DALLAS -- It could not have gotten off to a worse start for the women's basketball team on Friday night. Prestonwood Christian came out shooting on fire and the Friars were the exact opposite. Not only were the ladies not making shots, but they were turning the ball over and not playing to their defensive standard. This all led to BL trailing 19-5 after the first quarter.

Everyone in the gym wearing black and white were shell-shocked while the visitors were cheering loudly. Could being down two starters and two bench players for a big part of the season finally caught up with the Friars?

In the second quarter, freshman Fre Vowels put that question on hold as she had one of the best individual performances I have ever seen in one quarter. Vowels single-handedly got the Friars back in the game by scoring 19 points, yes one nine points, in the second quarter alone. She did that by casually hitting five threes, one layup and two free throws. What even makes it more impressive, is Vowels shot 0-4 from the field in the first quarter. But as the old saying goes, shooters shoot and that is exactly what she did to give the Friars a 30-27 halftime lead.

The Friars needed every bit of it too because no one else had found their shot yet. Everyone not named Vowels wearing white had shot a combined 4-18 (22%) from the field.

Vowels was not the only freshman to step up in a big way. Iyana Axson also had a huge game for the Friar down low on both the offensive and defensive sides of the court. Axson, who started in her fifth game of the season and second in district play, finished with double-digit rebounds for the second time in her young career. She also added seven points and four steals for BL.

In the second half, Natalie Cardenas and company pulled away leading to the 58-37 victory for the Friars' fourth win in a row. Cardenas finished with 18 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. She continues to light up the stat sheet every game.

Ellery Sample continues to play big in the paint as she secured 13 rebounds and had three blocks on the night.

After the first quarter, the ladies shut down PCA, including holding the Lions to zero fourth quarter points. In the final three quarters, PCA had 21 turnovers and only shot 6-27 from the field. The Lions score more points in the first quarter (19) than they did in the final three quarters combined (18).

The Friars have now won 20 games this season. This marks the eighth season in a row that the women's basketball team has gotten 20+ wins on the season, having done it 34 of the last 35 seasons.

Next Up:
The Friars travel to Fort Worth to take on Nolan Catholic on Friday, January 27th. BLHS defeated the Lady Vikings earlier this year 61-43. You can read that full recap here.

Around TAPPS last Friday:
John Paul II defeated Parish, 54-34
Nolan Catholic defeated Ursuline, 83-61
Southwest Christian defeated TCA, 43-28

TAPPS 6A - District 1 Standings:
John Paul II: 25-4, 7-0
Bishop Lynch: 20-9, 6-1
Nolan Catholic: 22-8, 5-2
Parish Episcopal: 19-6, 3-4
Prestonwood: 12-13, 1-5
Ursuline Academy: 12-13, 1-6
Trinity Christian: 8-16, 0-6

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