Preview: Santa Paula Cardinals vs. Channel Islands Raiders
The Santa Paula Cardinals on the road again on Wednesday and play against the Channel Islands Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on January 24th. Santa Paula will be strutting in after a win while Channel Islands will be coming in after a defeat.
Santa Paula put the finishing touches on their ninth blowout victory of the season on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Fillmore 53-1 on the road. With Santa Paula ahead 25-1 at the half, the contest was all but over already.
Santa Paula's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jalynn Rico, who scored eight points along with seven assists and five steals. Rico is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last five games she's played. Madilyn Stonebraker was another key contributor, scoring five points along with 11 rebounds and six steals.
Meanwhile, Channel Islands ended up a good deal behind Carpinteria on Monday and lost 50-33. Channel Islands has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Santa Paula pushed their record up to 15-8 with that win, which was their third straight on the road. They've been dominating during the contests in that stretch too, as they've won by an average of 42.67 points. As for Channel Islands, they have not been sharp recently, as they've lost six of their last seven matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-8 record this season.
Everything came up roses for Santa Paula against Channel Islands in their previous matchup back in December of 2023 as the team secured a 62-32 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Santa Paula since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
