BIG SANDY, Texas-It was too much of a thriller for McLeod coach Marty Francis.
The Lady Longhorns, champions of District 15-2A, advanced to the Region II-2A quarterfinals Friday by outlasting Campbell, 69-65. McLeod advances to play Union Grove or Wolfe City.
A turnover by the Longhorns with three seconds left in the game and McLeod leading by two, Campbell had an opportunity to win.
Campbell coach Joe Garcia called a timeout to set up a play, but the play never developed as the inbounds pass went untouched across the court. Junior Selena Moon scored a meaningless layup at the final buzzer.
"We were lucky to be in the game they way they were shooting their threes and free throws in the first half," Francis said. "We're small, but we've got a lot of heart. That's the only reason we outrebounded (45-44) them tonight."
Officiating was tight with three Campbell girls and one McLeod player fouling out. The Lady Indians were also whistled for a technical.
The outcome might not have been in doubt if the Longhorns hadn't struggled from the free throw line. They finished the game 14 of 33, and only 4 of 12 in the fourth quarter.
McLeod (27-6) was leading 64-57 when sophomore post Amanda Mothersell scored with 2:18 left to ignite a six-point run. Mothersell scored again with 2:01 remaining and a trey by Gaby Resendiz made it 64-64.
Free throws by Glenn, who scored a game-high 30 points, kept the Longhorns on top. Shelby Davis poured in 18 points and pulled down 15 rebounds before fouling out of the game.
The Horns also got an outstanding effort from Moon, who scored 10 points in the second half, while grabbing seven rebounds.
Mothersell led the Indians with 16 points and 15 rebounds, while Resendiz contributed 17 point.
Campbell (25-10), runner-up in 14-2A to Martin's Mill, put on a shooting clinic in the first half, making all 11 of its free throw attempts and seven 3-pointers.
Still, the Longhorns were able to rally from a 10-point deficit in the opening seconds of the second quarter to capture the lead at 26-24 on a layup by Glenn, who finished the half with 14 points.
Davis was a major factor in the comeback with 11 points and 11 rebounds in the first two quarters.
The Indians got hot from long range after McLeod had taken the lead with a pair of treys by Taylor Gilcrest. Five different players had 3-pointers for the Tribe in the first half.
Campbell built its early lead with its' hot shooting and dominating the glass, while forcing eight turnovers.
Those numbers changed dramatically in the second quarter with McLeod pulling down 20 of its 26 rebounds.
Campbell 21 17 7 20 - 65
McLeod 14 16 20 19 - 69
CHS (65): Gilcrest 4 0-0 11; Resendiz 5 3-6 17; Toland 0 3-4 3; L. Romero 1 2-2 5; Mothersell 5 5-7 16; Clark 2 4-4 9; Hoover 2 0-2 4, TOTALS 19 17-25 65.
McLEOD (69): Glenn 11 8-16 30; Moon 5 2-4 12; Ellis 2 2-8 6; Davis 7 1-3 18; A. Parker 1 1-2 3, TOTALS 26 14-33 69.
3-point goals: CHS-Resendiz 4,Gilcrest 3, L. Romero, Mothersell, Clark. MCL-Davis 3. Team fouls: Campbell 27, McLeod 21. Fouled Out: Toland, L. Romero, Mothersell, Davis. Technical foul: Mothersell.