The Hiawatha Red Hawks will square off against the Rossville Bulldogs at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Last Friday, Hiawatha lost to Holton on the road by a 54-40 margin. The Red Hawks have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
| 01/03/25 @ Holton | 2 |
| 12/20/24 @ Silver Lake | 2 |
| 12/17/24 vs Sabetha | 2 |
Despite the loss, Hiawatha had strong showings from Claire Twombly, who posted 12 points and five boards, and Adison Williams, who earned nine points and five rebounds. Williams is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last three games she's played.
Even though they lost, Hiawatha smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in six consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Rossville came up short against Holton back in December of 2024 and fell 71-61.
Hiawatha will have to keep a close watch on Rylee Dick and Nora Burdiek, a pair of players who had a big impact on Rossville's prior game. Dick went 7 of 12 from beyond the arc on her way to 23 points, while Burdiek dropped a double-double on 18 points and 11 boards. That was a full 37.7% of Rossville's points, marking the fourth time in a row she's had more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Leni Lewis, who put up six points.
Hiawatha's defeat dropped their record down to 3-3. As for Rossville, their loss dropped their record down to 3-2.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Hiawatha has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 30.3 boards per game. However, it's not like Rossville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Hiawatha didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Rossville when the teams last played back in January of 2021, but they still walked away with a 50-46 win. Does Hiawatha have another victory up their sleeve, or will Rossville turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
