It took overtime to determine a winner when Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn traveled to Moville December 5 to take on Woodbury Central. The Wildcats, who had rallied in the second half, won the extra period 12-10 to top HMS 61-59.
“I was really pleased with our effort and the way we competed,” said Hawk head coach Naet Hoaglund. “We had a really strong first half defensively, only allowing 17 points on 25 percent shooting. Our defense was disruptive, our rotations were good, and we made it difficult on them to get quality shots. Offensively, I thought we found a nice rhythm and flow in the second quarter. The ball was moving and we were efficient. I felt like for two and a half quarters, we controlled the game.”
The contest then tilted toward the Wildcats. “Woodbury Central made a good run at us midway through the third quarter and we got rattled a little bit and got out of sync,” observed Hoaglund. “We had some costly turnovers that led to some transition layups that shifted the momentum in Woodbury Central’s favor. We battled until the end, but came up just short. We need to improve our defensive rebounding and limit second chance scoring opportunities.”
Isaac Schierholz’s night included 18 points, eight assists, eight rebounds, four steals and four blocked shots. “Individually, I thought Isaac had a good game for us,” said his coach. “The offense flowed through him. He was aggressive in attacking the basket and created some good offense for us. He also did a really nice job of distributing when help came. He sees the floor so well and has a sense of where guys are going to be.”
Jackson Vogt contributed 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. “Jackson had a solid game for us as well,” stated Hoaglund. “He’s asked to do a lot for us defensively, so to see him have the offensive performance he had was impressive.”
Caleb Douma recorded eight points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks. Rounding out the scoring were Alex Billings with nine points, Jayden Leth with five and Kolby Douma with three. “I thought Alex Billings came off the bench and did some really nice things for us,” praised Hoadlund. “He took advantage of his scoring opportunities. “A lot of what he does for us doesn’t show up on the statsheet. He’s a great communicator and provides energy in that aspect. He works hard to get the post fronted which helps us shrink the floor defensively.”
The Hawks outshot Woodbury Central 46 percent (25-of-55) to 39 percent (22-of-56). Each team made five treys. From the free throw line the Wildcats were 12-of-22 and HMS 4-of-10. The turnover totals showed 13 for the Hawks and 18 for Woodbury Central.
“While it’s frustrating to come out on the losing end, I’ve seen a lot of growth,” said the Hawk coach.
HMS 9 18 11 11 10 – 59
WC 5 12 15 17 12 – 61