Basketball Recap: Spring Creek's Winning Streak Snapped at Five Games

Spartans

Previous 5 Games

12/21/24 vs Murrieta Valley	42-55
12/19/24 @ Mohave Accelerated	48-43
12/19/24 vs Pahrump Valley	35-29
12/14/24 @ Wooster	45-30
12/13/24 @ Truckee	33-22

It was a good run, but Spring Creek unfortunately witnessed the end of their five-game winning streak on Saturday. They took a 55-42 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Murrieta Valley Nighthawks. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as the Spartans came into the contest with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 41st in Nevada, while the Nighthawks are ranked 341st in California).

Several Spartans players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Rhiwan Williams, who posted 11 points in addition to seven rebounds and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Ashlynn Sorenson, who put up five points and 14 rebounds.

Even though they lost, Spring Creek was working as a unit and finished the game with 11 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Murrieta Valley to victory, but perhaps none more so than Valerie Lauritzen, who had 18 points along with five boards and five steals. Lauritzen is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last 19 games she's played dating back to last season. Alysia Maldonado Murray was another key player, going 7 of 16 on her way to 15 points along with five boards and four steals.

Spring Creek's defeat dropped their record down to 6-4. As for Murrieta Valley, the win was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 10-5.

Spring Creek will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on Churchill County at 1:00 p.m. on January 4th. As for Murrieta Valley, they didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next match, a 54-47 defeat against Notre Dame (SO) on the 27th.