Prairie Heights and Westview are an even 5-5 against one another since November of 2016, but not for long. The Prairie Heights Panthers will look to defend their home court on Wednesday against the Westview Warriors at 6:00 p.m.
Prairie Heights came up short against Angola on Friday, falling 53-32. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 289th, while the Hornets are ranked 113th).
Despite their loss, Prairie Heights saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Bailee Godsey, who posted nine points and three steals, was perhaps the best of all. Godsey continues to improve, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Emily McCrea, who almost dropped a double-double on ten points and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, Westview took their match on Thursday with ease, bagging a 45-17 victory over Jimtown. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Warriors.
Westview's win came from a few key players Prairie Heights will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Olivia Bontrager, who put up ten points and four steals. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in points. The team also got some help courtesy of Bre Cory, who went 5 of 11 on her way to 11 points and eight rebounds.
Westview smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 7 offensive rebounds per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 8.9.
Westview now has a winning record of 9-8. As for Prairie Heights, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 5-11 record this season.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Prairie Heights has crashing the boards this season, having averaged 25.2 boards per game. However, it's not like Westview struggles in that department as they've been averaging 25.4 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Prairie Heights lost to Westview at home by a decisive 29-14 margin in their previous meeting back in November of 2024. Will Prairie Heights have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.
