The Purchase Line Red Dragons's recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their fourth straight loss. The game between Purchase Line and Blacklick Valley wasn't particularly close, with Purchase Line falling 64-46. While losing is never fun, Purchase Line can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 459th, while Blacklick Valley is ranked 197th).
Purchase Line's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jianna Hopkins, who scored 21 points along with six rebounds. That was a full 45.7% of Purchase Line's points, marking the third time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. Another player making a difference was Brooklyn Syster, who scored 15 points along with nine rebounds and two blocks.
Leading Blacklick Valley to victory were Kristin Szymusiak and Kaydence Killinger. Szymusiak scored 15 points along with nine rebounds and six steals, while Killinger scored 22 points along with nine rebounds and six steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Killinger has scored all season. Tressa Fatula was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with four steals.
Purchase Line dropped their record down to 5-12 with that loss, which was their third straight at home. As for Blacklick Valley, the win (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 14-1.
Purchase Line and United will face off at 7:15 p.m. on January 29th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. United will be looking to extend their current three-game winning streak. As for Blacklick Valley, they won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Belleville Mennonite at 2:00 p.m. on January 27th. Belleville Mennonite comes in on a streak of failing to score more than 24 points in their last four games, a trend the squad is of course eager to reverse.
