By John Loop
Sports Editor

The Cowgirls went into the locker room at halftime of Tuesday night’s game against the Denton Ryan Lady Raiders, with something they haven’t had much all season: a lead.

But the girls could not keep the momentum going in the second half, as Coppell (3-14, 0-4 in District 5-5A) lost a hard-fought to the Lady Raiders (6-16, 2-2 in 5-5A), 46-35.

The Raider trio of senior post Kimani Henderson, junior guard Ashtyn Lovett and sophomore Sydney Lundgren combined to score 30 of the Denton Ryan’s 46 points. But the Cowgirls’ up-tempo attack kept Ryan out of their normal offensive skin.

Senior guard Caitie Galvin led the Cowgirls with 10 points, and junior post Elena Grijalva chipped in eight points and corralled five rebounds.

The Cowgirls, led by Grijalva, seemed to have the edge in rebounding on the night, 16-13, but the Raiders made the most of their offensive rebounds in particular.

For the most part, Coppell had the game in control until a Lundgren three-pointer gave Ryan a 24-23 lead midway through the third quarter. Senior guard Niki Agarwal provided a defensive spark, turning a couple of nicely-timed steals into a layup and two free throws, but the energy was short-lived.

Coppell moves to their final game of the first round of district play at Lewisville High School on Friday against the Lady Farmers.