BUDA — In what the local community would describe as being nothing short of a miraculous season, the Thrall Tigers (30-5) continued to raise the bar for Thrall athletics over the weekend, clinching their first-ever final-four appearance. Saturday’s 66-45 blowout win over the Santa Maria Cougars (20-13) sent the Tigers to the UIL state championships in San Antonio beginning Friday, March 8.
“I knew before the season that I had a really good team with a lot of experience and that had played together for several years,” said Thrall Coach Charles Tindol. “They have a lot of chemistry, and I felt if we could stay healthy, we could make a run in the playoffs. I don’t know that I thought we would make the state tournament at the beginning of the season, but I definitely thought we could make a good run.”
Using their height advantage Saturday, the Tigers outscored the smaller Cougars 40-12 in the paint. Dawson Meiske scored 23 in the championship game. He had 13 in the opening period, which helped the Tigers to an 11-0 run that blew the game open midway through the first quarter. Carson Ball finished off the first quarter scoring with a threepoint jumper from the corner with 17 seconds on the clock that gave the Tigers a 26-14 lead.
In the second period, Ball started the period where he left off in the first. A three-pointer from the left corner put the Tigers up 29-14 just 19 seconds into the quarter. An 8-1 run by the Cougars trimmed the lead to 30-22 with 4:09 to play in the first half, but the Tigers finished the quarter outscoring Santa Maria 12-2, and led 42-24 at the half.
The scoring slowed a bit in the third quarter. Meiske added six more points to his growing total, but the Tigers seemed content in working the clock. By the end of the period, the lead remained at 18. Thrall held a 52-34 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
In the final period, Santa Maria opened the scoring with a threepointer, but the Tigers answered with a 10-0 run that pushed the score to 62-37. Both teams then emptied their benches, as the Tigers claimed victory, and the Cougars bowed in defeat.
Steven Walker, who scored 13 points for the game, added a seasonhigh 23 rebounds, while Meiske grabbed 16 boards.
The Tigers will face the Shelbyville Dragons (28-7) in the state semifinals on Friday, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Alamodome. The winner will play the winner of the first semifinal matchup between Lipan (34-4) and New Home (31-7).
“I think they guys are taking this week and the tournament very seriously, but I don’t think you’re human if the distractions with the tournament don’t affect you,” Tindol said. “But, I think they are driven though, and they aren’t satisfied with just going to state. I know they will have jitters, but I think the drive they have will take over when the game starts, and that they will play a great game.”
