The Bradenton Christian Panthers will take on the Braden River Pirates at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Bradenton Christian didn't have quite enough to beat Venice and fell 3-2. While the Panthers didn't get the win, they did start the game off strong, beating the Indians 25-18 in the first set.
Bradenton Christian actually scored more points across those five sets (96-95), but sadly they still had to settle for second. The final score came out to 18-25, 12-25, 25-17, 25-17, 15-12.
Braden River not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since September 23rd (when they won 3-0). They blew past Lemon Bay 3-0. The win continues a trend for the Pirates in their matchups with the Manta Rays: they've now won five in a row.
While Braden River won a shutout, things came down to the wire in the second set they played. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 25-19, 25-22, 25-19.
Bradenton Christian has been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 12-7 record this season. As for Braden River, their victory bumped their record up to 15-9.
Bradenton Christian was able to grind out a solid win over Braden River in their previous matchup back in September, winning 3-1. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was the Pirates' Rilyn Stiegler, who had 24 digs and two assists. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will the Panthers still be able to contain Stiegler? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
