(Courtesy photo/Albert Villegas)
By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
RAYMONDVILLE, TX —Multiple lineup rotations and tenacious full-court defensive pressure enabled the state-ranked Rio Hondo Lady Bobcats to prevail by a wide margin against another opponent, this time against the weary Raymondville Lady Bearkats, 83-36, Monday afternoon.
For every Raymondville basket, Rio Hondo responded with scores twice, sometimes thrice, which eventually led to the Lady Bobcats’ double-digit lead in the first half. The lead mushroomed in the second half when the
Lady Bearkats simply couldn’t score enough to close the gap because of the continued defensive presence.
It was another example of how productive Rio Hondo, which is ranked No. 12, according to the Texas Girls’ Coaches’ Association statewide poll, can be against opponents that are completely outmatched by the Lady ’Cats hardwood ballers.
“For the most part, our players are working hard, and it’s showing on the court, but there are still things we need to work on,” Rio Hondo Coach Victor Sauceda said. “This is the standard by which we play. Every game is a work in progress, and I like the effort that our players come out with.”
Raymondville scored mostly through the efforts of Adaleigh Knight, who finished with a game-high 27 points and was 9-of-10 in free throw attempts. The junior towered over most of the Lady Bobcats, except senior Emily Molina, who provided a defensive presence when needed.
Molina went toe-to-toe with Knight as she scored 24 points. Molina also had five treys.
Teammate freshman Carlie Rodriguez had the game’s first score off a trey and finished with 23 points. Junior Abby Atkinson finished with 18 points as she scored from beyond the arc four times.
Rio Hondo’s Jocelyn Gallegos, Samantha Flores, Rhianna Villarreal, Izabella Zuniga and Evan Ayala rounded out the scoring barrage.
The Lady Bobcats improved to 7-0 in District 32-3A, and 17-2 this season. Their next game is Dec. 31 when they host Brownsville IDEA Sports Park.
Bobcats nail win
On the boys’ side, the Rio Hondo Bobcats notched their fourth District 32-3A victory in as many games when they defeated the Santa Rosa Warriors, 65-47 last week. They also won against Brownsville IDEA Riverview, 49-33. Rio Hondo, which is 10-9 overall, will host Raymondville at noon on Saturday, Dec. 28.
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