The Roland-Story Norsemen and South Hamilton Hawks basketball teams renewed their long-standing rivalry once again on Tuesday night, in both sides conference finales at South Hamilton High School in Jewell. The Norsemen girls came in at 19-1 and #5 in Class 3A, while the Norsemen boys came in at 16-3. The Hawk girls came in at 13-6, while the Hawk boys came in at 16-2.
Much like the first half of the game in Story City, the girls matchup would be a defensive slugfest, as Roland-Story held just a 9-6 lead after the first quarter, a lead that was pushed to 23-17 at halftime. The Norsemen would make a push in the 3rd quarter, capturing their largest lead of the night going into the 4th quarter at 36-21. South Hamilton managed to slow down action in the 4th quarter, but it was Roland-Story that held on for a 41-28 victory. The KQWC Players of the Game were Roland-Story junior Kam Lande and South Hamilton senior Ashlyn Erickson, Lande had 13 points and 9 rebounds, while Erickson had a game-high 18 points.
The boys game followed as the Hawks got off to a fast start, leading by as much as 17-6 in the first quarter, before Roland-Story rallied to bring it within 4 at 19-15 at the end of the frame. From there, Roland-Story’s defense stiffened, and the three-point shooting of the Norsemen took off, with Roland-Story leading 39-30 at halftime, which then ballooned to a 56-41 lead at the end of the 3rd quarter, before closing out a 75-52 win. The KQWC Players of the Game were Roland-Story senior Boaz Clark and South Hamilton senior Owen Renaud. Clark had a game-high 19 points and 6 three-pointers in the win, while Renaud added 10 points off the bench for the Hawks.
Roland-Story’s girls return to action on Saturday night, when they host Hampton-Dumont-CAL in the first round of Class 3A, Region 4 at 7:30 PM. Roland-Story’s boys return to action on Thursday, February 15th, when they host the winner of Pleasantville and Colfax-Mingo in Class 2A, District 16.
South Hamilton boys return to action on Thursday night, when they host (2A) #6 Carroll Kuemper in their regular season finale, while the South Hamilton girls return to action on Tuesday, February 13th, when they host East Marshall in the first round of Class 2A, Region 8.