The Wayne Badgers came tearing into Saturday's matchup with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 37.8 points) and they left with even more momentum. They breezed by Merit Preparatory Academy on the road to the tune of 68-26. Considering Wayne has won five matches by more than 23 points this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.
Wayne's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Ryker Peterson led the charge by scoring 20 points along with six assists. Peterson continues to roll, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. Jake Batty was another key contributor, scoring 16 points.
Despite the loss, Merit Preparatory Academy still got an impressive performance from Ayden Martinez, who scored 11 points along with seven rebounds. Those seven rebounds set a new season-high mark for him. The team also got some help courtesy of Harrison Petersen, who scored seven points.
Merit Preparatory Academy struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Wayne's win bumped their record up to 6-4. As for Merit Preparatory Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-6.
Wayne's road trip will continue as they head out to face Manila at 11:30 a.m. on December 16th. One thing working in Manila's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last three matchups. Merit Preparatory Academy will take on Pinnacle in a holiday battle at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday at. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Utah (Pinnacle is ranked 118th, while Merit Preparatory Academy is ranked 135th).
