The Mingo Central Miners came into Tuesday's game having lost four straight, but that streak is now in the rearview. They walked away with a 50-41 victory over Ritchie County on Tuesday.
Mingo Central's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Addie Smith led the charge by scoring 19 points along with five rebounds. That makes it five consecutive games in which Smith has scored at least a third of Mingo Central's points. Another player making a difference was Gianna Akers, who scored eight points along with 14 rebounds and three blocks.
Ritchie County lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Elsa Law, who scored 13 points along with eight rebounds and three steals. Law hasn't dropped below two steals for four straight games. Chelsie Jeffrey was another key contributor, scoring 11 points along with seven rebounds and three steals.
Mingo Central's win bumped their record up to 11-8. As for Ritchie County, they have been struggling recently as they've lost ten of their last 11 games, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-12 record this season.
Mingo Central will look to defend their home court on Friday against Tug Valley at 7:30 p.m. Tug Valley is coming into the contest with five straight defeats on the road, meaning Mingo Central will have to defend against a squad hungry for a win. As for Ritchie County, they will challenge Webster County at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Webster County has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
