Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn and Sibley-Ocheyedan played down to the wire in inter-conference action February 6 at Sibley. HMS was able find a path to victory, winning 65-64 February 4 at Sibley. The Hawks picked up their third straight win to improve to 8-12 on the season.
HMS was paced by the 32 points from Caden Douma and the 21 points from Isaac Schierholz. Kolby Douma chipped in with six points, Jackson Vogt five and Jayden Leth one. Alex Kruger scored 22 for the Generals and Gavin Stanton added 18.
“I’m proud of how our guys found a way to come out on top,” said Hawk head coach Naet Hoaglund. “Defensively, I thought we felt a step slow for a lot of the game and we gave up scoring opportunities that we’d normally limit. Credit Sibley, they put us in scramble mode more than we’d like and were able to capitalize on it. Kruger and Stanton had really good performances and we struggled to find answers for them for a lot of the night. We buckled down when we needed and were able to put together enough stops to squeeze by. Offensively, I thought we were passive and tentative in the first half. We didn’t attack enough and settled for threes too often.”
Things began to turn for HMS in the third quarter. “We were down 10 at half but our guys didn’t seem rattled,” observed Hoaglund. “We weren’t necessarily taking poor shots. We had some go in and out and felt had those fallen it’d be a different ball game. We emphasized attacking gaps and closeouts and getting to the paint more in the second half. We told them shots would start to fall and take the game possession by possession. We came out in the second half and were more aggressive offensively and started to attack gaps more. We were more balanced which opened up really good scoring opportunites. Caden had a tremendous game for us, particularly the second half. He started driving gaps and attacking downhill. After he was able to see the ball go in the net a couple of times, he really started feeling it. I’m really proud of him and the way he continues to develop. Isaac Schierholz was really important for us as well. He was our calm when things weren’t going well. He’s such a threat when he catches it in the middle of the zone – he can shoot it, drive it, or find the open guy. He’s very savvy with the ball in his hands and makes great decisions. I thought Kolby Douma’s two threes early in the first quarter were really important. We were struggling to find a rhythm and he was able to get that going for us. Overall, I’m pleased with our guys and how they continue to grow.  This time of year, we’ll take a win any way we can get it.”
Caden Douma grabbed eight rebounds and Schierholz six. Schierholz had seven assists and Vogt three. Schierholz and Caden Douma each made three steals and Vogt two.
HMS 9 12 19 19 6 – 65
S-O 18 13 10 18 5 – 48