By Mike Petersen
Sports Editor & Staff Writer 

Shorthanded but still battling

H-M-S girls don't quit in loss to No. 1 Knights

 

December 30, 2021

MIKE PETERSEN/SENTINEL-NEWS

Lydia Harders splits the Unity Christian defense to score two of her team-leading 12 points. She also led H-M-S with 10 rebounds.

Facing the No. 1-ranked girls' basketball team in Class 3A with a full roster would have been a daunting task for Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn. But to do so with a depleted team was even more challenging.

Hawk coach Lester Tessum thought he might only have one starter available for the Dec. 21 game with Unity Christian in Hartley. While a second starter was able to play, injuries and other factors resulted in three freshmen in the opening lineup and two others seeing significant court time during the 65-31 loss.

"The freshmen got some good experience," Tessum acknowledged.

Senior Lydia Harders stepped up to lead H-M-S with 12 points, 10 rebounds and three steals. Her effort was complemented by freshmen Abby Douma with six points and two rebounds; Kylee Schiphoff with four points, eight rebounds and three steals; Eliza Tewes with four points; and Gracie Knobloch with three.

The Hawks trailed 16-10 early in the second quarter. Unity Christian took control of the game by scoring the next 11 points, and a 10-0 run later in the half helped them build a commanding 37-13 lead. The Knights extended the advantage to 59-21 in the third quarter. H-M-S did outscore Unity Christian by four in the final period.

Tessum appreciated the Hawks' efforts on the glass and defensively.

"We had 10 offensive rebounds. That's a good start if you're shooting and crashing the boards to get that extra shot," he said. "We didn't go out and pressure them like we do some teams. Quite a few times girls stepped up and stopped their dribble drive."

H-M-S finished the pre-holiday portion of the schedule at 2-5 overall and 0-3 in War Eagle Conference play. Tessum saw positives during the first third of the season.

"The thing I most like is the girls don't quit. They keep working really hard," he noted. "Hopefully we'll get people back in the flow and back in the rotation we were using."

The Hawks return to action on Tuesday, Jan. 4, when they play at Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire.

 
 

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