The Saint James Saints will head out on the road to take on the Martinsburg Bulldogs at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Last Saturday, Saint James was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 34-28 to GVCS Broadfording.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Tenley Mullendore, who posted 14 points. That was a full 50% of Saint James' points, marking the third time in a row Mullendore has earned more than a third of the team's points. Another player making a difference was Renee Sullivan, who scored seven points and four steals.
Meanwhile, Martinsburg didn't have too much breathing room in their game against GVCS Broadfording on Monday, but they still walked away with a 29-23 win. Given the Bulldogs' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 26th in West Virginia, while the Lions are ranked 163rd in Maryland), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Martinsburg's win came from a few key players Saint James will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Addyson Strovel, who dropped a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Tianna Sanabria was another key player, putting up eight points along with six boards and three steals.
Martinsburg smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in three consecutive contests.
Saint James has traveled a rocky road recently having lost nine of their last 11 matches, which has put a noticeable dent in their 10-11 record this season. As for Martinsburg, their record is now 12-5.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Saint James has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 28.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Martinsburg struggles in that department as they've been averaging 36.1 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Saint James was taken down by Martinsburg 57-30 when the teams last played back in December of 2024. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Strovel, who dropped a double-double with 13 points and ten rebounds. Now that Saint James knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
