By Audrey Dodgen/Staff Writer

The El Reno High School girls’ basketball team posted two late-game comebacks in the first two rounds of the MidFirst/EHS Tournament Thursday and Friday.

Both rallies, though, fell short of overcoming the games’ earlier deficits.

El Reno opened the tournament with a loss to the John Marshall Bears Thursday.

While playing in the consolation bracket Friday, El Reno struggled to make baskets against Putnam City.

“If you can’t make shots, you can’t win ballgames. It’s that simple,” head coach Eric Carr said.

“We had a chance to win, but we didn’t shoot the ball well.”

The Indians hit only three shots out of 23 attempts in the first half.

The score remained close throughout the game. The Indians were down by two when the buzzer sounded on the first half.

“We went into the locker room and I just tried to stay positive with them and let them know I thought they could pull off a win,” Carr said.

El Reno held a one-point lead with just over a minute left to play. The Pirates took the lead 33-31 with fewer than ten seconds on the clock.

EHS senior Jaclyn Rhoades was fouled and sent to the line with 1.4 seconds left, but was unable to convert her two tries to tie the game.

“I didn’t expect us to lose today no matter who we played. We had good practices all through the break, except for Monday. It seemed like we were getting better and better. Clearly, we still have to improve,” Carr said.