Wylie 44, Merkel 37
MERKEL -- Discipline at the free-throw line paid off for the Wylie Lady Bulldogs here Friday night as they clinched their first District 6-3A victory, 44-37 over Merkel.
"They basically beat us at the free-throw line and the offensive boards," said Merkel coach Bill Stockton, whose Lady Badgers fell to 8-5 and 0-1 on the season.
The Lady Bulldogs made 15 of 18 free throws in the fourth quarter, including eight in a row down the stretch by Leah Wilson. Overall, Wylie hit 21 of 25 at the line, for 84 percent.
"It was a defensive battle all night long," Wylie head coach Randy Courtney said. "We shot 84 percent at the line -- that was real big. Both teams played man defense and got down and got after each other. Both teams werevery patient offensively. The kids did a great job of rebounding tonight."
Both teams played a fairly-even game throughout, except in the second stanza when Wylie outscored Merkel 11-6.
"We hold them to two field goals in the fourth quarter and they make 18 attempts at the free-throw line," Stockton said. "It was just your typical hard-fought man-to-man defensive game."
Kendra Deberry led the Lady Bulldogs with 14 points, and Wilson added 10.
Meanwhile, Amanda Copeland was the top scorer for the Lady Badgers, with 10 points.
Wylie upped its record to 9-7 for the season.
Girls
WYLIE (44) -- Kendra DeBerry 3 8-10 14; Hanna Jones 4 1-1 9; Leah Wilson 1 8-8 10; Meredith Ripley 3 0-0 5; Bliss Williams 2-2 2; Natalie Hatchett 1 2-4 4.
MERKEL (37) -- Jodie Hellums 3 1-3 8; April Fisher 2 1-2 5; Amanda Copeland 4 0-1 10; Jamie Hellums 2 2-3 7; Brittany Burton 1 0-0 2; Bethany Teaff 2 1-1 5.
Wylie 7 11 7 19--44
Merkel 5 6 8 18--37
Halftime score: Wylie 18, Merkel 11. 3-point goals -- Wylie 1-5 (Ripley); Merkel 4-12 (Copeland 2, Jamie Hellums, Jodie Hellums). Fouls -- Wylie 13, Merkel 20. Fouled out -- None. Technicals -- None.
Records -- Wylie 9-7, 1-0; Merkel 8-5, 0-1.
JV score -- Wylie def. Merkel.