The Lakewood Park Christian Panthers have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won six matches by 23 points or more this season. They blew past Elkhart Christian Academy, posting a 54-26 win at home. Given Lakewood Park Christian's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 135th, while Elkhart Christian Academy is ranked 289th), the result on Saturday wasn't entirely unexpected.
Lakewood Park Christian was led to victory by Jade Carnahan and Ava Mcgrade. Carnahan scored 13 points along with seven assists and seven steals, while Mcgrade scored 23 points along with seven rebounds and four steals. The match was Carnahan's third in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Gracelyn Martin, who scored five points along with three steals.
Despite the loss, Elkhart Christian Academy saw an underclassman step up: Ivy Clapsaddle scored 20 points. Clapsaddle scored a full 76.9% of Elkhart Christian Academy's points, the fourth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Lakewood Park Christian's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 12-4. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 56.3 points per game. As for Elkhart Christian Academy, they now have a losing record at 8-9.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Lakewood Park Christian will square off against Clinton Christian at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Clinton Christian comes in on a streak of failing to score more than 22 points in their last five games, a trend the team is of course eager to reverse. Elkhart Christian Academy is on the road again on Tuesday and play against South Bend Clay at 7:30 p.m. on January 9th. South Bend Clay is coming into the game on a six-game losing streak.
