8th Mules vs. Tulia & Muleshoe Tourny (1-26&29&31)

8^th Mules vs. Tulia & Muleshoe Tourny (1-26&29&31)

The eighth grade Mules started the week with a disappointing loss to the Tulia Hornets. The Mules rebounded to take the second place trophy in the Muleshoe Junior High Tournament.

The Mules lost to Tulia 28-22 Monday but came back to defeat the Olton Colts 25-22 in the opening round of the tournament. The Mules defeated Nazareth 27-9 Saturday and lost to the Littlefield Wildcats 31-20 in the finals Saturday evening.

Israel Vasquez scored to kick off the Mule offense against Tulia. Luke Del Toro answered a Hornet hoop by scoring in the paint. Raul Sierra finished a fast break for a basket. Vasquez turned in the lane and scored. Tulia hit a trey as the period ended to lead the Mules 9-8.

Ryan Rodriguez finished a fast break to start the second period. Ethan Villa nailed a 3-pointer to keep the Mules within one point. Vasquez scored from the blocks to give the Mules a 15-14 lead. Tulia scored but Rodriguez scored from the blocks and later added the final free throw of the half. The Mules led 18-16 at the intermission.

Rigo Mendoza made the Mules only basket of the third period but the Hornets only managed four points to tie the game at 20-20 with one quarter left to play.

Luke Leal scored near the middle of the final period for the Mules only basket of the quarter.

Vasquez led the Mules with six points and Rodriguez made five points. Villa added three points. Leal, Sierra, Del Toro and Mendoza chipped in two points each.

Rodriguez did most of the damage for the Mules against Olton with 13 points. Sierra added six points and Brady Martinez made a trey for three points. Vasquez had two points and Mendoza chipped in one point.

The Mules made a 13-0 scoring run that included the first two minutes of the second period. The Mules cruised to the win with Rodriguez dominating the game with 14 points. Torres made six points and Leal scored four. Del Toro added two points and Sierra chipped in one point.

It was a close battle between the Mules and Littlefield in the first half. The Mules led 8-6 after the first quarter but trailed 14-12 at the half. Littlefield out scored the Mules 7-4 in the third period and 12-4 in the final frame.

Del Toro led the Mules against Littlefield with eight points. Torres and Vasquez finished with four points each. Sierra and Rodriguez chipped in two points each.

The Mules hosted the Littlefield Wildcats in a regular season game Monday. The Mules will host the Friona Braves next Monday and finish their season on the road in Shallowater February 16.