Wylie freshman Sade Mathes (11) battles fora rebound during Monday’s 70-37 home win over Rowlett. With the victory, the Lady Pirates clinched the District 9-6A title. Photo by Elijah Kloepping / C&S Media
By David Wolman
The Wylie girls basketball team has been a force throughout District 9-6A play, and it culminated with a district championship Monday night.
The clincher was a 70-37 home win over Rowlett at Montgomery Center. The victory improved Wylie’s District 9-6A record to a perfect 14-0. The Lady Pirates have won 10 consecutive games overall and are ranked No. 22 in the latest Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 6A state poll.
“All of the credit goes to the players,” head coach Nate Heckelman said. “They’re the ones who have embraced the challenge and have wanted to get better every day, and they’re feeding off each other every day.”
It didn’t take long for Wylie to assert its will.
Rowlett got within 2-1 after sophomore Aarian Fairchild made a free throw just 57 seconds into the game. However, it was all Wylie from there. The Lady Pirates answered with a 17-0 run, highlighted by a long-range jumper from just inside the 3-point line by freshman Peyton Kelly, to take a commanding 19-1 lead.
The hot perimeter shooting continued for Wylie in the second quarter, and the Lady Pirates’ defense was just as dominant. Wylie forced 19 Rowlett turnovers in the first half. Offensively, it took just four more minutes for Wylie to build a 21-point lead, and the Lady Pirates continued to add to the advantage.
Freshman Sade Mathes, coming off her first career triple-double, led Wylie with 20 points. Junior Shamya Johnson scored 14 points, all in the first half. Junior Roni Hartfield added 10.
Meanwhile, the Wylie boys positioned themselves to claim a second consecutive district championship.
The Pirates withstood an early third-quarter surge from Rowlett before pulling away late in the period to earn an impressive 70-46 win over the Eagles.
Rowlett entered the game with a 7-3 district record and just 1 1/2 games behind first-place Wylie. The Eagles outworked the Pirates on the offensive glass to open the third quarter.
Wylie’s 32-22 halftime lead was trimmed to 34-31 after a steal and two Jordan Jones free throws with 4:37 remaining in the third quarter.
Rowlett nearly forced another turnover on the ensuing possession, but Wylie was able to find an open player out of a double team. Sophomore Tre Pierce received the cross-court pass and drilled a 3-pointer, igniting a 16-5 run to close the quarter. The Pirates later pushed the lead to 59-38 following a steal and layup.
Senior Darian Romano led Wylie with 19 points. Senior Theo Allen added 11, while senior Chase Hughes finished with nine.
With the win, the Pirates improved to 10-2 in District 9-6A. Rowlett fell to 7-4.
“Rowlett was chirping the whole game, and our guys stayed together,” head coach Stephen Pearce said. “They stayed focused, and our bench brought good energy.”
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