Sadly, the Houlka Wildcats are still looking for their first win of the season after 23 matches. They took a 35-25 hit to the loss column at the hands of Smithville on Tuesday. The defeat unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Houlka in their matchups with Smithville: they've now lost six in a row.
When it comes to explaining why Houlka lost, one person who can't be blamed is Olivia Halford. Despite the final result, she scored 17 points along with five rebounds. That was a full 68% of Houlka's points, marking the third time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.
Smithville's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Halle Sargent led the charge by almost dropping a double-double on nine points and nine rebounds. Sargent has been hot recently, having posted two or more blocks the last three times she's played. Mary Haley Hood was another key contributor, dropping a double-double on ten points and 13 rebounds.
Houlka's defeat dropped their record down to 0-23. As for Smithville, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 11-17 record this season.
Houlka will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on South Pontotoc at 6:00 p.m. on February 29th. Houlka is coming into the contest with 24 straight losses on the road, meaning South Pontotoc will have to defend against a team hungry for a victory. Smithville does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
