The Smoky Valley Vikings fought the good fight in their overtime contest against the Lyons Lions on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Lions by a score of 58-56. Smoky Valley just can't catch a break and has now endured five losses in a row.
Despite the loss, Smoky Valley saw an underclassman step up: Kristian Ryan scored 19 points along with six rebounds and two steals. It was the first time this season that Ryan scored 15 or more points. Ty Heitschmidt was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with six rebounds and two steals.
Smoky Valley has been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last eight matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-11 record this season. As for Lyons, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-8 record this season.
Smoky Valley will be playing in front of their home fans against the Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are closely ranked in Kansas (Nickerson is ranked 263rd, while the Vikings are ranked 258th). As for Lyons, they will head out on the road to face off against the Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
