The John Carroll Catholic Rams just played yesterday, but they'll still head out to face the Pine Knights at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. John Carroll Catholic is coming into the game hot, having won their last eight games.
John Carroll Catholic will bounce into Tuesday's contest after beating Westwood, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. John Carroll Catholic came out on top against Westwood by a score of 47-40 on Monday.
| 01/27/25 vs Westwood | 12 |
| 01/24/25 vs South Fork | 10 |
| 01/17/25 @ Melbourne Central Catholic | 13 |
| 01/16/25 vs Cardinal Newman | 10 |
| 01/14/25 @ Cardinal Newman | 13 |
John Carroll Catholic found their leader in freshman Olivia Laughlin, who dropped a double-double on 16 points and 12 rebounds. Laughlin has been hot, having posted ten or more boards the last five times she's played. Another player making a difference was Madi Burrowes, who posted 11 points along with six rebounds and three steals.
Meanwhile, Pine beat Jupiter Christian 43-34 on Friday.
Pine had a senior duo take command as Emily Shirk dropped a double-double on 24 points and 13 boards and Amber Dunlap went 7 for 10 on her way to 14 points in addition to five rebounds and three steals. That makes it seven consecutive games in which Shirk has scored at least a third of Pine's points. Anna Shirk was another key player, putting up no points and four steals.
Pine smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 12 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 12 offensive boards in five consecutive matches.
Pine is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 13-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 27.6 points per game. As for John Carroll Catholic, their victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-4.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: John Carroll Catholic has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 32.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Pine struggles in that department as they've been averaging 35.9 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
John Carroll Catholic couldn't quite finish off Pine when the teams last played back in December of 2023 and fell 42-39. Can John Carroll Catholic avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
