Basketball Game Preview: Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] Bobcats vs. St. Mary's Cardinals

A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] Bobcats face off against the St. Mary's Cardinals at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday... Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] is headed into the matchup after thoroughly thrashing Creighton: they outscored them in every quarter. Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] took down Creighton 56-41 on Tuesday.

Jenna Funk was a one-woman wrecking crew for Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] as she dropped a double-double on 14 points and 11 boards. Those 14 points gave Funk a new career-high. Lydia Robertson was another key player, almost dropping a double-double on 13 points and nine rebounds.

Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 20 offensive rebounds. That's the most offensive boards they've managed all season.

Meanwhile, St. Mary's came tearing into Tuesday's game with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 13.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They came out on top against the Bees by a score of 50-41.

St. Mary's found their leader in sophomore Pyper Ickes, who posted 18 points along with eight boards and five steals. Ickes has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last four times she's played. Another player making a difference was Emerson Mlnarik, who had nine points and three blocks.

St. Mary's win was their 13th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.0 points per game. As for Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard], they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a nice bump to their 6-6 record this season.

Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] was able to grind out a solid victory over St. Mary's in their previous matchup back in December of 2023, winning 50-37. The rematch might be a little tougher for Summerland [Clearwater/Ewing/Orchard] since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.