In a pair of road games last week, the Houston High School girls basketball team fell twice.
The Lady Tigers were defeated 54-18 in a South Central Association conference game Tuesday at Mountain Grove, and lost a nonconference game Thursday at Plato, 47-36.
In the contest at Mountain Grove, the host squad took control early by jumping out to a 21-4 lead by the end of the first quarter.
The Lady Panthers held the Lady Tigers to only 1 field goal in each of the first two periods and none in the third to lead 48-10 going into the final 8 minutes.
Junior Makinley Aaron and sophomore Gracyn McNiell each scored 6 points for Houston, while sophomore Kynlee Weaver added 5.
Mountain Grove senior Campbell Welch led all scorers in the game, pouring in 15 points in the first quarter and finishing with 23.
At Plato, the Lady Tigers trailed 8-3 at the end of the first quarter but then exploded for 19 points in the second period and were ahead 22-17 at halftime. But the host Lady Eagles outscored their guests 16-6 in the third quarter and 14-4 in the fourth to secure the win.
Junior guard Lacey Cavaness led Houston in scoring in the game with 11 points, while Aaron and McNiell each had 9 and Weaver added 5.
Junior Tavi Craddock led Plato in scoring with a game-high 24 points, while junior Makayla Fletcher had 10.
This week, the Lady Tigers (3-20, 0-5 SCA) conclude the regular season with a pair of conference home games, hosting Ava on Tuesday and Willow Springs on Thursday.
Next week, Houston will play in the Class 3 District 10 Tournament at Seymour. Houston is seeded fifth in the 6-team bracket and will take on No. 4 Seymour in a first round game at 6 p.m. Monday.
Other teams in the field include top-seeded Licking, No. 2 Liberty, No. 3 Willow Springs and No. 6 Conway.
Semifinal contests will be played Wednesday (Feb. 21) and the district championship game is set for 6 p.m. Friday (Feb. 23).
