LAMPASAS—Playing three games in a week is a daunting task under any circumstances, but in a playoff setting against superior opponents, is on a whole different level. Fatigue may factor in.
Participating in their third playoff game in the past seven days, the No. 18 Thorndale Lady Dogs were worn down by No. 16 Mason, 51-30 Monday night, in the Class 2A, Region IV quarterfi nals.
Mason (31-8) moves on to play Falls City (24-12) in the regional semifi nals.
Falls City demolished Woodsboro 61-14 Monday.
Thorndale—making its 16th straight playoff appearance—finishes the season 27-6 and it marks the furtherest the Lady Dogs have advanced since 2013 when they appeared in the regional finals.
This may be the year Mason fi nally breaks through to the state tournament after being stopped in the regional fi nals the last four seasons by Weimar. Mason has averaged 29 wins in the past seven years.
Thorndale did Mason a favor last week by disposing of Weimar in the area round.
“Great season,” said Thorndale Coach Bradley Dickerson, who has collected 427 wins in 18 years as head coach. “To overcome all this team did and win 27 games and undefeated district, bi district and area championships speaks volumes about the character of these young ladies. Couldn’t be more proud.
“We didn’t have our best game (tonight) and couldn’t capitalize on opportunities. None the less, very proud of these girls.”
The Lady Dogs score the majority of their points from the inside and it was clogged up Monday by Mason’s formidable 6-0 center Ruby Magnus.
The junior put up 16 points and gathered 15 rebounds.
Magnus is the daughter of PRCA Hall of Fame team roper Tyler Magnus and is a team roper herself.
The Lady Punchers also featured another 6-foot center in Mackenzie Cano.
Thorndale recognized a couple of familiar faces on the other side in twins Peyton and Presley Anastas.
The Anastas twins were standout athletes in Thorn-dale and started for the Lady Dogs last season before moving to Mason.
The junior guards combined for 18 points against their former teammates
Slashing Thorndale leading scorer Kylie Buchanan was most affected by Magnus’ presence and was limited to 12 points, with eight of those coming in the fourth quarter.
The Lady Dogs got off to a nightmarish start, missing their fi rst 15 shots and turning the ball over 10 times while fi nding themselves trailing 12-0 heading into the second quarter.
By the time Devin Dickerson recorded Thorndale’s first basket in the second quarter, the Lady Dogs had gone 10 minutes, 40 seconds without scoring.
Jordyne Bigan’s desperation three-pointer from half court at the halftime buzzer closed the score to 21-8.
The third quarter has been Thorndale’s separation section and it appeared it was going to be again Monday as Madison Smith’s two baskets and Buchanan’s pair of free throws closed the gap to 23-14 at the 4:30 mark.
However, Mason ran off nine straight, including a couple of baskets from Peyton Anastas and a three-pointer from Presley Anastas, to squash the comeback effort.
Thorndale would never get that close again.
Weimar
The Lady Dogs broke open a close game by throwing down on defense in their 45-34 victory over Weimar in Giddings Thursday night.
Weimar (21-15) could manage just six points in the second half as the Lady Dogs slowly pulled away.
Clinging to a 29-28 halftime lead, Thorndale clamped down on defense and held Weimar scoreless in the third quarter, while building some space, 37-28, heading into the fi nal period.
The Lady Dogs continued to apply the pressure in the fourth, allowing just six points.
Buchanan worked for 17 points, almost equally divided between the halves. Bigan added nine fi rst half points.
Weimar had knocked Thorndale out of the playoffs, 55-32, at the area level last season.
“It’s been a couple of years since we’ve done that, so, they’re excited. I’m excited for them,” Dickerson said after the game. “This season, they just seem to keep getting better, keep going, keep doing good things and it’s just fun to watch them play.”
The Lady Dogs lose Buchanan, Dickerson, Caitlin Garcia, Jordyne Bigan and Cheyenne Winkler.
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