MARION — The Marengo Academy girls (5-19) ended their season Wednesday with a 48-16 loss to No. 2 seed Lowndes Academy in the AISA Class AA West Region Tournament at MMI.

“They won the state last year in 2A,” Marengo head coach Danny Stenz said of a formidable Lowndes team. “If they keep shooting the way they do, they’ll have a good shot to win it again.”

For MA the season was characterized by a core of four upperclassmen players. The remainder of the roster was comprised of junior high players.

“We’re going to be good down the road,” Stenz said.

MA put its younger players on the floor for much of the game Wednesday while Stenz observed a relentless defensive approach by a handful of his junior high girls.

“The aggressive mentality is the type of basketball I like to (coach),” Stenz said. “If they keep that mentality, they’ll win them a championship.”

Seventh-grade guard Chandler Stenz led Marengo with eight points in the game while senior Abbey Huckabee finished with four.