Preview: San Juan Spartans vs. Rio Vista Rams
San Juan is 1-9 against Rio Vista since January of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The San Juan Spartans will be playing in front of their home fans against the Rio Vista Rams at 6:00 p.m. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: San Juan has struggled recently with 11 defeats in a row, while Rio Vista will arrive with four straight victories.
Last Friday, San Juan came up short against Esparto and fell 49-40. That's two games in a row now that San Juan has lost by exactly nine points.
Even though Rio Vista has not done well against Highlands recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. Rio Vista simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Highlands 51-20 on the road. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory Rio Vista has posted since December 4, 2023.
Rio Vista's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Guadalupe Valdenegro led the charge by dropping a triple-double on 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 steals. That's the first time this season that Valdenegro scored 15 or more points. Another player making a difference was Samiah Holley, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten steals.
San Juan's defeat was their seventh straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 0-10. That rough patch could be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they only averaged 17.4 points per game. As for Rio Vista, they are on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a nice bump to their 10-8 record this season.
San Juan came up short against Rio Vista in their previous meeting back in February of 2023, falling 21-12. Can San Juan avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
