The Fort Calhoun Pioneers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won three matches by 20 points or more this season. They really took it to Sandy Creek for the full four quarters, racking up a 51-23 win on the road. Given Fort Calhoun's advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 103rd, while Sandy Creek is ranked 241st), the result on Saturday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Fort Calhoun was led to victory by Ansley Elofson and Bria Bench. Elofson scored 13 points, while Bench dropped a double-double on 12 points and 11 rebounds. Bench is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last seven games she's played. Another player making a difference was Raeann Massey, who scored six points along with five rebounds and three steals.
Despite the loss, Sandy Creek saw an underclassman step up: Emma Fisher scored seven points along with 11 rebounds. Fisher scored a full 30.4% of Sandy Creek's points, the sixth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points. The team also got some help courtesy of Katelyn Pohlmeier, who scored four points along with five rebounds.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Sandy Creek struggled to work together and finished the game with only three assists. That's the fewest assists they've managed all season.
Fort Calhoun is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season. As for Sandy Creek, they are on a five-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 1-8.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Fort Calhoun and West Point-Beemer will face off at 6:00 p.m. on January 2nd without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. West Point-Beemer is coming into the match hot, having won their last three games. Sandy Creek and St. Cecilia will face off at 6:00 p.m. on January 4th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. St. Cecilia's defense has only allowed 26.9 points per game this season, so Sandy Creek's offense will have their work cut out for Sandy Creek.
