The Port Aransas High School Marlins finished their regular season by losing an overtime heartbreaker to Woodsboro, 71-70, on Tuesday, Feb. 17. But the Marlins still have plenty to look forward to.

The Marlins will face the Bruni Cowboys for the bi-district championship in the first round of 1-A high school playoffs on Tuesday, Feb. 23.

The game will be at 7 p.m., played on the neutral gym of Agua Dulce High School.

If the Marlins win that game, they will proceed to the area championship in which they will go up against San Antonio Stacey, a high school on the grounds of Lackland Air Force Base. No specific time, date or location has been set for that game, but it will be Feb. 27 or 28 in a gym somewhere between Port Aransas and San Antonio. (Watch the South Jetty's Web site, www.portasouthjetty.com, for updates on scheduling.)

"We've got to play better defense than what we played the last couple of games," Marlins coach Paul Patteson said when asked about his team's chances in the playoffs. "But we've got a solid chance to beat some people. We've just got to play solid defense, and the rest will take care of itself."

In the game at Woodsboro, the Marlins and Eagles were tied, 61-61, as the fourth quarter ended, forcing overtime. Then, with five seconds left in OT, Marlin Joseph Shrier drove, shot, missed and was called for a foul. Woodsboro managed the one-point win by sinking one of the two ensuing foul shots.

Desite the loss, the Marlins ended up taking second place in district, with a 6-2 record. Falls City came in first, with a 7-1 record that was blemished only by a loss to the Marlins.