Basketball Recap: Empire Comes Up Short

Empire was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their ninth straight defeat. They were beaten by the Fort Thomas Apaches 78-13. While losing is never fun, the Ravens can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 244th, while the Apaches are ranked 53rd).

Empire's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Amanda Pacheco, who posted two points along with seven rebounds and four steals, and Haley Dorris, who earned no points.

Ravens

Previous Games

12/19/24 vs Fort Thomas	13-78
12/19/24 vs Morenci	25-59
12/16/24 @ Walden Grove	15-71
12/10/24 vs Coolidge	6-86
12/09/24 @ Willcox	14-70
+ 4 more games

Even though they lost, Empire smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive rebounds in three consecutive contests.

Fort Thomas' success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Adaia Lorenzo led the charge by going 6 of 11 on her way to 14 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Corey Cody, who went 6 of 9 on her way to 12 points and five steals.

Empire's defeat dropped their record down to 1-9. As for Fort Thomas, the win was the fifth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 9-3.

Empire wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next match, a 60-18 loss against Safford on the 20th. As for Fort Thomas, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next game, a 66-16 victory against Morenci on the 19th.