The Lakewood Park Christian Panthers will square off against the Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian Braves at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Lakewood Park Christian had no problem doing just that on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 49-23 margin over the Eagles. The win was familiar territory for Lakewood Park Christian who now have three in a row.
It was another big night for Ava Mcgrade, who scored 16 points along with five rebounds and four steals. She hasn't dropped below 16 points for three straight games. Grace Merkel was another key contributor, scoring nine points along with two steals.
Meanwhile, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian came tearing into Thursday's match with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They blew past Adams Central 71-44 on the road. Given Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 119th, while the Flying Jets are ranked 269th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Lakewood Park Christian is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 16-6 record this season. As for Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian, they pushed their record up to 16-7 with that victory, which was their eighth straight on the road dating back to last season.
Lakewood Park Christian might still be hurting after the 62-36 defeat they got from the Braves when the teams last played two weeks ago. Can Lakewood Park Christian avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
