La Junta is 1-9 against Manitou Springs since January of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. The La Junta Tigers will be playing in front of their home fans against the Manitou Springs Mustangs at 1:30 p.m.
La Junta came up short against St. Mary's on Tuesday, falling 44-24. The Tigers have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Despite the defeat, La Junta saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Isabelle Aragon posted 12 points along with six boards and three steals. Aragon continues to improve, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played.
Meanwhile, Manitou Springs entered their tilt with Rye on Monday with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. They secured a 30-26 W over the Thunderbolts.
La Junta better keep an eye on Aylin Gomez. She was instrumental in Manitou Springs' win, putting up nine points in addition to six rebounds and six steals. Gomez has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last nine times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Madison Anderson, who earned three points and four steals.
Manitou Springs smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Rye only pulled down 11 offensive boards.
Manitou Springs pushed their record up to 7-6 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 28.9 points per game. As for La Junta, their loss dropped their record down to 5-8.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: La Junta has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 30 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Manitou Springs struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.8 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
La Junta ended up a good deal behind Manitou Springs when the teams last played back in December of 2023, losing 48-32. Thankfully for La Junta, Cassidy Blechman (who dropped a double-double on 21 points and ten rebounds) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
