Merrillville and Portage are an even 5-5 against one another since August of 2020, but not for long. The Merrillville Pirates will stay at home for another game and welcome the Portage Indians at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Given that both suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.
Merrillville came up short against Crown Point on Thursday, falling 3-0.
While Merrillville had to settle for second, they sure made a game of it, scoring at least 14 points in every set they played. The final score came out to 25-16, 25-14, 25-14.
Meanwhile, Portage came up short against Michigan City on Saturday and fell 2-0. The Indians have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
While Portage had to settle for second, they sure made a game of it, scoring at least 16 points in every set they played. The match finished with set scores of 25-16, 25-19.
Merrillville has traveled a rocky road recently having lost six of their last eight matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 10-10 record this season. As for Portage, their loss dropped their record down to 8-11.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Tuesday's matchup: Merrillville has serving mastered this season, having averaged 9 aces per game. However, it's not like Portage struggles in that department as they've been averaging 11.1. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Merrillville skirted past Portage 3-2 when the teams last played back in August. Will Merrillville repeat their success, or does Portage have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
