SNYDER — Irion County bottled up Benjamin and its star guard Grayson Rigdon for most of Friday’s Region II-1A semifinal at Western Texas College Coliseum, limiting the Mustangs to fewer points as a team than Rigdon has averaged per game this season.

But BHS showed it can win in more ways than one, closing out a defensive struggle on a 7-0 run to turn a late 35-34 deficit into a gutsy 41-35 victory.

Rigdon, who saw his season scoring average drop to 47.6 points per game, “only” scored 18 points in the win, relying on contributions from his teammates and strong team defensive performance to carry the day. But the Mustangs and their standout junior survived the challenge from a determined Irion County squad to improve to 22-1 on the season and earn a region championship date with Eula on Saturday.