and Barnes added two more baskets inside the paint.
Nunley had a game-high 25 points, her last coming on a layup in the closing seconds.
Four players scored in double figures for Carroll in a balanced attack. Gianna Jordan had 15, followed by 11 from Milania Jordan, while Tade and Barnes each had 10, with Barnes scoring six of her 10 in the fourth.
Carroll will face the winner of Midland Legacy or El Paso Eastwood, which will play Tuesday, later this week in the area game. The Dragons will face a lengthy road trip regardless of the outcome to keep the playoff push going.
