WARDSVILE -- Back on Jan. 17, the Fatima Lady Comets dropped a 51-34 decision to the Owensville Dutchgirls in Westphalia.
It was time for the Lady Comets to decide what kind of season it was going to be.
“After that game, I told them everything was here to win a district title,” Fatima coach Matt Baker said. “You’re talented, it’s just a matter of trusting it and putting it together.
“And they did it.”
On Saturday, the Lady Comets captured their first district title since 2014 with a 52-42 victory in the Class 4 District 10 title game against the Eldon Lady Mustangs at Blair Oaks High School.
“It seems like at Fatima, we’ve always been very good, but we’ve struggled in this moment,” Baker said. “It is great to get a district title.”
With the win, Fatima (22-7) advances to take on Southern Boone (19-9) in the sectionals Tuesday night at Missouri S&T in Rolla. Southern Boone defeated California 58-45 to win the District 9 title Saturday night.
Gallery: Class 4 District 10 Girls Basketball -- Fatima vs. Eldon
It wasn’t easy Saturday for the Lady Comets as the Lady Mustangs battled for the full 32 minutes.
“Our girls are fighters, they’ve fought all year long,” Eldon coach Isaiah Rhine said. “They just fight, beat and battle each and every game and that’s all you can ask for as a coach.”
The Lady Mustangs got off to a good start, jumping out to a 10-5 lead with 2:51 left in the first quarter after a 3-pointer by Haley Henderson.
After a timeout, Fatima came back to score the final six points of the quarter to take the lead.
Eldon led 12-10 and was attempting to run down the clock for a final shot, but turned it over with :06.9 left. Vivian Bax of Fatima then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Lady Comets a 13-12 lead.
“Huge, huge,” Baker said. “For a sophomore playing point guard all year, she’s tired mentally and physically.
“It’s great to see her hit a big shot in a big game.”
Rhine has noticed buzzer-beaters were a thing for the Lady Comets in the district tournament.
“They hit two of those in the semifinals, they hit one today,” he said. “It’s something about them, maybe they are a team of destiny.
“When it left her hand, I could almost feel it.”
The teams traded points for much of the second quarter before Fatima closed with a 5-2 run to take a 27-23 lead into halftime.
Jaci Mueller, Eldon’s second-leading scorer, suffered an ankle injury on a drive to the basket in the second quarter and did not return to the game.
“That’s hard because Jaci is a 40-percent 3-point shooter and when she’s not on the court, the spacing gets a little tight,” Rhine said.
Sydney Halderman picked up the scoring slack for the Lady Mustangs, totaling 14 points in the first half.
“She’s an exceptional point guard setting things up,” Rhine said. “She’s usually 50/50 between looking for a shot and making a pass, but today, she had to look a little more for her shot.”
Baker said the Lady Comets tried to make things as difficult as they could for Halderman.
“Syd is their motor, she does not get enough credit,” Baker said. “Our plan was to make her shoot it over our length and she shot it well.”
Alli Robertson and Bax hit 3-pointers early in the third quarter to push Fatima’s lead to double digits at 33-23.
But Eldon was not about to go away.
“Even when it got to 10, we’ve been through battles this year, the last few years, I knew there was no quit in the girls,” Rhine said.
MaKenna Imler hit a 3-pointer on the Lady Mustangs’ next possession to start a 9-0 run for Eldon in the next two-plus minutes to make it 33-32.
Fatima responded with a Bax layup and a 3-pointer by Lucy Crede to push the lead back to six at 38-32.
The Lady Comets took a 43-38 advantage into the fourth quarter.
A putback by Emma Bower and a layup by Crede increased Fatima’s lead to 47-38 with 4:25 remaining. With the lead, the Lady Comets pulled it out on offense to run some clock.
That forced Eldon to foul as Bax hit 5-of-6 free throws the rest of the way as Fatima posted the 10-point victory.
“We just kept hammering on the nail and it worked out,” Baker said.
Bax finished with 15 points, while Crede came off the bench to add 13. Robertson finished with 13 rebounds, 10 coming in the second half.
Halderman, a junior, scored a game-high 23 points while pulling down 11 rebounds for Eldon (19-10).
“She’s a special player,” Rhine said.
Henderson added 10 for the Lady Mustangs, who increased their season-win total by five in each of the past two seasons.
“Things are changing, it’s all about the girls,” Rhine said. “From Day 1, they’ve bought into everything, the energy is great and they compete every day.”
Fatima defeated Southern Boone 61-42 in the finale to the regular season.
“It’s going to be a battle against a quality opponent,” Baker said.
Game time is 6 p.m. in Rolla.