Even though the O'Connor Panthers have not done well against the Harlan Hawks recently (they were 1-6 in their previous seven matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. O'Connor walked away with a 53-43 win over Harlan. The victory was all the more spectacular given O'Connor's disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 278th, while Harlan is ranked 120th).
Leading O'Connor to victory were Simone Pryor and Casey Chavez. Pryor scored 20 points along with five assists, while Chavez scored 17 points along with seven rebounds and three steals. Chavez is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last eight games she's played. Another player making a difference was Mary Loeffler, who scored six points.
When it comes to explaining why Harlan lost, one person who can't be blamed is Alexa Romero. Despite the final result, she scored 21 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Romero has scored all season. Jaydin Thornton Murray Garrigan was another key contributor, scoring six points along with five rebounds and five steals.
Even though they lost, Harlan smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 25 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
The victory got O'Connor back to even at 13-13. As for Harlan, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 14-10.
O'Connor will be playing at home against Taft at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Taft is coming into the game on a five-game losing streak. As for Harlan, they will head out on the road to take on Warren at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. That game will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Destiny Hernandez and Loghan Hamilton.
