South O’Brien was unable to build upon a second quarter rally and the Wolverines fell to Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn 54-43 January 18 at Paullina. South O’Brien trailed 15-9 after one quarter but outscored the Hawks 12-7 in the second to pull within a point at halftime 22-21. The Wolverines took their only lead of the game at 23-22. HMS moved out to a 38-30 advantage after three quarters.
Wolverine head coach Erica Dreckman gave credit to the HMS defense. “Defensively they were aggressive and made us have to handle the ball under pressure,” said Dreckman. She cited some positives for her team. “We transitioned well,” noted the coach. “We got a few fast break layups by looking up the floor and made some key shots in the second half.”
The home team shot 17-of-44 from the floor for 39 percent. The Hawks were slightly better at 42 percent (23-of-55). From three-point range South O’Brien was 4-of-10 and the Hawks 4-of-13. Each team attempted nine free throws with the Wolverines making five and HMS four.
Leading scorer for South O’Brien was Kenna Bauer with 12 points. Taja Conley finished with 10 points, Abby Schreck eight, Alyssa Van Beek six, Riley Draper five and Samantha Wilbur two. Schreck made two steals and Wilbur had two assists. The Hawks were led by Jasmine Lux with 21 points.
South O’Brien committed 23 turnovers and HMS 15. The Wolverines collected 23 rebounds, two fewer than the Hawks. Van Beek and Bauer each grabbed six caroms with Draper corralling another four.
HMS
15 7 16 16 – 54
South O’Brien
9 12 9 13 – 43