Columbus East has enjoyed the comforts of home their last two games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will square off against the Columbus North Bull Dogs at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Columbus East will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Indiana Rankings (they are ranked 201st, while Columbus North is ranked 94th).
Last Saturday, things could have been worse for Columbus East, but they could have been a whole lot better as they took a 63-47 loss to Jeffersonville.
Columbus East's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Madelyn Poe, who scored 16 points along with seven rebounds, and Caroline Frost who scored 13 points along with nine rebounds. The matchup was Poe's third in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Messiah Trapp, who scored nine points.
Columbus East struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Columbus North came tearing into Thursday's contest with six straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 27.5 points) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 40-30 win over East Central.
Columbus North's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Kaylie Harmon led the charge by scoring 15 points. Miley McClellan was another key contributor, scoring eight points along with six steals and four blocks.
Columbus East has been struggling recently, as they've lost five of their last six games, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-9 record this season. As for Columbus North, their win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-2.
Keep an eye on the arc in Thursday's match: Columbus East have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having only averaged 4 threes per game. It's a different story for Columbus North, though, as they've been averaging only 6 threes per game. Given Columbus East's sizeable advantage in that area, Columbus North will need to find a way to close that gap.
Columbus East might still be hurting after the 62-40 loss they got from Columbus North in their previous meeting back in December of 2022. Thankfully for Columbus East, Lauren Barker (who went 6 for 8 from beyond the arc en route to 26 points and 7 assists) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
