After having lost a blowout in their previous game against Winnebago, the Dakota Indians were happy to have found some success on Thursday. They snuck past Durand with a 54-48 win. That result was just more of the same for these two, as Dakota also won the last time the pair played back in February of 2023.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Dakota to victory, but perhaps none more so than Hailey Kerchner, who scored 13 points along with four steals. Kerchner continues to roll, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Finley Banks, who almost dropped a triple-double on ten points, nine rebounds, and nine steals.
Several Bulldogs players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Rhiannon Robertson, who scored eight points along with seven rebounds and five assists. The team also got some help courtesy of Aurora Hilton, who scored six points along with ten rebounds.
Dakota's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-12. As for Durand, they are on a four-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 5-9.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Dakota will be staying on the road on Wednesday to face off against Orangeville at 6:00 p.m. on January 17th. Orangeville's defense has only allowed 28.1 points per game this season, so Dakota's offense will have their work cut out for them. As for Durand, they will head out on the road to square off against Lena-Winslow at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Lena-Winslow presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than Durand in Illinois (Lena-Winslow is ranked 168th, while Durand is ranked 516th).
