Jamestown is out to prove it's a better team than it showed the last time it met New Bloomfield.
In a quarterfinal matchup last week at the Tipton Tournament, the Eagles fell behind 17-1 in the first frame on their way to suffering a lopsided 58-20 loss at the hands of the Wildcats.
With five new starters, Jamestown coach E.H. Hirschvogel was anticipating a learning curve coming into the season. After closing their Tipton Tournament showing with a 41-38 win against Chamois, the Eagles are trending in the right direction as they head into the Dec. 17 rematch at the Capital City Shootout.
"We're getting better every day at practice," Hirschvogel said. "Every game since then, we've been a little more competitive and worked a little bit harder.
" This part of the season is about figuring out who you are and what you do well. (New Bloomfield) certainly opened our eyes and its our turn to turn that around and show them that that's not who we are."
Coming off some extremely successful seasons, Jamestown has been a program defined by its perimeter play. In the early part of the season, the top guards thus far for the Eagles have been Chiane Harlan, McKenzie Hargis and Blake Scholl.
Jamestown also boasts some muscle inside in the form of sophomore Sam Nivens. At 5-10, Nivens' presence will be a major factor in slowing down New Bloomfield forwards Samantha Haas and Madison Love.
The biggest task for the Eagles, though, will be trying to slow down Madi Craighead. The junior is the Wildcats' leading scorer and has been a nightmare matchup for teams so far.
"Madi Craighead is an outstanding player," Hirschvogel said. "She's a big key to what they do. Our focus is going to be on trying to take her out of her rhythm as much as we can."