Preview: Sandhills Valley Mavericks vs. Cozad Haymakers
The Sandhills Valley Mavericks will head out on the road to challenge the Cozad Haymakers at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Sandhills Valley will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Nebraska Rankings (they are ranked 183rd, while Cozad is ranked 20th).
Sandhills Valley fought the good fight in their overtime game against Paxton on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They were just a bucket shy of victory and fell 40-39 to the Tigers. Sandhills Valley's loss signaled the end of their three-game winning streak.
Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Braden Powell, who scored 16 points along with five rebounds. Another player making a difference was Cooper Layher, who scored 13 points along with seven rebounds.
Meanwhile, a well-balanced attack led Cozad over Centura in every quarter on their way to victory on Monday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Cozad blew Centura out of the water with a 65-37 final score. Winning may never get old, but Cozad sure is getting used to it with their third in a row.
Noah Shoemaker continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 18 points along with four steals. He is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 16 or more in the last three games he's played. Monty Brooks-follmer was another key contributor, scoring eight points.
Sandhills Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 10-8. As for Cozad, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 17-4.
Sandhills Valley suffered a grim 65-41 defeat to Cozad in their previous meeting back in February of 2023. Can Sandhills Valley avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
