Even though the Palm Desert Aztecs have not done well against the La Quinta Blackhawks recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Thursday. Palm Desert came out on top against La Quinta by a score of 35-26. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Palm Desert.
Palm Desert found their leader in underclassman Katelyn Gallagher, who dropped a double-double on 17 points and ten steals. That makes it ten consecutive games in which Gallagher has scored at least 25% of Palm Desert's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Ava Tethal, who scored nine points.
La Quinta's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Keymora Salter, who scored five points along with eight rebounds and three steals. That's the first time this season that Salter pulled down eight or more rebounds. Bella Ortiz was another key contributor, scoring no points along with eight steals and five rebounds.
Palm Desert has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-5 record this season. As for La Quinta, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 6-8.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Palm Desert will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Banning at 5:30 p.m. on January 3, 2024. La Quinta will wrap up 2023 with a road trip to face off against Indio at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday. Indio is on a three-game streak of home losses, La Quinta a four-game streak of away losses, but someone's luck is about to change.
