Queen Creek lost against Highland back in January of 2024 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Friday. The Queen Creek Bulldogs were outmatched by the Highland Hawks and fell 59-26. While losing is never fun, the Bulldogs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 205th, while the Hawks are ranked 74th).
Despite the defeat, Queen Creek saw an underclassman step up: freshman Amaya Rodgers posted 13 points in addition to five boards and three steals. That was a full 50% of Queen Creek's points, marking the fourth time in a row she's had more than a third of the team's points. Samarah Garduno was another key player, putting up seven points.
Highland's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Emilee Searle led the charge by scoring 13 points and five rebounds. Searle is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last four games she's played. Another player making a difference was Peyton Jacobsen, who earned 13 points and seven boards.
Queen Creek dropped their record down to 5-14 with the loss, which was their fourth straight on the road. As for Highland, their win was their first in the region, bumping their region record up to 1-2 and their overall record up to 10-8.
Queen Creek will welcome Gilbert at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Gilbert will roll in looking for their fifth straight victory, something Queen Creek surely won't give up without a fight. Highland has already played their next contest, a 34-32 defeat against Campo Verde on the 20th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
