Ayersville has enjoyed the comforts of home their last four games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will take on the Crestview Knights at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both teams come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Ayersville walked away with it. They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Locomotives on Thursday and snuck past 39-37. Given Ayersville's advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 97th, while Montpelier is ranked 282nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Ayersville's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Ally Schindler, who scored eight points along with six assists. Another player making a difference was Taylor Craft, who scored seven points along with ten rebounds and two blocks.
Meanwhile, Crestview waltzed into their contest on Thursday with nine straight wins but they left with ten. They took their contest at home with ease, bagging a 70-32 victory over Stryker. Crestview has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 18 matches by 22 points or more this season.
Crestview relied on the efforts of Cali Gregory, who scored 20 points, and Ellie Kline, who scored 17 points along with four steals. Gregory is on a roll when it comes to points, as she's now scored 18 or more in the last 16 games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Kaci Gregory, who scored 14 points along with two steals.
Ayersville pushed their record up to 24-1 with that win, which was their 14th straight at home dating back to last season. As for Crestview, they are on a roll lately: they've won 14 of their last 15 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 23-2 record this season.
Saturday's game will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Schindler and Gregory. Schindler has been dynamite this season: she has averaged 13.1 points, 3.2 steals, and 1.4 blocks. For her part, Gregory has averaged 20.2 points and 2.9 steals.
Ayersville came up short against Crestview when the teams last played back in February of 2023, falling 46-36. Can Ayersville avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
