Ell-Saline was faced with another tough matchup tonight, on both the boys and girls side, as they were swept tonight by Heart of America foe, Berean Academy. The Berean Academy girls came into the night with a 9-5 (4-2 HOA) record, and the boys garnered the #4 rank in the state with a 12-2 record.

The ladies did not get off to an ideal start, as they didn’t record a field goal until halfway through the second quarter, and trailed 22-2 after the first quarter. The Warriors stretched the lead in the second half, as they dominated the third quarter, and led 49-15 going into the final quarter. Berean Academy won by a final score of 55-27. The Lady Cardinals offense could not get going against the length of the Berean defenders. Raleigh Kramer led the team in scoring with eight points. Ell-Saline dropped their seventh straight, falling to 1-3 in conference play.

The boys faced one of the top teams in the state, the 4th ranked Warriors, who have a 36-3 record over the past two seasons. The defending Heart of America champions carried a 12-2 record and a 4-1 mark in conference play. Ell-Saline couldn’t keep up with the high-octane Berean Academy offense, as they trailed 16-3 after one quarter and 29-9 going to half-time. The talented Warriors out-scored Ell-Saline 18-2 in the third and ran away with this won, winning by a final score of 53-17. It was a freshman-heavy attack for the Cardinals, as all but two points were scored by freshmen. Ell-Saline has now lost 45 straight contests dating back to 2019. The two teams will be looking to end their respective streaks next time out against Bennington.