Preview: Doddridge County Bulldogs vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
After three games on the road, Doddridge County is heading back home. They will finish 2023 at home by hosting the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at 7:45 p.m. on Thursday. Doddridge County will be strutting in after a victory while Notre Dame will be coming in after a loss.
Doddridge County has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four matchups by 22 points or more this season. Everything went their way against Clay-Battelle on Thursday as Doddridge County made off with a 51-29 win. Given Doddridge County's advantage in MaxPreps' West Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked 19th, while Clay-Battelle is ranked 81st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Tenley Paugh was her usual excellent self, scoring 14 points along with nine rebounds. That's the first time this season that she pulled down eight or more rebounds. Akaia Williams was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with ten rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame might have been a little too into the holiday spirit, gifting Trinity Christian an easy 64-44 win. Notre Dame has struggled against Trinity Christian recently, as their match on Friday was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.
Doddridge County's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-0. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.0 points per game. As for Notre Dame, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-3.
Everything came up roses for Doddridge County against Notre Dame in their previous matchup back in February of 2022 as the squad secured a 67-22 victory. With Doddridge County ahead 34-8 at the half, the match was all but over already.
