Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn weathered an early burst by North Union but, in the end, just couldn’t come up with enough stops. The Warriors came out on top 69-66 in a Class 1A District 2 quarterfinal game played February 7 at Armstrong.
“We battled against a tough North Union team,” stated Hawk head coach Naet Hoaglund. “I thought we were a step slow all night defensively. They really came out firing on all cylinders. We were down 11-2 before we even blinked. I thought we settled down nicely after that initial burst from North Union and responded positively but it was a long night defensively. North Union moved the ball quickly and efficiently and we got caught in some poor rotations. It was a struggle to get consistent stops.”
HMS scored the first five points of the second quarter to lead 19-13. That lead was short-lived as the Hawks trailed 38-31 at halftime. HMS was within four points several times in the second half. Alex Billings hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to produce the final three-point margin.
The Warriors, who shot 51 percent (27-of-53), were led by Khael Jones and his 31 points and eight assists. “Khael Jones is a heck of a player and we struggled to contain him all night,” said Hoaglund. “He was so effective with the ball in his hands. We switched up our defense and even chased him a little bit in the second half but we didn’t have any answers. We did our best to battle and compete. I give our guys a lot of credit, there was no quit in them. We played hard and rallied every time North Union made a run but just couldn’t get over the hump.”
The Hawks were 27-of-53 from the floor to shoot 51 percent. They made eight treys (as did North Union) and were 14-of-17 at the free throw line. The Warriors sank half of their 14 charity tosses. Isaac Schierholz scored 22 points, Alex Billings 14, Caden Douma 13, Jackson Vogt 11 and Kolby Douma six. The 15 assists included six from Schierholz, five from Vogt, three from Kolby Douma and one from Caden Douma.
“Offensively, I thought Isaac had a really nice game for us. He was aggressive and did a nice job of getting downhill and attacking the paint where he was able to draw fouls and was able to capitalize at the free throw line (8-of-11). I thought as a team our performance at the line was solid. Alex had his best offensive performance of the season scoring 14 points. He put himself in good positions and was able to find windows in the defense where his teammates were able to find him. I thought Jackson hit some timely shots for us and distributed the ball well for us. Caden had another good shooting and rebounding performance for us. North Union did a good job of limiting his opportunities in the second half. It was probably one of our more efficient offensive performances at 1.10 points per possession but some critical turnovers and the inability to get defensive stops were ultimately the difference makers.”

Caden Douma and Schierholz each pulled down eight rebounds. Billings grabbed six boards, Vogt five and Kolby Douma three. Caden Douma, Vogt and Schierholz each came away with a steal and Caden Douma and Schierholz each blocked a shot. The Warriors turned the ball over just seven times. HMS was guilty of 16 turnovers.
After going winless last season, the Hawks notched eight wins during this campaign and finished with 14 losses. “I’m proud of our team and the growth we made this season,” said their coach. “We had some growing pains early and wished we could have had some of those games back but they were good experiences for us. We were fairly young and asked a lot of those young guys and they answered the bell. Losing Lawton (Schiphoff) for the season was a big blow but I’m proud of how our guys responded and grew to form the team that we were. God willing, we will return everyone next season and this group has a bright future if we continue working. A fun group to be a part of for sure and I’m grateful for the effort they brought each day.”
HMS 14 17 15 20 – 66
NU 16 22 18 13 69