After flying high against the Takini Skyhawks on Thursday, the Harding County Ranchers came back down to earth. Harding County took a serious blow against the Longhorns on Friday, falling 71-43. The defeat unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Harding County in their matchups with the Longhorns: they've now lost four in a row.
Harding County's loss came despite strong showings from Cohen Smith and Payton Dvorak. Smith scored 17 points along with five rebounds and two steals, while Dvorak scored six points along with five assists and five steals. Dvorak is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed four or more in the last six games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jarett Schuchard, who scored four points.
Harding County's defeat was their fourth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 7-8. As for Faith, the win was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 13-1.
Harding County won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against the Panthers at 4:00 p.m. on February 3rd. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are closely ranked in South Dakota (Timber Lake is ranked 99th, while the Ranchers are ranked 115th). As for Faith, they won't have much time to rest: their next game is against the Cowboys at 5:30 p.m. on February 3rd. Lemmon is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune.
