After a string of four wins, the Mt. Vernon Rams's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They fell 61-50 to Carterville. Mt. Vernon was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as Carterville apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in January of 2023.
When it comes to explaining why Mt. Vernon lost, one person who can't be blamed is Tiara Johnson. Despite the final result, she scored 19 points along with five steals. Johnson has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last 17 times she's played. Another player making a difference was Kamaree Pollard, who scored ten points along with two steals.
Even though they lost, Mt. Vernon smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Carterville only pulled down seven offensive rebounds.
Amayah Doyle continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines for Carterville, dropping a double-double on 30 points and 15 rebounds. Doyle continues to roll, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Hillary Siemer, who scored five points along with eight assists and two steals.
Mt. Vernon's loss ended a 15-game streak of away wins and brought them to 19-4. As for Carterville, their win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 19-5.
Mt. Vernon on the road again on Saturday and play against Carbondale at 1:00 p.m. on January 20th. Carbondale will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Illinois Rankings (they are ranked 324th, while Mt. Vernon is ranked 42nd). As for Carterville, they will square off against Massac County at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Massac County will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
