Preview: Hope Christian Academy Lions vs. First Christian Lions
Hope Christian Academy has been on the road for three straight, but on Thursday they'll finally head home. They will take on the First Christian Lions at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are closely ranked in Florida (Hope Christian Academy is ranked 653rd, while First Christian is ranked 636th).
Last Friday, Hope Christian Academy took a serious blow against Open Bible Christian, falling 45-6. Hope Christian Academy has not had much luck with Open Bible Christian recently, as the team's come up short the last five times they've met.
Meanwhile, First Christian scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Monday. They blew past Gainesville Christian Community, posting a 53-10 win at home. The victory was a breath of fresh air for First Christian as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.
First Christian found their leader in underclassman Reagan Davis, who scored 23 points along with eight rebounds and eight steals. That makes it eight consecutive games in which Davis has scored at least a third of First Christian's points. Another player making a difference was Ryleigh Sweat, who scored two points along with two steals.
Hope Christian Academy has not been sharp recently as the team's lost five of their last six matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-9 record this season. As for First Christian, their victory ended a four-game drought at home and bumped them up to 3-9.
Hope Christian Academy ended up a good deal behind First Christian in their previous meeting back in December of 2023, losing 42-27. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Davis, who scored 32 points along with six rebounds and six steals. Now that Hope Christian Academy knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
