It was beach night at North Mahaska High School as the Warhawks hosted the Tri-County Trojans in the first round of the Class 1A Region 8 basketball tournament. The student section was decked in sunglasses and beach wear. The night was anything but a day at the beach as North Mahaska advanced with a 61-31 victory. The win was anything but pretty from the Warhawk perspective.
“We played really well in the first quarter, then it was like we were lazy,” said NM coach L.E. Moore. “We made too many mistakes.”
North Mahaska turned the ball over 23 times but forced 31 Tri-County miscues. NM also held a 32-21 rebounding edge. North Mahaska shot 37.9 percent from the floor while TC was held to 23.7 percent.
North Mahaska’s Breckyn Schilling blocks Aaliya Cooper’s shot in their win over Tri-County Thursday.
North Mahaska, 18-3, jumped out to a 25-7 lead to open the game and extended the difference to 37-14 at halftime. Tri-County would make some small runs but could never gain enough momentum.
Tri-County, 4-18, was led by Ayla Hall with eight points. Sadie McKain and Aaliya Cooper each scored five. McKain pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds. TC senior Grace Randall had the shot of the night hitting a Caitlin Clark-like shot from the Warhawk logo as time expired in the game. The shot brought applause from both fan bases.
The teams combined for 44 free throws. North Mahaska was 14-for-25 while the Trojans went 9-for-19.
Breckyn Schilling led NM in scoring with 20 points. She added seven rebounds, five steals, three assists and blocked two shots. Sidney Andersen and Aly Steil each scored 11 and Regan Grewe chipped in nine. Jessica Castaneda had seven points and eight rebounds.
North Mahaska will host Sigourney on Tuesday at 7 p.m.