Hornet cagers hitting stride

The HWC boys’ basketball team finished the regular season like every head coach would like - on a win streak.

This particular streak for HWC moved to four games this week with double-digit road victories over Washburn and Towner-Granville-Upham.

HWC 66, Washburn 56

It took nearly the full 32 minutes to put away the Washburn Cardinals, but in the end, HWC did just that with a seven-point second half advantage, and a 10-point victory in Washburn on Thursday, February 17.

Washburn took the advantage in the first quarter, as Aiden Parrill hit two 3-pointers and helped the Cardinals take a 11-7 lead. Tate Grossman’s offensive putback gave HWC a brief lead at 13-12, but an offensive board for Alex Retterath gave Washburn a 14-13 lead after one.

A 10-0 run early in the second for HWC gave the Hornets some breathing room at 26-19. Eighth grader Parker Jacobson hit two threes and a field goal to keep the Cardinals close, but the Hornets held a slim 33-30 lead at halftime.

Grossman opened the third quarter up with a three pointer and a dunk for the Hornets, as they appeared they would pull away with a 38-30 lead. Jacobson hit for his third and fourth three of the game, cutting the HWC lead to 40-38. Isaac Friese scored four of his six third quarter points down the stretch, and Madden Thorson knocked down a trey with two seconds left to give the Hornets a 51-46 lead after three.

Jacobson’s fifth three, along with a field goal from Dylan Eckel cut the lead to two early in the fourth, but the Hornets closed with a 13-5 advantage to earn the 66-56 victory.

The Hornets placed four players in double digits with Friese’s 17 leading the way. Thorson’s 15 to go along with 13 from Erickson and 11 from Grossman helped the Hornets move their season record to 15-3. The Cardinals were led by Jacobson with five three pointers and 17 points. Also in doubles for Washburn were Eckel with 13 and Alex Retterath with 12.

HWC 68, TGU 45

An excellent defensive game exhibited by the Hornets resulted in only 20 first half points for the TGU Titans, as HWC claimed a victory in their final regular season game of the season, winning 68-45 in Towner on Saturday, February 19.

The first quarter was all about the Hornet offense, as they put up 25 points. Grossman, Madden Thorson and Erickson each hit three pointers and Erickson scored 13 total in the quarter, propelling HWC to a 12-point lead.

The Hornets scored the first six points of the second, and expanded the lead to 31-13. Allmaras scored six and Grossman five in the second, and the Hornet defense was swarming, holding TGU to just seven points as they led, 38-20, at half.

An 8-2 start for HWC in the third moved the score to 44-22. Dalton Myers scored five for TGU, but the Hornets led, 52-29, after three.

HWC continued to roll into the fourth, as they expanded the lead to 68-35 on a three from Tallen Thorson. The Titans finished the final 2:40 of the game on a 10-0 run to make the final score 68-45.

HWC once again showed their balanced scoring attack, with Grossman and Erickson both tallying 16 points. Allmaras and Thorson were also in doubles with 14 and 11 respectively. The Titans were led on the night by Myers with 15 points, of which 11 came in the second half.

The win helped the Hornets finish 16-3 in the regular season, and they will enter the District 7 Boys Tournament in Devils Lake as the #2 seed. The tournament started on Friday, February 25.

The loss dropped the Titans to 6-12 overall.

HWC 61, Carrington 48

(from last week)

In action from Tuesday night, February 15, the Hornets took a hard-fought 13-point win in Fessenden over the visiting Cardinals.

Grossman hit four threes in the win, and finished 7-for-14 from the field to lead HWC with 18 points. Allmaras added 14, Friese 11 and Erickson 10.

Carrington had co-leaders in the scoring column, Lucas Hendrickson and Hudson Schmitz, each with 14 points. Grady Shipman and Josh Bickett also added nine.

With the defeat, the Cardinals fell to 8-10 on the season.

Nondistrict Boys’ Basketball

HWC 66, Washburn 56

at Washburn

HWC 13 20 18 15 66

Wash. 14 16 16 10 56

HWC: Isaac Friese 17, Madden Thorson 15, Alex Erickson 13, Tate Grossman 11, Gabe Allmaras 8, Keaton Keller 2.

Washburn: Parker Jacobson 17, Dylan Eckel 13, Alex Retterath 12, Aiden Parrill 8, Tyler Kulzer 4, Dawson Beck 2.

HWC 68,

Towner-Granville-Upham 45

at Towner

HWC 25 13 14 16 68

TGU 13 7 9 16 45

HWC: Erickson 16, Grossman 16, Allmaras 14, M. Thorson 11, Keller 4, Tallen Thorson 3, Friese 2, Ashton Reimche 2.

TGU: Dalton Myers 15, Blake Latendresse 8, Jaxon Nelson 7, Jake Cargo 6, Sage Hanson 4, Ty Schmitt 3, Bryce Latendresse 2.

Tuesday, February 15

HWC 61, Carrington 48

at Fessenden

Cgtn. 5 8 15 20 48

HWC 9 13 22 17 61

HWC: Grossman 18, Allmaras 14, Friese 11, Erickson 10, Keller 3, M. Thorson 3. Totals: 26-54 FG, 2-3 FT, 6 fouls. Three-pointers: Grossman 4, Friese, Keller, M. Thorson.

Carrington: Lucas Hendrickson 14, Hudson Schmitz 14, Josh Bickett 9, Grady Shipman 9, McCoy Beckley 2. Totals: 21-49 FG, 3-4 FT, 5 fouls. Three-pointers: Schmitz 2, Bickett.

HWC Additional Stats

Rebounds: Erickson and Grossman 9, Allmaras 6, Friese, Keller and M. Thorson 2.

Assists: Erickson and Grossman 3, Friese and M. Thorson 2, Allmaras and Keller 1.

Steals: Erickson 3, Allmaras, Friese and M. Thorson 2, Grossman and Keller 1.

Blocks: Erickson 1.

Carrington Additional Stats

Rebounds: Hendrickson 6, Shipman and Hudson Topp 4, Bickett, Jack Erickson and Schmitz 2, Tate Larsen 1.

Assists: Shipman 3, Hendrickson, Schmitz and Topp 2, Bickett and Cole Seaburg 1.

Steals: Schmitz and Shipman 4, Bickett 2, Topp 1.

Blocks: Schmitz and Shipman 1.