Friday, Nov. 07, 2008

Legacy, Timberview advance; Mansfield falls

Legacy d. Wyatt 3-0: The adage that "practices makes perfect" couldn’t have been truer for Legacy, which entered Monday night’s Class 4A bi-district playoff match with Fort Worth Wyatt ranked No. 25 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association 4A poll. The Lady Broncos endured one of the tougher non-district schedules on their way to a 14-0 record in District 8-4A.

Legacy beat Wyatt on Monday, 25-9, 25-15, 25-13.

Legacy (25-15) began the season scrimmaging Plano West and Southlake Carroll, who are ranked No. 12 and No. 11, respectively, in the TGCA 5A poll. The Lady Broncos later lost to Plano West in tournament play. The Lady Broncos bested Colleyville Heritage (No. 18 in 5A), lost to Red Oak (No. 3 in 4A), lost to Lake Highlands (No. 6 in 5A), beat Cedar Hill (No. 20 in 5A) and lost to Abilene (No. 15 in 5A), all before district play.

Only time will tell if these matches will pay off as much as coach Jennifer Chandler hopes. But there’s no doubt Legacy, which hasn’t lost since Sept. 9 against Mansfield, won’t be overwhelmed by anyone they’ll see.

"I think that it kind of forces you to compete when you play tough competition," Chandler said. "I think we are a lot stronger in the long run because of it."

Last season Legacy finished 26-11 and lost to a stacked Amarillo team in the area finals. The Lady Broncos beat Midland Lee during their playoff run, which Chandler said translated into a successful off-season.

—William Wilkerson

Timberview d. Arlington Heights 3-0: With scores of 25-12, 25-21 and 25-21, the Timberview Wolves (22-14) have moved on to the second round. After a year of being out of the playoffs, Timberview scored a minor upset in its dismantling of 7-4A district champion Arlington Heights.

"I think that the win was wonderful. With seven seniors, it was a great sight to see. Every kid in high school should have their hands on that gold ball at least once, to be a champion at least once, and these girls can say that," said Timberview coach Beth Wills. "The kids played with confidence and we have done a great job regrouping without our top blocker (injured Mary Adefolarin). She has been a great leader in other ways, and the team has responded."

The win moves them into the Region 1 area matchups, as they will take on Birdville (29-10) on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Grand Prairie High School. Birdville defeated Denton Ryan on Tuesday in five games after losing the first two games.

"Birdville has that focus and they are a scrappy team. That is a good program and we have to be at the top of our game to come out with a win," Wills said. "If we aren’t on top, we are going home, the season and playoffs are over."

Abilene d. Mansfield 3-0: The Tigers (24-11) ended their postseason run Tuesday night with a loss to state-ranked Abilene.

Mansfield finished fourth in a stacked district 4-5A, which featured some of the state’s best. The three Arlington teams that finished ahead of the Tigers moved onto the next round, with their games taking place tonight and Saturday.