“It was a fun opening game of the year,” said Warriors Head Coach Jordon Roos.  “We had a great run in the first half and played some very good defense to build a lead.  In the second half HLA came out with a lot of energy and we made some mistakes to let them back into the game, however, we were able to close the game out and make plays when we needed to in the final minutes.  We had a lot of great efforts by many guys tonight and some good shooting helped us get the victory.”

Andrew Walker and Clint Determan led the Warriors with 19 points each and Grant Dawson added 13.  Dylan Bainbridge was 7-for-10 from the free throw line and finished with 9 points.  Bainbridge led the team with 6 assists and Determan grabbed a team high 8 boards.  Wheaton/Herman-Norcross held a 41-30 edge on the boards.

“It was a rough first half for us,” commented Hillcrest Head coach Ryan Garvin.  “We struggled to do much right in the first eighteen minutes.  Give credit to the Warriors as they definitely set the tone in the hustle category at the outset of the first half.  We had a hard time finding a spark from anyone in the opening half and we seem to play more frantic when something doesn’t go our way.”

Micah Foss finished with 17 points and Caden Fischer and Zeke Ihrke added 12 apiece.

“I thought our boys rebounded well in the second half,” said Garvin.  “It took a lot of guts to battle back in the second half like that after being down, at one point, by 25.  Unfortunately, our energy in the second half also translated into too many fouls and the Warriors capitalized on them as they made 25 free throws in the second half.  Like we talked about at the end of the game tonight, it’s good to get punched in the face early.  It ruthlessly eradicates any notions of invincibility we may have held in our heads.  Great lesson early in the season.”

Hillcrest will host Parkers Prairie on Friday in a Little Eight Conference matchup, while Wheaton/Herman-Norcross travels to Hancock on Thursday for a Pheasant Conference battle.