The Orange Park Raiders's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their sixth straight loss. They took a 52-41 hit to the loss column at the hands of Tocoi Creek. Orange Park found out winning isn't easy when you make five fewer threes than your opponent.
Defeat or not, Orange Park got some senior leadership from Mychaela Parker and Piera Alexander. Parker scored 13 points along with nine rebounds, while Alexander. dropped a double-double on 13 points and 11 rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Hailey Revak, who scored six points.
Tocoi Creek's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Gabi Iturralde led the charge by scoring 17 points along with three steals. Iturralde is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last 13 games she's played. Kaitlynn Weaver was another key contributor, scoring ten points along with eight rebounds and two blocks.
Orange Park has traveled a rocky road recently, as they've lost eight of their last nine matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-9 record this season. As for Tocoi Creek, their win bumped their record up to 16-6.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Orange Park will square off against Ocoee at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Ocoee will be looking to keep their six-game home win streak alive. Tocoi Creek won't have much time to rest: their next match is against Calvary Christian Academy at 6:00 p.m. on January 26th. Calvary Christian Academy will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Florida Rankings (they are ranked 267th, while Tocoi Creek is ranked 103rd).
