After both having extra time off, the Northland Prep Academy Spartans and the St. Johns Redskins will dust off their jerseys to square off against one another at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Northland Prep Academy hasn't scored more than 19 points for six games straight, a trend the squad is eager to reverse.
Northland Prep Academy is headed into the match out to prove that what happened against Round Valley two weeks ago (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Northland Prep Academy took a blow against Round Valley, falling 51-15. While losing is never fun, the Spartans can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 255th, while the Elks are ranked 108th).
Abigail Zesiger was Northland Prep Academy's leading scorer, having posted seven points.
Meanwhile, a well-balanced attack led St. Johns over Horizon Honors in every quarter on their way to victory last Saturday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that St. Johns blew Horizon Honors out of the water with a 50-22 final score. The Redskins have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won eight games by 23 points or more this season.
St. Johns' win came from a few key players Northland Prep Academy will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Kaylee Pulsipher, who posted four points in addition to 11 rebounds and four steals. She has been hot, having posted three or more steals the last seven times she's played. Another player making a difference was Sarah Patterson, who put up six points and five boards.
St. Johns smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in 11 consecutive contests.
Northland Prep Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 0-6. As for St. Johns, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten matches, which provided a nice bump to their 14-2 record this season.
Northland Prep Academy took a serious blow against St. Johns when the teams last played back in November of 2017, falling 56-6. That game was all but decided by halftime, at which point Northland Prep Academy was down 29-1.
