The South Hamilton Hawks basketball teams returned to action on Tuesday night, as they welcomed in the Greene County Rams in Heart of Iowa Conference action at South Hamilton High School in Jewell. The Hawk girls entered at 3-1, while the Hawks boys entered at 3-0.
South Hamilton’s girls came out of the gate hot on Tuesday night, using defense to generate offense against the Rams, leading 17-4 after the first quarter, before ballooning the lead to 33-11 at halftime. The Hawks began mixing in reserves and starters in the 2nd half, but managed to keep their pace en route to a 59-24 win. Ashlyn Erickson led the way with 16 points, while Makena Galetich finished with 14 points.
The boys game followed as South Hamilton looked to build on their fast start to the season, but the 0-3 Rams had some firepower of their own in the first quarter as South Hamilton led 19-18. The Hawks defense would pick up as their offense kept it’s pace, holding the Rams to 9 points in the 2nd quarter to take a 37-27 halftime lead. Defenses on both sides began to dictate tempo in the 2nd half, and despite some hot 3-point shooting from the Rams in the 4th quarter, South Hamilton held on for a 60-54 win. Reece Ricke led the way with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, while Noah Gunderson finished with 12 points. Brynley Ruzicka led the Rams with a game-high 20 points.
South Hamilton returns to action on Thursday night, when they host St. Edmond in a non-conference boys/girls doubleheader at 6 PM.