The Tamaqua Blue Raiders will finish 2023 at home by hosting the Mahanoy Area Golden Bears at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Tamaqua is coming into the game hot, having won their last five games.
Tamaqua has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four matchups by 21 points or more this season. They breezed by Nativity BVM at home to the tune of 50-9. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest victory Tamaqua has managed all season.
Tamaqua found their leader in underclassman Lauren Ligenza, who scored 13 points along with eight rebounds. Ligenza hasn't dropped below eight rebounds for six straight games. The team also got some help courtesy of Samantha Plasha, who scored four points along with four steals.
Meanwhile, it's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 58-28, which was the final score in Mahanoy Area's tilt against Shamokin Area on Wednesday. The result shouldn't come as a shock considering that's the fewest points Mahanoy Area has scored all season.
Tamaqua pushed their record up to 8-1 with that victory, which was their third straight at home. As for Mahanoy Area, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 1-5.
Tamaqua didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against Mahanoy Area in their previous meeting back in December of 2022, but they still walked away with a 48-44 victory. Will Tamaqua repeat their success, or does Mahanoy Area have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.