If the Desert Chapel Eagles were riding high off their 56-11 takedown of the Weaver Monarchs last Thursday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. Desert Chapel took a hard 59-44 fall against the FIREBIRDS on Tuesday. Desert Chapel was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the FIREBIRDS apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played two weeks ago.
Several Eagles players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Damien Guzman, who scored 11 points along with six rebounds and five assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Mikey Valdivia, who scored ten points.
Palm Valley was led to victory by Alex Ratner and Donovan Knott. Ratner dropped a double-double on 14 points and 18 rebounds, while Knott scored 18 points along with eight assists and seven steals. Ratner hasn't dropped below two steals for eight straight games. Matteo Lam was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with seven rebounds and five assists.
Desert Chapel's loss dropped their record down to 8-3. As for Palm Valley, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-2 record this season.
Desert Chapel will head out on the road to face off against the Braves at 3:15 p.m. on Thursday. Noli Indian's defense has only allowed 27.9 points per game this season, so the Eagles' offense will have their work cut out for them. As for Palm Valley, they will be playing in front of their home fans against the Monarchs at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Weaver is no doubt hoping to put an end to a five-game streak of away losses.
