On Wednesday, the Ponaganset Chieftains faced the Portsmouth Patriots in a battle between two of the state's top teams. Ponaganset took down Portsmouth 43-28. The victory was familiar territory for Ponaganset who now have three in a row.
Ponaganset was led to victory by Jaina Yekelchik and Anastasia Nerney. Yekelchik scored 12 points along with six blocks and four steals, while Nerney scored nine points along with five steals and three blocks. Yekelchik is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last 11 games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Paige Doolittle, who scored nine points.
Portsmouth lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Annie Hurd, who scored five points along with nine rebounds and five steals. Olivia Durant was another key contributor, scoring seven points along with two steals.
Ponaganset is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 9-4 record this season. As for Portsmouth, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 6-4.
Ponaganset will head out on the road to face off against Juanita Sanchez Complex at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Juanita Sanchez Complex is still on the hunt for that elusive first 'W'. As for Portsmouth, they will be playing at home against South Kingstown at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Rhode Island (South Kingstown is ranked 29th, while Portsmouth is ranked 19th).
