Basketball Game Preview: Valley Christian Academy Lions vs. Coastal Christian Conquerors

Valley Christian Academy and Coastal Christian are an even 5-5 against one another since February of 2020, but not for long. The Valley Christian Academy Lions will look to defend their home court on Friday against the Coastal Christian Conquerors at 5:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Valley Christian Academy is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They claimed a resounding 85-2 victory over Maricopa. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest win of the season.

Elle Mason and Katelyn Mikkelson were among the main playmakers for Valley Christian Academy as the former went 10 of 13 en route to 20 points and eight rebounds and the latter went 7 of 10 on her way to 15 points along with seven assists and seven boards. The contest was Mason's third in a row with at least ten points. Samantha Walker was another key player, going 6 of 8 on her way to 13 points.

Valley Christian Academy smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in three consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, Coastal Christian put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Maricopa 74-2. Given the Conquerors' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 408th, while the Indians are ranked 1243rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Valley Christian Academy is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last ten games, which provided a massive bump to their 9-7 record this season. The wins came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 23.7 points per game. As for Coastal Christian, their victory was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-0.

Valley Christian Academy barely slipped by Coastal Christian in their previous matchup back in February of 2024, winning 40-39. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Coastal Christian's Jenna Starkovich, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 13 boards. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Valley Christian Academy still be able to contain Starkovich? There's only one way to find out.