The Raiders (2-3) enter the Tonganoxie Invitational fresh off a win Friday against Perry-Lecompton. The victory snapped a three-game losing streak, including a 51-36 loss to Bishop Ward on Jan. 7 and a 60-31 defeat at Tonganoxie on Tuesday night.

Still, just because Immaculata will be facing a non-league foe doesn’t mean its chances of winning will improve by much. Not when that foe is Jefferson County West.

The Tigers (2-4) have suffered close losses to Nemaha Valley and Royal Valley and won big against Perry-Lecompton and Effingham. Their lone blowout loss was on the road at Silver Lake. Needless to say, that makes Jeff West a well-tested squad.

Immaculata has shown signs that it’s ready for a breakthrough, though. In the first half against Tonganoxie on Tuesday, the Raiders kept the game close because of solid defense before a major second-half slump doomed them. They also were neck-and-neck with Bishop Ward (6-1) at halftime before the Cyclones pulled away.

And on Friday, Raiders snapped their losing streak with a 59-40 win against Perry-Lecompton at home.

If the Raiders can come around offensively, now is the time. They’re about to face a talented pool of opponents at the Tonganoxie Invitational, as well as entering the main grind of KVL play. That means the schedule is only going to get tougher.

Luckily for the Raiders, they have a few players who are starting to heat up. Senior Emily Vosseler has averaged 17 points per game in the Raiders’ last two outings and has been their go-to scorer all season.

Senior forward Maddie Waldeck also has been a top scoring threat, despite being undersized for her position at 5-foot-9. She has established herself quickly after missing all of last season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Beyond Vosseler and Waldeck, Immaculata hasn’t had many offensive contributors. And when they’ve gone cold from the field the Raiders have suffered.

But with the blowout win against Perry-Lecompton, Immaculata coach Greg Hohensinner hopes the recent victory will help the team in the tournament.

The Raiders opened the tournament Tuesday against Jeff West. A win there would put Immaculata in the semifinals against Tonganoxie or Atchison at 6 p.m. Friday. An opening-round loss would put the Raiders in the loser’s bracket at 6 p.m. Thursday against the loser of the Tonganoxie-Atchison game.