The Viera Hawks's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Wednesday after their fourth straight loss. They fell just short of Martin County by a score of 56-53. While losing is never fun, Viera can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 257th, while Martin County is ranked 102nd).
When it comes to explaining why Viera lost, one person who can't be blamed is Lauren Bell. Despite the final result, she scored 20 points along with eight rebounds. That was a full 37.7% of Viera's points, marking the fourth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kylie Winslow, who scored five points along with six assists and two steals.
Martin County's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Becca Witt, who scored 17 points. Brianna Valenza was another key contributor, scoring 14 points.
Viera has not been sharp recently, as they've lost nine of their last ten games, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-11 record this season. As for Martin County, their victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 12-7.
Viera will take on Windermere Prep at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. That game will pit two of the most dominant players against one another: Eni Oyedeji and Bell. As for Martin County, they will look to defend their home court on Friday against South Fork at 6:30 p.m. South Fork comes in on a streak of failing to score more than 23 points in their last ten games, a trend the squad is of course eager to reverse.
