No. 1 Wall Girls Outlast No. 3 Idalou to Reach Regional Final

SNYDER, TX — The Wall girls’ offense arrived a little late to their regional semifinal matchup with Idalou on Tuesday.

But the Lady Hawks’ defense was there from start to finish.

No. 1-ranked Wall overcame a slow start in which it scored only four points in the first quarter to take down No. 3 Idalou 35-25 to advance to the regional final for the first time since 2019.

Wall (34-3) will play later this week against No. 2 Coahoma (34-1) for the right to play in the 3A Division II state semifinals.

Idalou’s season ended with a record of 30-5.

"I've said it about a thousand times, we preach defensive every single day," Wall head coach Silas Crisler said. "Our girls, when the challenge is at its highest, when it's the biggest moment, our kids continue to show up over and over again. ...

"Defensively, I will say it over and over, I think we're one of the best in the state at it."

Idalou's defense stifled Wall early, but the Lady Hawks still trailed only 6-4 at the end of the first quarter.

They finally found their footing late in the second quarter with an 8-0 run to take a 12-9 lead into halftime.

Wall’s defense continued to lock Idalou down in the second half as the Lady Hawks took a 23-14 lead heading into the fourth quarter, and they showed poise down the stretch to finish off the win.

Wall junior McKenzie Lopez stepped up with perhaps the best game of her career with a game-high 19 points to go along with five rebounds and five steals.

“We definitely struggled at the beginning and didn’t score for almost nine minutes,” Lopez said. “We were playing defense and just making sure to come together to get stops.”

Lopez talked about her offensive performance, where she scored the most points of her high school career.

“My teammates were like you’re hot Kenzie, just keep shooting,” she said. “They kept passing me the ball, and all credit to my teammates for their amazing assists. I just let it fly and prayed to God.”

Idalou was within 25-19 with just under five minutes to play when Wall freshman Brynlee Graves knocked down a huge 3-pointer from the corner for her first basket of the night, giving the Lady Hawks some important breathing room.

"It's hilarious. We do a shooting chart, and she's one of the top three shooters, but she's a freshman. Every game, she's had these moments where she's open, and then she won't shoot it," Crisler said. "Our bench is screaming, 'Shoot it, Brynlee, shoot it. And then tonight, no hesitation, she shot it, and I had a feeling it was going in."

Crisler talked about the Lady Hawks' upcoming test against Coahoma in an exciting matchup of the top two ranked teams in the state. 

The details for when and where that game will be haven't been finalized yet.

"We're excited for that challenge, but I think two of the best teams in the state played tonight," Crisler said. "That intensity, that grinding-it-out each possession, that was one of the hardest games we've had in my two years here. I think all that does is mentally prepare us for the next one.

"We had a tough one against Tolar (in the area round). We had a tough one against Idalou. And now we just get another tough one. I told the girls, why make it an easy route? You want to be the best, so let's beat No. 3, and now let's beat No. 2. But it's a one-more mentality, so we'll take care of the next one."

This story will be updated.

Wall 35, Idalou 25

Idalou   6   3   5   11 — 25

Wall   4   8   11   12 — 35

IDALOU — Karsyn  Lutrick 14, Preslie Wall 5, Paytonn Spann 3, Megan Hall 3. 

WALL — Kathrine Lewis 2, McKenzie Lopez 19, Jewels Johnson 7, Brynleee Graves 5, Emery Harper 2.