A low-scoring and close first quarter quickly evaporated into a double-digit lead for second-ranked Estherville-Lincoln Central, as they defeated Spirit Lake 43-20 on Tuesday to remain perfect on the season. The Midgets outscored the Indians by ten in the second quarter and hit five of their seven 3-pointers before the half. Alyssa Johnson was the lone ELC player in double figures, finishing with ten points. Spirit Lake had just two players enter the scoring column, with KJ Veldman dropping in a game-high 17 points, surpassing 900 career points in the process. The Midgets improve to 11-0 overall and 6-0 in conference. They play Friday against sixth-ranked Bishop Heelan at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City. Spirit Lake will take a 6-3 overall record and 3-2 league mark to Emmetsburg on Friday. Coverage can be heard on KUOO Campus Radio.
Click here for the postgame interview with Indians coach Rick Reinking.
Elsewhere in the Lakes Conference, Western Christian routed Emmetsburg 85-32 to remain undefeated on the year. Spencer ran away from Storm Lake in a 52-13 victory. LeMars edged Cherokee on the road, 54-52.
In the Cornbelt Conference, rivals Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire and Harris-Lake Park squared off on Tuesday, and in the end, the Wolves earned a 51-30 home win to start 2012. HLP won every quarter and finished with three players in double-digits. Noreen Morrow was the game’s top scorer with 14 points. Mariah Gath ended the night with thirteen points and Macy Gunderson had ten. GT/RA received a team-high nine points from Alesha Sikora. The loss drops the Knights to 3-6 overall and 1-4 in the league. They host Clay Central-Everly on Friday. HLP improves to 5-4 on the season and now 4-1 in conference. A trip out-of-conference to George-Little Rock is next on Thursday.
Also in the Cornbelt, North Sentral Kossuth/Armstrong-Ringsted defeated West Bend-Mallard, 50-22.
The Okoboji Pioneers’ attempt at starting the new calendar year with a win came up short with a lopsided loss at MOC-Floyd Valley on Tuesday, 68-28. The Dutch sprinted out to an 18-1 advantage after one quarter of play. Skylar Hansen paced the Pioneers with nine points. Okoboji sits at 3-8 overall and 2-7 in the Siouxland Conference. Next up is a home game with rival Sibley-Ocheyedan on Friday, a game that can be heard on Q102.
Also in the Siouxland, the Generals fell to Boyden-Hull, 57-43. Central Lyon topped George-Little Rock, 49-33. Sheldon earned a ten-point win over West Lyon, 48-38. Sioux Center doubled up Rock Valley, 60-30.
North of the border in Minnesota, Jackson County Central notched a double-digit victory, taking down Windom, 72-50. Worthington defeated Pipestone, 57-46. Adrian proved too much for Southwest Star Concept, winning on the road 72-49.
