DALLAS, TX -- Bishop Lynch trailed by one at halftime to John Paul II and after the next eight minutes of incredible play, the Friars held a commanding 38-23 lead going into the fourth quarter. They would hold onto the lead and earn the hard-fought district win 50-38 over the Lady Cardinals.

Iyana Axson and Fre Vowels led the charge in the 21-5 third quarter, as they combined for 12 of the 21 points while also having four steals. Both sophomores finished with 13 points while Axson also added seven rebounds. Axson was named to the Dallas Morning News "Tuesday top performers" list for her play.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Not much was going the Friars' way to start the very important game last night. Bishop Lynch didn't make their first field goal until 1:43 left in the first quarter when Vowels hit a runner in the paint to make the score 9-4 in favor of the visitors. The ladies finished the quarter trailing 11-6 after shooting just 2-17 from the field with four turnovers.

The Friars picked up the pace in the second quarter which led to easy buckets. Londyn Perry's corner three-pointer with 3:23 left in the quarter brought Bishop Lynch within three points at 16-13 and turned the momentum of the game. If it wasn't for a chaotic buzzer-beater by John Paul II, the Friars would have gone into halftime with the lead but instead tailed by just one point 18-17.

The third quarter is when everything changed for the Friars and the game. As mentioned above, Vowels and Axson were a big part of the turnaround in the third quarter but they didn't do it alone. Aliyah Goins scored all five of her points in the third, including a big three-pointer to give the Friars a four-point lead at 24-20 with 5:33 left. Ellery Sample had three assists and four rebounds in the quarter to help the Friars take a 15-point advantage into the final quarter.

John Paul II is the back-to-back state champ, and they showed that by not going away easily. Even with all the momentum and the gym going wild, the Lady Cardinals did their best to get back into the game by making four threes in the quarter. The Friars were able to hold them back by hitting two themselves; one by Mikah Ford to extend the lead to 41-32 and the other by Vowels after an acrobatic pass from Goins to make it 46-35 with a little over three minutes to play.

Bishop Lynch Game Leaders
Points: Iyana Axson & Fre Vowels | 13
Assists: Ellery Sample | 6
Rebounds: Ellery Sample | 9
Steals: Iyana Axson & Aliyah Goins | 4
Blocks: Adriana Medina | 1
+/-: Iyana Axson & Aliyah Goins | +18

SUB-VARSITY:
Freshman: The freshman team played a great game last night, defeating John Paul II 45-28. They are now 13-9, 3-1 on the season.

AROUND TAPPS ON FRIDAY:
6A - District 1
Parish Episcopal defeated Ursuline Academy, 62-55
Prestonwood Christian defeated Trinity Christian, 55-21

TAPPS 6A - DISTRICT 1 STANDINGS
1) Ursuline Academy: 19-9, 9-2
2) Bishop Lynch: 22-12, 7-3
3) Prestonwood Christian Academy: 25-6, 7-3
4) John Paul II: 17-17, 6-5
5) Parish Episcopal: 15-13, 5-5
6) Nolan Catholic: 15-17, 2-8
7) Trinity Christian Academy: 5-24, 0-10

NEXT UP:
The Friars continue their home stand as they host Trinity Christian Academy on Friday, February 9 at 6:00 p.m. CT.
 

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