The Virginia Academy Patriots pushed their score all the way to 57 on Wednesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They fell 65-57 to Benedictine. While losing is never fun, Virginia Academy can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Virginia basketball rankings (they are ranked 173rd, while Benedictine is ranked 28th).
Virginia Academy lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Surafel Muluneh, who scored 17 points. That's the first time this season that Muluneh scored 15 or more points. Rondel Jones Jr. was another key contributor, scoring seven points along with seven assists and four steals.
Virginia Academy bumped their record down to 4-16 with that loss, which was their sixth straight at home. Those losses can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.3 points per game. As for Benedictine, the win (which was their sixth in a row) raised their record to 9-4.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Virginia Academy will take on Ad Fontes Academy at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Ad Fontes Academy is coming into the game on a five-game losing streak. Benedictine's road trip will continue as they head out to face Trinity Episcopal at 6:00 p.m. on January 23rd.
