“I’m very proud of our guys for weathering a poor start on the road,” commented Hawley Head Coach Nathan Stoa.  “We stayed within striking distance despite being dominated on the boards early and missing free throws. The free throws didn’t get significantly better in the second half but our guys were more accountable, defensively, and stuck with the halftime adjustments on offense.”

Sam Senske led the Nuggets with a game high 25 points.  Brevin Stoa and Noah Nelson added 13 points apiece and Landon Bakke contributed a dozen.

 “Sam Senske was solid throughout the entire game,” noted Coach Stoa.  “He was a matchup issue and we were able to get him in good spots to make decisions for our offense. Noah Nelson and Landon Bakke hit big threes in the second half as the defense had to collapse on Sam.  

Jack Justesen and Davaun Stock had big non-box score games as they found big deflections, steals, and rebounds. Our conference is full of tough places to win on the road and Pelican Rapids is right there with the toughest due to their tradition and how well coached they are.”

The Vikings were led by Miguel Torres with 20 points and Charlie Larson with 15.  Hunter Williams and Ian Fahje scored 10 points apiece.  

"Hard fought game tonight which is to be expected at this point in the season in a game that had big implications for the section and conference," reported Pelican Rapids Head Coach John Gullingsrud. "We played solid in the first half and were able to establish some control, but Hawley wore us down in the second half as we struggled to string together consistent possessions on either end of the court."

Pelican Rapids (12-9, 4-5 HOL)) will play at Barnesville on Tuesday and at Breckenridge on Friday.

Hawley (14-6, 7-3 HOL) has road games at DGF on Tuesday and Perham on Friday.