Steele Canyon is on a seven-game streak of home wins, while Valhalla is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Steele Canyon Cougars will take on the Valhalla Norsemen at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Tuesday, Steele Canyon didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against West Hills, but they still walked away with a 49-45 victory. That's two games straight that Steele Canyon has won by exactly four points.
Steele Canyon's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Arianna Sanchez, who scored 15 points along with five rebounds and two steals. Sanchez hasn't dropped below two steals for four straight games. Jadie Bowers was another key contributor, scoring ten points along with eight rebounds and five steals.
In what's become a running theme this season, Valhalla gave their fans yet another huge victory on Tuesday. They claimed a resounding 54-19 victory over Santana at home. Given Valhalla's advantage in MaxPreps' California basketball rankings (they are ranked 503rd, while Santana is ranked 1237th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Valhalla got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Songoli Ekwosi out in front who scored six points along with five rebounds and two steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Ava Miles, who scored 12 points along with six steals.
Steele Canyon is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten contests, which provided a massive bump to their 13-6 record this season. As for Valhalla, their win bumped their record up to 10-3.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: Steele Canyon hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having only averaged 54.2 points per game. It's a different story for Valhalla, though, as they've been averaging only 44.3 points per game. The only thing between Steele Canyon and another offensive beatdown is Valhalla. Will they be able to keep them contained?
Steele Canyon took their win against Valhalla in their previous meeting back in February of 2023 by a conclusive 64-38. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Valhalla's Rae Reyes, who scored 13 points along with five assists. Now that she won't be playing on Friday, will it be that much easier for Steele Canyon to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
