Southridge has enjoyed a three-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will take on Lourdes Academy at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
With a playoff game on the line, Southridge rose to the challenge on Wednesday. They blew past the Lions 68-6 at home. Given Southridge's advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 34th, while Mater Academy Charter is ranked 355th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Dianka Hardisson continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, scoring 24 points along with eight assists. She has been hot recently, having posted 18 or more points the last three times she's played. Another player making a difference was Shanaii Gamble, who scored 13 points along with five steals.
Meanwhile, Lourdes Academy was fully in charge on Wednesday, breezing past Dr. Krop 60-28 on the road. Lourdes Academy pushed the score to 58-23 by the end of the third, a deficit Dr. Krop cut but never quite recovered from.
Lourdes Academy got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Sophie Llevat out in front who scored 16 points along with six steals and five assists. It was the first time this season that Llevat scored 15 or more points. Luciana Picasso was another key contributor, dropping a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds.
Southridge is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 18-6 record this season. As for Lourdes Academy, the victory makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 16-5.
Everything came up roses for Southridge against Lourdes Academy when the teams last played back in January as the squad secured a 46-14 victory. With Southridge ahead 32-12 at the half, the game was all but over already.
