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WALTHILL - Hartington-Newcastle got two wins this past week with a 57-25 win here over the Blujays on Dec. 20 after taking a 50-25 win over Niobrara/Verdigre on Dec. 17 in a game played in Hartington.
The Wildcat defense used a smothering second quarter, where they held Walthill to a single basket to head to the intermission with a solid 31-14 lead.
After giving up 12 points in the first quarter, HNS held the Bluejays to just 11 points in the second half to go away winning by the 57-25 final score.
“We played really well against a district opponent,” said Wildcat coach, Tylor Fincher. “Ashton Wakeley had a big game down low and helped on the boards. Brayden Lammers is starting to find his rhythm on offense and was very efficient from the field. Austin Sudbeck made a few shots early which really gave us a spark and gave the team a lot of confidence.”
Lammers finished the game with 12 points to lead HNS offensively on 6-of-8 shooting from the field.
Sudbeck added 10 points, including a couple of 3-pointers and Wakeley put in seven points and pulled down nine rebounds.
“One other player that has really stepped up the last couple of games before the break is Carter Kelly,” said Fincher. “His stats in this last game and shooting percentage show that we need to fi nd him more often.” Kelly had six points while making 2-of-3 shots inside the arc and yanked down 10 rebounds in the contest to lead Hartington-Newcastle in that statistic.
The Wildcats came out firing against Niobrara/ Verdigre and were really never threatened on their way to the first win of the young season.
Hartington-Newcastle went up 17-3 after the first quarter and when the dust settled on the first half, the Wildcats were enjoying a 30-9 advantage.
The lead grew to 4017 at the end of three and ended up with the 50-25 final score at the fourthperiod buzzer.
“We played without Cole Heimes in this game and I thought the team stepped up and played well together,” Fincher said. “We really dominated on the boards at both ends of the floor which really sealed the victory for us.” Cole Rosener led three HNS players in double figures with 13 points on the night. Lammers added a dozen and Kelly put in 11. Sudbeck just missed double digits with eight points.
Lammers completed a doubledouble with 11 rebounds, including five offensive boards; Kelly grabbed six missed shots.
Sudbeck finished his night with four steals.
The Wildcats are set to host their own holiday tournament with action beginning Dec. 27 and running through Dec. 30.
HNS (2-3) 17 14 22 4 - 57 WAL (0-5) 12 2 5 6 - 25 HARTINGTON-NEWCASTLE: Jason Heimes 1-2 0-0 2; Austin Sudbeck 4-12 0-2 10; Will Feilmeier 2-4 0-0 4; Carter Kelly 2-3 2-6 6; Keatyn Arens 0-1 1-2 1; Cole Rosener 2-6 3-4 7; Ayden Rosener 3-6 0-0 6; Brayden Lammers 6-8 0-2 12; Mason Krause 1-2 0-0 2; Maximus McCray 0-2 0-0 0; Lincoln Grutsch 0-1 0-0 0; Colten Cavanaugh 0-1 0-0 0; Ashton Wakeley 3-6 1-3 7.
N/V (0-7) 3 6 8 8 - 25 HNS 17 13 10 10 - 50 HARTINGTON-NEWCASTLE: J. Heimes 0-1 0-0 0; Sudbeck 3-16 1-1 8; Feilmeier 0-1 0-0 0; Kelly 4-6 1-1 11; Arens 1-1 0-0 2; C. Rosener 5-13 3-4 13; A. Rosener 1-5 0-0 2; Lammers 6-9 0-5 12; Grutsch 0-4 0-0 0; Wakeley 1-2 0-0 2.
