Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
Serving O'Brien & Clay Counties
Hawks compete hard despite only winning 1 game in '23
H-M-S football players salute the crowd after beating Sibley-Ocheyedan 28-21 in Hartley on Oct. 6. The Hawks finished 1-7 this season.
After a three-year run in which it compiled a record of 23-9, Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn's football program suffered a drop-off in 2023. The Hawks' lone win during a 1-7 season came against Sibley-Ocheyedan. It was also their only victory in Class A District 1 play.
The Hawks scored 107 points and allowed 238. Four of their losses were by a total of 28 points.
"You look at the Kingsley-Pierson game on, these kids brought their lunch pail. They brought a vision and a character to go out and compete their tails off," Hawk coach Jay Eilers observed. "One play here or one play there, we'd have more wins. I just hurt for our kids that the year went the way it did. I think it just comes down to really appreciating our kids, feeling lucky that we have a group of men to coach our kids that care about them and are just good men. I feel blessed to be a part of it."
He also praised the leadership of seniors Jr. Araiza, Evan Eilers, Aidan Espeland, Ethan Huberg, Bryce Ortega, Zach Pearson, Adam Schierholz, Austin Smith, Bradley Van Beek and Ethan Wiersma.
"They showed a character that is unbelievable. To have the character that these guys brought in week in and week out was something that has proven to me how successful they're going to be in life," Eilers noted. "I am indebted to these kids. They're pretty neat."
Individual and team statistics for the season are listed below.
• Passing: Jack Mastbergen 19-of-48, 39.6 percent, 291 yards, 15.3 yards per completion, 0 TDs, 1 INT, 90.5 rating.
• Rushing: James Gellerman 143-719, 10 TDs; Mastbergen 83-360, 3 TDs; Ethan Wiersma 70-306, 3 TDs; Jr Araiza 45-197. Team: 342-1,578, 16 TDs.
• Receiving: Gellerman 4-103, Slayton McCarter 4-52, Zach Pearson 2-59, Wiersma 2-25, Evan Eilers 2-16, Jayden Leth 2-18, Araiza 2-8, Isaac Schierholz 1-10. Team: 19-291, 15.3 yards per catch.
• Tackles (total/solo, tackles for loss): Wiersma 43.0/34; Gellerman 36.5/30; Eilers 24.5/17, 1 TFL; Araiza 28.0/22, 1 TFL; Bradley Van Beek 28.0/21, 1 TFL; Adam Schierholz 22.5/17, 2 TFL; David Wetrich 16.5/12; McCarter 15.5/11; Mastbergen 14.0/11; Leth 13.5/11; Pearson 12.5/9, 1 TFL; Bryce Ortega 10.0/7; Blake Meendering 9.0/7; Ethan Huberg 9.0/6, 2 TFL; Espeland 8.5/8; Isaac Schierholz 7.5/6; Jafet Ortiz 4.5/4; Alex Billings 3.5/2. Team: 306.5/235, 8.0 TFL.
• Interceptions/Return Yards: McCarter 3-0, Gellerman 2-35, Meendering 1-13, Espeland 1-0. Team: 7-48.
• Kick Returns: Araiza 8-149, Mastbergen 4-41, Gellerman 3-28, Josh Cruz 3-18, Leth 1-6, Pearson 1-3. Team: 20-245, 12.3 avg.
• Punt Returns: Espeland 2-2.
• Kickoffs: T.J. Jans 8-410, 2 touchbacks; Mastbergen 4-160. Team: 12-570.
• PATs: Jans 1-2.
• Punting/Avg.: Gellerman 9-219, Jans 8-219, Mastbergen 6-128. Team: 23-566, 24.6 avg.
• Conversions-Points: Gellerman 7-14, Wiersma 2-4, Mastbergen 1-2. Team: 10-20.
