The Lady Jackets claimed the top spot in District 12-3A with a resounding 62-42 win over the Edgewood Lady Bulldogs last Friday in Grand Saline.

A special one game playoff had been arranged to determine district champion and first playoff seed. The game did not disappoint.

Mineola weathered a rough first half of play. They were out of sync. Puzzled by the Edgewood press and prone to turnovers (11 in the first half), the Lady Jackets were fighting to stay in the game. 

Edgewood went to the halftime break with a 25-20 lead and seemed to be in control of the game tempo and momentum.

The game was decided in the third quarter. Collectively, the Lady Jackets simply wanted to win more. They out-hustled, out-thought and out-shot their opponents, opening the quarter with a 15-0 run. 

While Sabria Dean was inventing new ways to score, Meghan Brewington hit five 3-pointers in the second half. The initial surge from Mineola shocked Edgewood.

There was no hesitation breaking Edgewood’s press in the second half as Mineola aggressively exploited the middle of the court. Defensively, the Lady Jackets closed all Lady Bulldog shooters by a step, contesting all shots.  

The Lady Bulldogs are a quality team and they fought back to within seven points, 46-39, at the end of three quarters.        

With momentum still swung heavily in Mineola’s favor, the Lady Jackets went on a frenzy of scoring in the final quarter.

Mineola outscored Edgewood 16-3 in the fourth quarter to emphatically claim the district title.