Not quite a sweep

A strong first half gave Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn a comfortable lead over visiting West Bend-Mallard, but the Hawks had to withstand the Wolverines' second-half comeback in order to earn a 66-45 non-conference win on Dec. 13.

Seventeen straight points to open the game put H-M-S in control. The advantage grew to 21 late in the first half.

"I thought our guys came out and competed hard from the start," Hawk coach Naet Hoaglund said. "We were aggressive and attacked the rim offensively which opened up some positive scoring options for us."

The Hawks' play on the other end of the court drew praise from their coach.

"It was probably some of the best defense we had played up until that point in the season," Hoaglund noted. "I just loved how active we were on the defensive end."

He was not as pleased with the "flat" start to the second half, when West Bend-Mallard rallied to cut the margin to 39-29. But H-M-S answered with seven straight points by Lance Berends to help rebuild the lead to 48-34. An 8-0 run would set the tone for the final period.

Berends was a force inside with 26 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks. He also contributed three assists.

Kooper Ebel scored 17 points, Jordan Ortega scored 10 and Keevyn Jacobsma added six.

Jacobsma also had eight rebounds; Ortega had six rebounds, five assists and two steals; Mason Brinkman contributed five assists and three rebounds; and Ebel had three rebounds, three assists and two blocks.

• vs. Akron-Westfield

Earning their first War Eagle Conference win didn't come easy for the Hawks, as a "scrappy and tough" Akron-Westfield team would not go away quietly. But H-M-S was able to grind out the 55-38 win on Dec. 14 at Akron.

The Westerners' triangle-and-2 defense caused problems for the Hawks, who trailed 13-8 after one quarter. They answered with a big second quarter to take a 28-22 lead into the break. Enough good looks on offense and stops on defense allowed H-M-S to extend the lead to 39-29 after three quarters.

Despite the defense that was geared to stop them, Ebel and Berends led H-M-S with 18 and 12 points, respectively. Jacobsma scored 11 points and Brinkman added seven.

Ortega grabbed a dozen rebounds; Berends had 11 rebounds and two blocks; Ebel finished with 10 rebounds; and Brinkman had four.

• vs. Gehlen Catholic

The Hawks shot well from the floor, but struggles at the foul line impacted the outcome of a 62-58 loss to Gehlen Catholic on Dec. 17 at LeMars.

H-M-S made 57.8 percent of their shot attempts from the field compared to 37.7 percent by the Jays (1A No. 6). But the home team was 11-of-14 at the foul line while the Hawks were just 2-of-8.

The game was competitive from the start. H-M-S led 15-13 after one quarter but Gehlen Catholic came back to take a 29-25 lead at half time. The Hawks still trailed by three at the end of the third quarter and the Jays were able to hold on for the four-point win.

Ebel scored 25 points and Berends added 22. Berends also dominated on the glass, grabbing 16 rebounds while also contributing four assists and two blocks.

Ebel had five rebounds, three steals and two assists; Brinkman had four rebounds and two assists; Jacobsma and Ortega each had three rebounds.

H-M-S (3-3, 1-1) resumes its schedule on Jan. 4 at Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire.