After a string of three wins, the Monte Vista Pirates's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They lost to Simla on the road by a decisive 48-30 margin. Monte Vista lost against Simla in their previous head to head back in December of 2022, too, but the margin this time around was much wider than the 50-30 score last time.
Several Pirates players turned in solid performances, despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Heysenny Beltran, who scored 11 points along with four steals and three blocks. That's the first time this season that Beltran posted two or more blocks. Stephanie Lopez was another key contributor, scoring seven points along with seven rebounds.
Monte Vista struggled to work together and finished the game with only two assists. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Simla to victory, but perhaps none more so than Katie Gotschall, who scored seven points along with five steals. Those five steals set a new season-high mark for her. The team also got some help courtesy of Amara Mazerall, who scored seven points along with 12 rebounds.
Monte Vista's loss dropped their record down to 3-1. As for Simla, they now have a winning record of 3-2.
Monte Vista will be staying on the road on Saturday to face off against Soroco at 11:00 a.m. on December 16th. Soroco is still on the hunt for that elusive first 'W'. Simla will be home for the holidays to greet Sangre de Cristo at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Sangre de Cristo's defense has only allowed 24.2 points per game this season, so Simla's offense will have their work cut out for Simla.
