Two dominant guards in Riley Turknett and Emme Dalhoff are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Seminole Warhawks will take on the Clearwater Central Catholic Marauders in a tournament on Monday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Seminole will roll into the match after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up 20 points on Friday, then bounced right back against Southeast on Saturday. Seminole was the clear victor by a 62-39 margin over Southeast. The Warhawks have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won four contests by 21 points or more this season.
Seminole relied on the efforts of Turknett, who almost dropped a double-double on 12 points and nine steals, and Emily Fekollari, who posted 18 points along with six boards and three steals. Ava Santore was another key player, putting up 12 points along with five rebounds and four steals.
Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Clearwater Central Catholic beat Braden River 37-31 on Saturday. Given the Marauders' advantage in MaxPreps' Florida basketball rankings (they are ranked 127th, while the Pirates are ranked 347th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Clearwater Central Catholic's win came from a few key players Seminole will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Dalhoff, who put up five points in addition to nine steals and six boards. Dalhoff 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 Julia Comfort, who posted seven points and five steals.
Clearwater Central Catholic smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least 14 offensive boards in four consecutive games.
Clearwater Central Catholic's win bumped their record up to 11-3. As for Seminole, they now have a winning record of 7-6.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Seminole has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 34.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Clearwater Central Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 33.9 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Seminole suffered a grim 53-30 defeat to Clearwater Central Catholic in their previous matchup two weeks ago. Can Seminole avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
