Bonham, Texas -- The Leonard Lady Tigers punched their ticket for the playoffs with a 44-29 victory over Blue Ridge in a play-in game on Thursday night at Leonard Gerner Gymnasium in Bonham.
Leonard's Kylie Houser came up with a steal and took it coast-to-coast for a lay-up to start the scoring. Blue Ridge collected a free throw and then Leonard's Avery Ross knocked down a triple.
Houser netted a free throw, Riley Brown went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe, Trinity Newby drained a jump shot, Brown hit a free throw, Ross put up a pair of free throws, Micaela Garza hit a three-point shot from the corner and Leonard was off to a 16-1 start.
At the end of the first quarter, Leonard had a 20-4 lead.
But the next run belonged to Blue Ridge.
Blue Ridge went on a 13-2 run in the second period to trim Leonard's lead down to 22-17 at the half.
Houser hit a triple to start the third period, but Blue Ridge stayed within striking distance and trailed 32-26 going into the fourth quarter.
With a trip to the playoffs on the line, Leonard took over down the stretch and pulled away for a 15-point win, 44-29.
Riley Brown and Avery Ross both had double-digit performances.
Brown led all scorers with 11 points, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked two shots.
Ross put up 10 points to go along with three steals, three assists and a pair of rebounds.
Bella Neaville gave Leonard a badly needed boost when Brown got in foul trouble and finished with seven points and six rebounds.
Leonard point guard Kylie Houser showed her versatility with eight points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Micaela Garza and Trinity Newby both finished with four points. Garza came down with three rebounds and Newby had two boards.
Sarah Garvey and Emma Houser each had one rebound.
The Leonard Lady Tigers will take on Commerce in the bi-district round. The game will be played Tuesday night, February 17, at Greenville High School; tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
additional photos pending
photos by Allen Rich
