Lady Bulldogs defeat Vaqueros, lose to Green Wave

The Virgin Valley High School Lady Bulldogs basketball team ended their dream season Saturday, Feb. 21, at Fernley High School, losing 65-51 to the Green Wave from Churchill County. It was their only loss to a 3A opponent this year. The Lady Dawgs first had to get by Fernley in the semifinal round of the Nevada State Tournament before the finals matchup with Churchill County.

The game against Fernley on Friday, Feb. 20, was a game of two halves. The Dawgs won the first half, 50-25, while the Vaqueros took advantage of poor shooting by the Dawgs to win the second half, 40-26, making the final score 76-65 in favor of the Bulldogs. Bulldog point guard Hannah Waite had a huge first half with 20 points.

Foul trouble and poor shooting by the Dawgs let the Vaqueros creep back into the game, however. The Vaqueros cut the Dawgs lead to 65-45, but Waite kept the lead from getting away from them with nine more points in the period. The Vaqueros opened up the fourth period with a 12-2 run, cutting the Dawgs’ lead to 67-57. Fernley continued to battle the cold Dawgs, cutting the lead to 71-63. Waite responded by scoring the last points for the Dawgs in the 76-65 victory.

Waite finished with 34 points to lead all scorers. Sophomore Ava Noel added 13 points while senior center Hayden Owlsey finished with 12 points. The win moved the Dawgs into the championship matchup with MaxPreps’ top-rated team, the Green Wave, on Saturday afternoon.

The championship game began with each team feeling each other out. The score was 13-13 at the end of the first period. Waite and reserve Angie Anquiano had six and five points, respectively. The Green Wave outscored the Dawgs 17-16 in the second period to take a 30-29 lead at the break. Waite led the Dawgs with 13 points. The third period was a disaster for the Bulldogs, as they managed only six points. Waite scored four of those points. Meanwhile, Churchill County went on a 24-6 run to make the score 54-35 after three periods.

The Bulldogs battled back, outscoring the Green Wave 16-11 in the fourth period, but could not cut the deficit beyond the final score of 65-51. Waite once again led the Dawgs with 21 points. The injured Raia Davis got the opportunity to play, managing six points in the final period.

Despite the loss, the Bulldogs’ future looks bright as they return four starters, Waite, Davis, Noel and Mady Wright, along with five other experienced players.