SAN ANTONIO – In 1976, Nazareth made its first ever appearance in the girls state basketball tournament, falling to the eventual state champion from Neches, 50-46 in overtime.
Fifty years later, the Swiftettes were back at the state tournament winning a UIL 1A Division II title with a 43-28 victory over Saltillo on Thursday afternoon at the Alamodome. What’s occurred in those 50 years sets Nazareth’s girls program apart from any other in the state.
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With the win, the program has notched their 27th state title in 33 appearances and nine in 12 years for head coach Eric Schilling. The mild-mannered Nazareth alum was asked in the press conference afterwards if this feeling ever gets old and his response was simple. Schilling politely said “no” and began praising the kids for their hard work and trust they put in him.
“This team plays for each other,” Schilling said. “Whenever you have kids who work hard and are coachable, I feel like anyone could do this. I don’t think it’s anything special that I do. These kids are bought into the culture and into this program. So unselfish and that’s really what it comes down to”.
Those words encompass what led to another state title for the folks in Castro County as the Swiftettes trailed by one with 4:52 left in the first quarter when Saltillo’s Alana Britain converted an offensive rebound into a bucket and a foul. Britain sank the free throw to give the Lady Lions a brief 4-3 lead but that was the only lead of the game for Saltillo as Jolee Pigg sank a three, 16 seconds later, and Nazareth went back on top, 6-4.
Addi Pipkin went to the charity stripe on the next trip down for Saltillo to cut the lead to 6-5 and that’s when Schilling’s group took over. Kambri Cleavinger drove the paint for a layup then Madison Brockman made a nifty pass inside to McKinley Moore for an easy bucket in the paint to push the lead to 10-5. That was the start of an 11-0 run and virtually ended any chance the Lady Lions had of trying to upset the Swiftettes.
Experience, as Schilling noted, was pivotal for his squad.
“We entered the game with the right mind set and the bright lights didn’t faze them,” Schilling said. “Their experience helped a ton and helped us recover quickly from an an emotional semifinal win Monday.”
Saltillo had a quick 4-0 run in the middle of that third quarter but the experience their coach mentioned quickly took back any momentum the Lady Lions thought they may have. After Britain sank one of two free throws to get back to 21-10, Brockman nailed a three ball from the corner and title game MVP Kambri Cleavinger sank a deep one from behind the arc to push the lead to 27-10 with ten seconds remaining in the half.
Cleavinger, who finished with a game-high 14 points, notched seven of those in that decisive second quarter as the junior went 6-of-11 from the field, pulled in four rebounds and registered three steals.
The second half was more of the same as the Swiftettes outscored Saltillo 15-9 in the third as Cleavenger and Addie Schulte contributed five points each as Nazareth was on cruise control entering the fourth with a 42-20 lead.
Balanced scoring was key for Nazareth as seven different players scored for the perennial state champions. That team mentality is a big reason a 27th title banner will be raised and was echoed by senior Lexi Ramaekers.
“We knew if we played our game today and played as a team one last time we could win gold,” Ramaekers said.
Cleavinger was quick to point out how special this program is and how you grow up wanting to be a part of it one day.
“Winning gold alongside your friends and in front of our crowd is something special,” Cleavinger said.
Nazareth, which finished the year with a 32-6 record, shot 41 percent from the field but was shooting at a 50 percent clip (16-of-32 from the field) through the first three quarters.
That hot shooting was pivotal as the cavernous backdrop of the Alamodome didn’t faze the Swiftettes. Cleavinger wasn’t the only hoopster to have a strong game as Brockman was a key cog in the blue and gold machine. The 5-foot-5 five guard led Nazareth with six assists and seven rebounds and finished with eight points.
To check out the full boxscore, please visit https://www.uiltexas.org/files/athletics/state-basketball/boxscores-girls/26GB1AD2.pdf