St. Charles is 7-0 against Vestaburg since February of 2021, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The St. Charles Bulldogs will head out on the road to take on the Vestaburg Wolverines at 6:30 p.m. St. Charles is looking to tack on another W to their 11-game streak on the road.
Last Wednesday, St. Charles was able to grind out a solid win over Merrill, taking the game 47-36. Given St. Charles' advantage in MaxPreps' Michigan basketball rankings (they are ranked 99th, while Merrill is ranked 411th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
St. Charles' success was spearheaded by the efforts of Allison Zelinko, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds, and Emily Zelinko, who scored 15 points along with five assists and five rebounds. Zelinko is absolutely dominating the steal category: she's posted at least two every time she's taken the court this season. Another player making a difference was Kendall Harger, who scored seven points along with five assists and three steals.
Even though Vestaburg has not done well against Carson City-Crystal recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Wednesday. Vestaburg was the clear victor by a 40-15 margin over Carson City-Crystal. The victory was some much needed relief for Vestaburg as it spelled an end to their four-game losing streak.
Vestaburg found their leader in underclassman Lily Johnston, who scored 20 points along with five rebounds and five steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Johnston has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Megan Beetley, who scored eight points along with eight rebounds.
St. Charles' record now sits at 9-1. As for Vestaburg, their victory ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 5-6.
Keep an eye on the arc in Friday's contest: St. Charles have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 39% of their threes per game. It's a different story for Vestaburg, though, as they've only made 28.8% of their threes per game this season. Given St. Charles' sizeable advantage in that area, Vestaburg will need to find a way to close that gap.
St. Charles strolled past Vestaburg in their previous matchup back in December of 2023 by a score of 55-37. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Johnston, who scored 19 points along with eight rebounds and six steals. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will St. Charles still be able to contain him? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
