River Valley is 6-0 against Highland since December of 2016, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Saturday. The River Valley Vikings will be home for the holidays to greet the Highland Fighting Scots at 1:30 p.m. Hopefully River Valley focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 14 on Thursday.
Last Thursday, River Valley came up short against Shelby and fell 42-32. The result shouldn't come as a shock considering that's the fewest points River Valley has scored all season.
Lexie Hecker put forth a good effort for the losing side as she scored 14 points. Those 14 points set a new season-high mark for her.
Meanwhile, Highland took their matchup at home on Thursday with ease, bagging a 49-22 victory over Galion. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest victory Highland has managed all season.
Highland's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Aubree Bellamy, who scored nine points along with eight steals and five assists. Those five assists set a new season-high mark for her. The team also got some help courtesy of Addie Mullins, who scored 15 points.
River Valley bumped their record down to 2-3 with that defeat, which was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Highland, their victory bumped their record up to 3-4.
Keep an eye on the arc in Saturday's matchup: River Valley have been dynamite from deep this season, having only made 34.8% of their threes per game. It's a different story for Highland, though, as they've only nailed 25.6% of their threes per game this season. Given River Valley's sizeable advantage in that area, Highland will need to find a way to close that gap.
River Valley was able to grind out a solid victory over Highland in their previous matchup back in February, winning 54-44. Will River Valley repeat their success, or does Highland have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
