An important Wright County Conference matchup takes place Friday, when Waconia could solidify its place as a league title contender with a victory, while a Holy Family Catholic win gives the Fire a foothold in the conference standings.
Despite playing in different classes, both teams could also bolster their hopes for a long postseason run with victory over a section title contender.
Waconia is familiar with playing opponents from different classes, as two of their three losses came against Class 4A teams. The No. 7-3A Wildcats (12-3, 3-0) will need to stay engaged to avoid a slip against Holy Family Catholic — a game that caps a challenging week for Waconia, which hosts New Prague, the only other undefeated team in the conference, on Tuesday.
Waconia has outscored conference teams 249-170 through three games, and seven Wildcats average 13 or more points in a game, led by Addy Salzer (12.2 ppg), Tess Johnson (12.1 ppg) and Sydni Olson (11.4 ppg).
That offense may be needed against a Holy Family Catholic team that has lost its last two conference games and is ready to smother the streak. In a 60-50 loss to New Prague last Friday, Leigh Steiner (15.1 ppg) scored a team-high 15 points for the No. 7-3A Fire (12-4, 1-2).