The Stevenson Pirates will take on the La Quinta Blackhawks in a tournament on Thursday. Stevenson is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last six games.
While Stevenson didn't have the best season last year (they finished 6-17), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They managed a 46-41 victory over Soquel on Friday.
Stevenson got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Maria Hall out in front who posted 11 points and four steals. Hall is trending in the right direction considering she's improved her point production for three straight games. Another player making a difference was Grace Ishii, who put up four points in addition to six assists, five boards, and five steals.
Stevenson was working as a unit and finished the game with 14 assists. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their assist total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask La Quinta). They simply couldn't be stopped on Thursday as they easily beat Indio 51-22. The Blackhawks have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four games by 23 points or more this season.
La Quinta's win came from a few key players Stevenson will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Leahnette Castro-Galarza, who posted 18 points along with seven steals and five assists. Castro-Galarza is crushing it when it comes to steals: she's grabbed at least two every time she's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Sophie Barrow, who dropped a triple-double on 12 points, ten boards, and 11 steals.
La Quinta now has a winning record of 6-5. As for Stevenson, their victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-1.
Keep an eye on the arc in Thursday's match: Stevenson has made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having averaged 8.2 three-pointers per game. It's a different story for La Quinta, though, as they've been averaging only 2.8 three-pointers. Given Stevenson's sizable advantage in that area, La Quinta will need to find a way to close that gap. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other basketball content.
