The Harlan Hawks were the 52-46 winner over the O'Connor Panthers when they last played one another back in December of 2023, but their luck changed this time around. Harlan fell 53-43 to O'Connor on Friday. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as Harlan came into the matchup with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 120th, while O'Connor is ranked 278th).
Despite the loss, Harlan still got an impressive performance from Alexa Romero, who 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.
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 hasn't dropped below two steals for eight straight games. Another player making a difference was Mary Loeffler, who scored six points.
Harlan's defeat ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 14-10. As for O'Connor, the win got them back to even at 13-13.
Harlan will head out on the road to square off against 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. As for O'Connor, they will be playing at home against Taft at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Taft is hoping to put an end to a six-game streak of away losses.
