The Kennedy Thunderbirds struggled with assists on Thursday (the Chavez Titans had seven more) and sadly the final score reflected it. Kennedy took a 56-47 hit to the loss column at the hands of Chavez. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Kennedy in their matchups with Chavez: they've now lost six in a row.
Valeria Payan-Medina and Kayleen Maes certainly did their best on Thursday to try and avoid the loss. Payan-Medina dropped a double-double on 15 points and 14 rebounds, while Maes scored 18 points along with seven rebounds. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Payan-Medina has scored all season. Imaree Curry was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with eight rebounds.
Chavez's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Chloe Lopez led the charge by scoring 16 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Lopez has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Hannah Diaz, who scored 12 points along with six assists and six steals.
Kennedy has not been sharp recently, as they've lost three of their last four matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-11 record this season. As for Chavez, the win (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 8-8.
Kennedy will head out on the road to face off against Taft at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. Hopefully Taft focused on turnovers this week since the team gave up 25 on Thursday. As for Chavez, they will be playing at home against Shafter at 6:15 p.m. on Monday. One thing working in Shafter's favor is that they have posted big point totals in their last seven matchups.
