Even though the Pender Patriots have not done well against the Richlands Wildcats recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), they didn't let the past get in their way on Wednesday. Pender walked away with a 45-37 victory over Richlands. For Pender, this counts as revenge for the 42-34 loss Richlands walked away with the last time they faced one another back in December of 2022.
Richlands' lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Tashi Allen, who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 11 rebounds. Another player making a difference was Mia Wells, who scored 8 points along with 7 rebounds.
The victory got Pender back to even at 1-1. As for Richlands, their defeat was their third straight on the road, which bumped their record down to 5-2.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Pender will challenge Laney at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Laney is coming into the contest hot, having won their last three games. As for Richlands, they will head out on the road to face off against Southwest Onslow at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Southwest Onslow presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than Richlands in North Carolina (Southwest Onslow is ranked 38th, while Richlands is ranked 230th).
