With a playoff game on the line, the Pine Ridge Panthers rose to the challenge on Tuesday. They snuck past the Falcons with a 58-52 win.
Elijah Laird was his usual excellent self, scoring 31 points along with five rebounds and two steals. As a matter of fact, that's the most points he has scored all season. Another player making a difference was Canyon Powers, who scored six points along with 12 assists and five steals.
Menendez's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Nate Perry, who scored 16 points. It was the first time this season that Perry scored 15 or more points. Ganyon Beckstead was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with five rebounds and two steals.
Pine Ridge's win bumped their record up to 9-13. As for Menendez, they have not been sharp recently as the team has lost eight of their last nine matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-13 record this season.
Pine Ridge is on the road again on Thursday and plays Mainland at 7:30 p.m. on February 8th. Pine Ridge will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Florida Rankings (they are ranked 391st, while Mainland is ranked 42nd). Menendez does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
