The Viera Hawks fought the good fight in their overtime contest against the Heritage Panthers on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They were just a bucket shy of victory and fell 61-60 to the Panthers. Having run the score up that high, both teams might be doing some extra defensive drills very soon.
Viera lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Lauren Bell, who dropped a double-double on 28 points and 11 rebounds. Bell has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last seven times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Scarlet Ackley, who scored 13 points along with seven rebounds and seven steals.
Among those leading the charge was Kendra Jean, who scored 22 points along with five steals. Another player making a difference was Jayda Lyles, who scored 13 points along with seven rebounds and four steals.
Viera has not been sharp recently, as they've lost seven of their last eight contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-9 record this season. As for Heritage, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six contests, which provided a nice bump to their 8-6 record this season.
Viera won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy at 6:00 p.m. on January 19th. Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy is hoping to put an end to a four-game streak of away losses. As for Heritage, they will head out on the road to face off against Jensen Beach at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
