The Mercer Christian Academy Cavaliers had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 25.5 points), and they went ahead and made it three on Thursday. They walked away with a 63-52 win over James Monroe. This was payback for Mercer Christian Academy, who suffered a 54-45 defeat the last time these two teams met.
Mercer Christian Academy's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Bailee Martin led the charge by scoring 19 points. Ella Botts was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with six assists and five rebounds.
Despite the loss, James Monroe still got an impressive performance from Maggie Boroski, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 13 rebounds. Boroski is crushing the steal category: she's posted at least two every time she's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Mary Beth Meadows, who scored ten points along with eight assists and six rebounds.
Even though they lost, James Monroe smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Mercer Christian Academy only pulled down nine offensive rebounds.
Mercer Christian Academy's victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 12-4. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 62.0 points per game. As for James Monroe, their loss dropped their record down to 11-6.
Mercer Christian Academy will face off against the Beavers at TBD on Saturday. Bluefield is coming into the match on a six-game losing streak. As for James Monroe, they will square off against the Titans at 12:30 p.m. on Monday.
