Liberty Ranch and El Dorado are an even 5-5 against one another since January of 2020, but not for long. The Liberty Ranch Hawks will challenge the El Dorado Cougars at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Liberty Ranch will be looking to extend their current 18-game winning streak.
Last Wednesday, Liberty Ranch was able to grind out a solid win over Amador, taking the game 46-37. Given the Hawks' advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 178th, while the Buffaloes are ranked 707th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
01/29/25 vs Amador | 19 |
01/28/25 @ Union Mine | 26 |
01/24/25 vs Galt | 17 |
01/21/25 @ Bradshaw Christian | 22 |
Liberty Ranch's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Haley Smith, who posted 19 points along with six boards and three steals, and Madisyn Robbins, who went 6 of 10 on her way to 12 points and five rebounds. The match was Smith's fourth in a row with at least ten points.
Liberty Ranch smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least eight offensive boards in 12 consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, El Dorado posted their closest victory since November 22, 2023 on Wednesday. They skirted past Rosemont 39-37.
Liberty Ranch better focus on containing Addisyn Bare and Keira Hennefer as the pair were huge in El Dorado's win. Bare scored 11 points in addition to eight boards and five steals, while Hennefer dropped a double-double on 12 points and 20 rebounds. Hennefer continues to improve, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played.
Liberty Ranch's win was their tenth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 20-2. As for El Dorado, their record is now 13-11.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: Liberty Ranch hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 58.6 points per game. It's a different story for El Dorado, though, as they've been averaging only 39.3 points. The only thing between Liberty Ranch and another offensive beatdown is El Dorado. Will they be able to keep them contained?
Liberty Ranch strolled past El Dorado in their previous matchup back in January by a score of 43-25. The rematch might be a little tougher for Liberty Ranch since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.