If the Santa Cruz Valley Dust Devils were riding high off their 43-22 takedown of the Cicero Prep Academy Centurions on Tuesday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. Santa Cruz Valley took a 45-34 hit to the loss column at the hands of San Manuel on Wednesday. Santa Cruz Valley was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as San Manuel apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in December of 2017.
Santa Cruz Valley lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Jianna Lopez, who scored 12 points along with seven rebounds. Lopez scored a full 35.3% of Santa Cruz Valley's points, the fifth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Layna Ethington, who scored four points.
Santa Cruz Valley has traveled a rocky road recently, as they've lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-5 record this season. As for San Manuel, their win ended a four-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 3-5.
Santa Cruz Valley will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on St. Augustine Catholic at 5:30 p.m. on January 5, 2024. St. Augustine Catholic is looking to tack on another W to their three-game streak on the road. San Manuel will have some time to savor their victory since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Ray at 5:30 p.m. on January 4, 2024.
