Marian hasn't had much luck against Omaha Westside recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Marian Crusaders will be playing at home against the Omaha Westside Warriors at 7:15 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Marian took a loss when they played away from home last Monday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Saturday. They greeted the New Year with with a 60-41 win over Lincoln Northeast. The Crusaders pushed the score to 47-27 by the end of the third, a deficit the Rockets cut but never quite recovered from.
| 01/04/25 vs Lincoln Northeast | 5 |
| 12/14/23 vs Gretna East | 4 |
| 12/20/24 @ Bellevue West | 3 |
| 12/30/23 vs Millard North | 3 |
| 01/19/24 @ Westview | 3 |
Elsa Vedral continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, putting up ten points and five steals. That's the most steals she has posted since back in January of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Jolie Hefflinger, who went 5 of 11 on her way to 15 points.
Marian smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 16 offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in five consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, you're bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that's exactly how it played out for Omaha Westside on Tuesday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew Omaha Northwest out of the water with a 71-26 final score. That looming 71-26 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Warriors yet this season.
The match pitted two dominant guards against one another in Himayajo Metoyer and Abriya Watkins. Metoyer had a solid game and posted nine points and three steals. Meanwhile, Watkins did her best for the losing side, going 8 of 17 on her way to 19 points and six rebounds.
Marian's victory was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-3. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 58.4 points per game. As for Omaha Westside, their win ended a six-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 5-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Marian has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 33 boards per game. However, it's not like Omaha Westside struggles in that department as they've been averaging 30.2 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Marian was able to grind out a solid victory over Omaha Westside in their previous meeting back in February of 2024, winning 52-43. Will Marian repeat their success, or does Omaha Westside have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
