Strong 2nd Half Propels Navarro Lady Panthers to the Area Round

Chris Austin

(Seguin) -- The Navarro Runnin’ Lady Panthers came out strong in the 3rd quarter turning a one-point halftime deficit into sizeable lead, as they knocked off Cuero 47-34 in the UIL Bi-District round Monday night at Seguin High School.

The teams battled back and forth in the 1st half as both squads traded blows with the Lady Gobblers holding a 22-21 lead at the break. The Lady Panthers were lead by Tatum Harborth who scored 12 points in the game’s first 16 minutes including a three-pointer just before the buzzer to cut Cuero’s lead down to one.

In the third quarter, Navarro’s Ryanne Hepp poured in five points to get the Lady Panther offense rolling as they outscored the Lady Gobblers 15-5 in the decisive quarter to take control of the game. Following the game, Navarro head coach Darrell Harborth credited Hepp for her effort in helping turn the game in the Lady Panthers’ favor.

“When Ryanne can contribute like that, it’s always better for us. (I’m) proud for her and glad she was able to do those things. She’s always a defense stopper for us and she has to guard those bigger kids, so kudos to her.”

Navarro would keep the foot on the gas in the 4th quarter as they more than doubled up Cuero in the 2nd half, winning the half 26-12. Harborth said the 1st half was a challenge, but he was proud of the way his team played coming out of the locker room.

“Any playoff win is a big win. I don’t think it was our best effort tonight especially in the 1st half, but that is playoff basketball. Give Cuero credit, they did a great job. They have some kids with some size. When somebody has size like that it hurts us a little bit, but (I’m) pretty proud of our 2nd half and how things came out.”

The Lady Gobblers featured a sophomore twin tower combination of 6 foot center Aubrey Bowles and 5’10” forward Arissa Carbonara. The two combined for nine points in the 1st half, but were held to only two points in the 2nd half by the stout Lady Panther defense.

Tatum Harborth lead the Navarro offensive attack with 20 points. Hepp added nine and Tegan Harborth had seven. The win was the Lady Panthers’ 30th victory overall on the season.

Navarro moves onto the Area round and will next face the winner of tonight’s Iowa Colony/Brookshire Royal Bi-District matchup. The UIL Area round takes place later this week.