The Terra Ceia Christian Knights will square off against the Unity Christian Academy Warriors at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Terra Ceia Christian has three straight victories, Unity Christian Academy has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the court.
Terra Ceia Christian is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Heritage Christian Academy: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Terra Ceia Christian blew Heritage Christian Academy out of the water with a 67-34 final score. That looming 67-34 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Knights yet this season.
| 01/14/25 vs Heritage Christian Academy | 5 |
| 12/06/24 vs Mount Calvary Christian Academy | 4 |
| 11/21/24 vs Northeast Academy | 8 |
| 11/19/24 @ Pamlico Christian Academy | 6 |
| 11/15/24 vs Bethel Assembly Christian Academy | 4 |
It was another big night for Lakin Van Essendelft, who went 13 of 18 on her way to 28 points in addition to five assists and five steals. She has been hot, having posted four or more steals the last five times she's played. Leah Harrison was another key player, putting up ten points and eight steals.
Van Essendelft wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Terra Ceia Christian was working as a unit and finished the game with 12 assists. That's the most assists they've posted since back in January of 2024.
Meanwhile, Unity Christian Academy played a tough contest on Thursday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were dealt a 52-18 loss at the hands of Varsity Opponent. The Warriors were down 34-8 at the end of the third quarter, and things only got worse from there.
Lena Timmons was Unity Christian Academy's leading scorer, having posted ten points. Kayleigh Ballance held things down on the boards with eight rebounds.
Terra Ceia Christian has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 54.8 points per game. As for Unity Christian Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-10.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Terra Ceia Christian has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 20.1 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Unity Christian Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 22.7 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Everything went Terra Ceia Christian's way against Unity Christian Academy in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, as Terra Ceia Christian made off with a 44-19 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Terra Ceia Christian since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
