The Cy-Fair girls basketball team is taking experience with them to the state tournament in Austin this weekend.

As the only returning team in the 5A state bracket, the team leaves Friday morning with the hopes of reversing the outcome of last year’s championship game where they were upset by Rockwall in overtime.

“It’s very exciting to have a chance to go back,” Cy-Fair forward Megan Majewski said. “We are taking the feelings we had after that game (last year) and not wanting to repeat it is a big motivation for us.”

The Bobcats (37-2) play Converse Wagner (36-1) in a semifinal at 3:30 p.m. DeSoto and Garland Naaman Forest meet in the later semi; the winners play for the championship at 8:30 p.m. Saturday. 

The Bobcats’ experience also lies within the girls themselves. Eight seniors have been leading this team all season with one goal in mind, winning state.

“We want it really, really bad,” Cy-Fair guard Mansa El said. “We’re right where we want to be and we’re hoping it turns out the way we want it to.”

El, Majewski, Nicole Morris and Nneka Ogwumike are all seniors who start for 18th-year coach Ann Roubique.

“They are leading the team,” Roubique said. “Without the combination of all the seniors, we’re just not there.”

Nicole Morris, one of the team’s point guards, sees herself as a leader. She counts on her quickness on defense to make things happen and get the girls fired up.

“My role is to keep everybody’s head focused on the court,” Morris said. “If the game gets real tight, I keep everybody together.”

A University of Louisiana-Lafayette commit, Morris averages more than 13 points per game. She knows that hard work and team unity is what has gotten the team this far.

“We’ve been through our ups and downs but we’ve always stayed together as a team,” Morris said. “We all try to be on the same page even if it’s the wrong page. We work really hard and don’t take anything easy. We push each other just like our opponents would push us.”

Another starting guard is Mansa El, who has committed to North Texas. El averages more than 12 points per game and counts on her teammates to leave it all out on the court.

“We play hard and put our hearts into everything we do,” El said. “The girls not out on the court look up to the girls on the court and we know we have to do what is expected of us.”

Forward, Majewski says the team has been focused on the task (the state title) at hand all season and has worked hard for it. As one of the leaders on the team, she wants to set an example for the younger players and leave them with a winning legacy.

“Everyone looks up to us and what we do and they are going to follow,” Majewski said. “We need to get out there and set an example for the rest of our teammates and all our seniors do that.”

Majewski has committed to Texas A&M, but not to play basketball. She will join the Aggies’ soccer team as a mid-fielder.

“We wouldn’t have an opportunity to make it without each one of them,” Roubique said. “They play their role and that changes from game to game and that’s what makes them leaders.”

All three seniors said Roubique has worked them hard all four seasons to prepare them for this weekend. And Roubique knows how hard the girls have worked to deserve the experience.

“I want it for them,” Roubique said. “They’ve put in a lot of time and a lot of effort. You just want good things to happen to good people. And these kids are good kids.

“I tell people all the time that when I walk beside them, I walk with pride. And not just because of their talent on the court but because of the kind of people they are.”

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