The Lady Badgers have nothing left to play for except pride.

But, if last week was any indication, that will not be a problem.

Lampasas’ dream of making the playoffs came to an end Friday night at Marble Falls, but it was not due to a lack of effort.

After trailing by 21 points in the first half, the Lady Badgers exploded for 41 points after the break and fell just short of completing an improbable comeback. Lampasas lost 60-54, as Marble Falls clinched the district’s final postseason berth.

The loss came on the heels of last Tuesday’s triple overtime victory against Lake Travis that kept Lampasas in the playoff race.

Despite failing to accomplish the team’s season-long goal, Lampasas head coach Stuart Beckwith saw plenty of heart from his squad that went 0-10 in district last year.

“That was the most amazing comeback I’ve seen,” the coach said. “Lampasas girls’ basketball has changed. These kids have shown [the kind of] energy, work, discipline and dedication it takes to [compete at a higher level].

“Next year’s returning team is going to be well ready for Class 3A.”

The Lady Badgers could not get a basket or a call in the first half, as Marble Falls went on a 17-0 run to build a 29-8 lead in the second quarter before taking a 33-13 advantage into halftime.

During the half, the Lady Mustangs attempted more free throws than Lampasas did field goals.

Offensively, the Lady Badgers hit just four of 22 shots in the opening half, while the Lady Mustangs camped out at the foul line where they connected on 17 of 24 attempts.

Lampasas was just three of seven from the free-throw line in the half.

“We didn’t play aggressively in the first half, and we paid the price for it, but I hate the fact that they shot 24 free throws in the first half, and we shot seven,” Beckwith said. “And we’re supposed to overcome those insurmountable odds?”

They almost did.

Trailing by 21 points at 47-26 with under a minute remaining in the third quarter, Lady Badgers senior post Lauren Barlow drained a pair of free throws before connecting on a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to cut the lead to 47-31 entering the final period.

In the fourth quarter, Lampasas (11-19, 3-6 District 25-4A) continued to climb out of its hole and pulled to within four points, 58-54, on Kallen Vann’s free throws with 17.64 seconds left. But the team could not get any closer as Marble Falls (14-15, 5-4) secured the win at the opposite foul line.

After starting the game with six misses, Barlow finished with a team-high 16 points, followed by junior Kayla Prescott’s 15.

Lampasas wraps up its season tonight at home against Killeen (14-17, 6-3). Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

“Killeen thumped us pretty hard last time, and we beat two teams that beat them, so go figure that,” Beckwith said. “We’ve got one left, and I know these kids will show up and play hard.”