Basketball Recap: Make It Three in a Row for Murrieta Valley

Murrieta Valley entered their tilt with Spring Creek on Saturday with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They walked away with a 55-42 victory over the Spring Creek Spartans. The win was all the more spectacular given the Nighthawks' disadvantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked 341st in California, while the Spartans are ranked 41st in Nevada).

Valerie Lauritzen

Steals

12/21/24 vs Spring Creek	5
12/20/24 @ Mohave Accelerated	8
12/19/24 @ Pahrump Valley	4
12/13/24 vs Corona	2
12/11/24 vs Hemet	4

Murrieta Valley got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Valerie Lauritzen out in front who posted 18 points in addition to five rebounds and five steals. Lauritzen has been hot for a while, having posted two or more steals the last 19 times she's played. Another player making a difference was Alysia Maldonado Murray, who went 7 of 16 en route to 15 points along with five rebounds and four steals.

Murrieta Valley smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 22 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in seven consecutive games.

Several Spartans players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Rhiwan Williams, who put up 11 points in addition to seven boards and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Ashlynn Sorenson, who had five points and 14 rebounds.

Murrieta Valley is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a nice bump to their 10-5 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.3 points per game. As for Spring Creek, they moved to 6-4 with that defeat, which also ended their five-game winning streak.

Murrieta Valley didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 54-47 loss against Notre Dame (SO) on the 27th. As for Spring Creek, they will have a little extra prep time after the defeat as they won't be playing again for a while. They'll take on Churchill County at 1:00 p.m. on January 4th.