After a string of three wins, the West Aurora Blackhawks's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell just short of Joliet West by a score of 47-45. West Aurora has not had much luck with Joliet West recently, as the team's come up short the last five times they've met.
Despite the loss, West Aurora still got an impressive performance from Niallie Evans, who scored 13 points along with five rebounds and three steals. Evans is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Brooklynn Johnson, who scored 14 points.
Joliet West's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Maziah Shelton led the charge by scoring 12 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Brooke Schwall, who scored nine points.
West Aurora's loss dropped their record down to 9-12. As for Joliet West, their win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-9.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. West Aurora won't have much time to rest: their next game is against Waubonsie Valley at 11:00 a.m. on January 20th. Waubonsie Valley presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than West Aurora in Illinois (Waubonsie Valley is ranked 13th, while West Aurora is ranked 255th). As for Joliet West, they will head out on the road to challenge Oswego East at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Oswego East has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 257 points over their last four games.
