Valley Center Girls, coming off of a 2nd place finish in the Haven Wildcat Classic, returned to league play this week, taking on Andover Central and Andover.
On Tuesday, the Hornets faced the Andover Central Jaguars. Valley Center jumped out to an early lead behind some hot shooting from Morgan Thatcher who went 5-5 from the 3 point line in the first half. The Hornets took a 15 point lead into the break. However, the Jaguars fought back behind some hot shooting of their own, cutting the lead down to 5 in the 4th quarter. The Hornets managed to make some timely baskets and FT's down the stretch to hold onto the 58-48 victory. Thatcher led the Hornets with 21 points. Taylor McDonald added 10 points and 5 rebounds.
On Friday night, Valley Center faced the undefeated #1 ranked team in 5A Andover Trojans. The Hornets battled tough but fell short 36-29. The first quarter saw both teams battling defensively to an 8-8 tie at the end of the period. The Trojans defense continued to be tough for Valley Center to score on and they managed to take a 6 point lead into half. The Hornets came out in the 2nd half and went on a 12- 0 run to go up by 6. However, the Hornet offense went cold and Andover showed why they are one of the top teams in the state, going on a 16-4 run to earn the victory over Valley Center. The Hornets were led by Morgan Thatcher with 10 points. Anna Duncan added 6 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Valley Center, now 9-5, takes on the Goddard Lions on Tuesday.