Houston’s girls basketball team fell to 4-9 after a loss to Mountain Grove Thursday (Jan. 16) at home. While the team tried to come back from a 24-point deficit at the end of the half, the game ended 61-40.
“Last night, we played better than we have all year,” HHS head coach Micah Lee said. “Mountain Grove is one of the toughest teams we will see this season, and even though we didn’t get a win, we really stepped it up to compete.”
Lee said one of the biggest things the team focused on was getting past Mountain Grove’s aggressive press. Although the girls kept Mountain Grove on their toes, the Tigers trailed 25-7 at the end of the first quarter.
Houston shot 5-for-14 from the free-throw line, with the only 3-pointer made by senior guard Lacey Cavaness, who scored 9 points. Senior guard Makinley Aaron scored 10, while senior forward Sophia Crites scored 7. Sophomore forward Summer Seago scored 6, and junior forwards Gracyn McNiell and Ashley Gilbert scored 4 each.
Mountain Grove Senior Raylee Stenzel scored 16 points with three 3-pointers, and junior Stella Benson scored 15 points with two 3-pointers; the team shot 17-for-23 from the free-throw line. Mountain Grove is now 12-2.
Houston (4-9; 1-1 SCA) plays next in the Thayer Winter Classic. The fourth-seeded Lady Tigers face five-seed Dora at 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 20. The next home game is Monday, Feb. 3 against Thayer.