The Del Mar Dons struggled with offensive rebounds on Friday (the Santa Teresa Saints had seven more) and sadly the final score reflected it. Del Mar took a 46-37 hit to the loss column at the hands of Santa Teresa. While losing is never fun, Del Mar can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 864th, while Santa Teresa is ranked 283rd).
Del Mar's loss came despite strong showings from Arseama Kibrom and Zoey Hinkle. Kibrom scored 15 points along with nine rebounds and four steals, while Hinkle dropped a double-double on 13 points and 23 rebounds. Hinkle scored a full 35.1% of Del Mar's points, the third time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Santa Teresa's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Naveah Lacy, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and ten rebounds. That's the first time this season that Lacy scored 15 or more points. The team also got some help courtesy of Daboul Dahlia, who dropped a double-double on 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Del Mar has not been sharp recently, as they've lost three of their last four matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-7 record this season. As for Santa Teresa, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 7-2.
Del Mar will finish 2023 at home by hosting Saratoga at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Santa Teresa will be staying on the road on Saturday to face off against Harker at 6:00 p.m. on December 30th.
