Lions struggle against formidable Del Valle teams

By Alonzo Garza
POST-REGISTER

The Lion basketball teams had a tough time with Del Valle last Saturday Jan. 20. I overheard one coach say it was like David against Goliath at the beginning of the games and although the comparison would have fit perfectly if the Lions had won, it did not make much sense by the end of the day. I”m sure he meant that the Del Valle C

ardinals were formidable competitors and would prove to be tough birds to pluck.
The Freshmen Lion basketball team lost to Del Valle with a score of 64-43. The Junior Varsity Lions had the toughest match and ended up with a score of 83-33. The Varsity Lions played well and fought hard for their final score of 74-55. All three teams gave all they had and earned every point they made.

Freshmen
The freshmen team started out too slow in the first half of the game leaving most of the scoring to the Cardinals. The first quarter netted only six points for the Lions. The Cardinals put 15 points up on the scoreboard for their team. Scoring for the Lions were G. McAfee and Brain Martinez with a two pointer and a free throw each. The score for the first quarter was left at 15-6.
The second quarter had both teams adding two extra points to their final score for the quarter. The Lions added eight points while the Cardinals added 17 points to their scores. Scoring in the second quarter for the Lions were McAfee with a two pointer and a free throw, Roy Garcia and Karl Greiger with a two pointer each and Martinez with a free throw. The first half ended with a score of 32-14.
The second half of the game became exciting with both teams fighting for points. The Lions played well but the points were stacked up against them. The Lions put 14 points on the board but the Cardinals added 16 more points to their score. Scoring in the third quarter came from Joseph Gonzales with two three pointers, S. Juarez with a couple of two pointers, McAfee and Roy Garcia with a two pointer each. Scoring ended at 48-28.
The Freshmen Lions scored 15 points in the fourth quarter while the Cardinals scored 16 points. Scoring in the final quarter for the Lions were Juarez with five two pointers for a total of 10 points and Martinez with a three pointer and a two pointer for a total of five points. Scoring for the game ended at 64-43.

Junior Varsity
The JV Lions had the toughest match of the day. They lost by a total 50 points and it started from the very beginning. The JV Lions put 11 points on the board during the first quarter and the Cardinals put 18 points up for their team. Scoring in the first quarter for the Lions were Joseph Gonzales with a three pointer and Joseph Torrez, Stephen Brumley, Ryan Carrasco and Ricky Rodriguez each with a two pointer. The first quarter ended with an 18-11 score.
There was a definite slump in the scoring in the second quarter. The Lions added only six points to their score while the Cardinals stacked on 19 more points. Scoring for the Lions in the second quarter were Gonzales with a three pointer, Caesar Martinez with a two pointer and Kody Zimmerhanzel with a free throw. The first half ended at 37-17.
The JV Lions came back from the halftime break with the right spirit but were not able to overcome their point deficit. They scored 11 more points in the third quarter but the Cardinals added 18 points to their score. Scoring for the Lions were Jeremiah Johnson with three free throws, Torrez with a three pointer, Gonzales and Carrasco with a two pointer each and C. Martinez with a free throw. Scoring in the third ended at 55-25.
The final quarter came with a significant decline in scoring for the Lions and the total opposite for the Cardinals. The Lions added five points to their final score while Del Valle piled on 28 additional points to their score. Scoring in the fourth quarter for the Lions were C. Martinez and Brumley each with a two pointer and Christian Estrada with a free throw.

Varsity
The Varsity Lions began losing their game in the first quarter by scoring only eight points and allowing the Cardinals to take 21 points for a 13 point lead at the end of the first quarter. Terance Waldon and Jonathan Gonzales each made a three point shot. Michael Schulle made a two point shot. Scoring at the end of the first quarter was 21-8.
The second quarter was evenly matched as far as scoring and playing was concerned. Both teams played hard and kept their guard up. Defense was great on both sides and it made for an exciting quarter. The Lions earned seven points and allowed the Cardinals to make only six points in the quarter. Scoring for the Lions in the second were Clayton Parker with a couple of two pointers, Gonzales with a two pointer and Schulle with a free throw. The score at the end of the first half was 27-15.
The Lions came back from their halftime break with the will to win. They made outstanding plays and were exactly the type of competitors they should have been in the first quarter. They played their hearts out in the third quarter and made a little dent in their point spread. The only thing against the Lions in the third was the clock. Scoring in the third quarter were Waldon with one three pointer and three two pointers for a total of nine points in the quarter. Schulle made three two pointers for a total of six points. Kerry Lampkin made a three pointer and a free throw for a total of four points and Alex Joseph made two-point shot. The Lions added 21 points to their score in the third while the Cardinals added 19 points. Scoring ended at 46-36 at the end of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was exciting to watch up until the end when the scoring went entirely to the Cardinals who ended up adding another 28 points to their final score while the Lions added 19 points to theirs. It was great high school basketball. Scoring for the Lions in the final quarter were Dustin Garza with three two pointers and two free throws for a total of eight points. Waldon made a three pointer and a couple of two pointers for a total of seven points. Lampkin made a couple of two pointers for a total of four points. The final score for the game was 74-55.
The Lions will play against Canyon (away) on Jan. 26 and against Steele (home) on Jan. 30. Please come out and support your Lion teams. See you at the game.
agarza@post-register.com