Unaka was unable to answer a late University School run on Monday night.
The Lady Rangers came up short in a hard-fought 40-30 decision to the Lady Bucs in the District 1-A Consolation game at Happy Valley.
Unaka will open the Region 1-A tournament on Friday night with the winner of the District 2-A Championship game between Cosby and Washburn. That game will be played on Tuesday night.
The defenses set the tone early.
Alisha Harrell opened the scoring with a trey and that kick-started an 8-2 run to open the game. Haley Taylor and Emma Taylor also had shots in the run as Unaka took an 8-4 lead into the second quarter.
After Keyonna Hague hit a shot to open the second, the Lady Bucs scored four straight to pull within two points.
The teams traded points in the closing minutes as Unaka took a 14-11 lead into the half.
The third quarter continued to be a battle.
The Lady Bucs used a pair of big shots from Vania Ortiz to go on a 6-1 to tie the game. E, Taylor countered the run with a trey to push the Lady Rangers back in front, but UH ended the quarter on a 9-4 run to take a 26-24 lead into the final quarter.
H. Taylor tied the game at 26-26 to open the fourth quarter, but the Lady Bucs were able to use a 9-0 run in the closing stages of the game to secure the win.
E. Taylor and Hague scored eight points apiece to lead Unaka, while Harrell scored six points. Olivia Shepard and H. Taylor scored four points.
Anna Wells and Ortiz had 16 points apiece for the Lady Bucs.
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