Stacey High takes power to the court

LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, TEXAS — Backed by stands full of supporters, the Stacey High School basketball teams held their home openers Nov. 13 against Saint Mary's Hall High School.

The girl's varsity team kicked off the evening with a nail-biting finish.

The Lady Eagles took a 32-23 lead into halftime and were paced by a stifling full court press.

Point guard Shana Holmes had 11 points in the first half.

However, the team's press led to foul trouble for Holmes and center Cordia Haravatia, which caught up with the team midway through the third quarter.

After holding Saint Mary's Hall scoreless for the first half of the third quarter, and building a 17 point lead, Holmes picked up her fourth foul and had to take a seat on the bench next to Haravatia, who had picked up her fourth foul late in the second quarter.

Saint Mary's Hall closed the gap by scoring 13 unanswered points, setting the crowd up for an exciting finish.

Holmes and Haravatia played the entire fourth quarter, leading their team to victory in a game that saw six lead changes in the fourth quarter.

Holmes finished with 26 points and Haravatia contributed 13 points in the team's victory.

The game was still up for grabs until a Saint Mary's Hall player grabbed a rebound with 9.8 seconds left and called a timeout.

The team was out of timeouts resulting in a technical foul. The call gave the Eagles two free throws and the ball, which allowed them to escape with a 63-61 win.

Afterward, the boy's varsity team squared off against a tough Saint Mary's Hall team.

The game started with several turnovers from both teams, with the teams combining for just 18 points in the first quarter.

Both teams settled down in the second quarter, but strong defenses kept the score low for the entire half.

The Stacey Eagles took a two-point lead into halftime, leading 22-20.

Saint Mary's Hall started the second half with a full-court press that gave the Eagles some trouble, and Saint Mary's Hall took a 37-35 lead into the fourth quarter.

Eagles shooting guard, Michael Loar scored eight points in the fourth quarter, but turnovers and a short bench caught up to the home team, and the Eagles fell 57-46.

Loar ended the game with 20 points, and small forward David Clark added 14 points for the Eagles.

Both teams will play at home on Nov. 27. Games will begin at 5 p.m.