In a battle between two Marion County teams, Hillsboro and Marion each came away with one victory and one defeat Tuesday in Marion. The Marion girls defeated Hillsboro, 44-25, while the Hillsboro boys defeated Marion, 61-37.
Girls—Marion earned a 19-point victory Tuesday in both teams’ final outing before the holiday break.
The Warriors made 41 percent of their shots from the field (14-for-34), compared with 25 percent for the Trojans (9-for-36).
Abby Sechrist scored the game’s first basket, then Marion went on a 6-0 run. A basket by Paige Proffitt followed by two free-throws from Rebecca Kaufman tied the game, then two charity shots by Courtney Herzet gave Marion the advantage at the first break, 8-6.
Hillsboro missed its first four shots of the second quarter—having made two of 13 attempts to that point—and Marion took advantage with baskets by Alli Molleker, Taelyn Pagel and Kourtney Hansen to build a 14-6 lead.
Sechrist drained a three to ignite an 8-2 Trojan run capped by a three-pointer by Savannah Unruh that closed the gap to 16-14. Marion led, 20-16 at halftime.
Hansen scored off a steal at the 6:43 mark to put Marion in front, 22-16, then Callie Linnens scored three times in a 57-second span. Her third basket brought Hillsboro within 23-22 with 4:53 left in the third quarter. Those were Hillsboro’s final points of the period, though, as the Trojans missed their next five attempts.
Meanwhile, Pagel drained a three-pointer to ignite a 9-0 Warrior run. Molleker grabbed her own rebound and scored with one second left, boosting Marion’s lead to double figures by the end of the third quarter, 32-22.
Marion’s lead remained in double figures the rest of the way, as the Warriors outscored Hillsboro 12-3 in the final period to earn the win.
Hansen led all scorers with 14 points. Pagel added 12.
Linnens was Hillsboro’s high scorer with nine points.
Boys—Hillsboro earned a 24-point victory Tuesday.
Marion, who played without starters Mason Pedersen and Peyton Heidebrecht because of injury and illness, respectively, started the game strong offensively, while Hillsboro endured a patch of chilly shooting.
The Warriors made four of their first five attempts from the floor, while Hillsboro made one of eight, allowing the Warriors to stake an 8-2 lead when Nathan Baldwin scored at the 3:54 mark.
Hillsboro outscored Marion, 11-4, after that—the run was fueled by a stifling press and included three three-pointers, two from Joe Knoll—giving the Trojans the lead by the first break, 13-12.
With Hillsboro’s press throwing Marion off balance, the Trojans enjoyed a 13-0 run to start the second quarter. Preston Loewen scored five points during that stretch, including a three-pointer at the 4:42 mark that put Hillsboro in front, 26-12.
Marion went 0-for-6 from the field in the period, and Noah Dalrymple scored the Warriors’ first points at the charity stripe with 3:00 left in the half. Hillsboro led, 30-16, at halftime, having made eight of 16 attempts in the second quarter.
The Trojans built their lead with a 17-8 third-quarter effort. Elias Werth scored eight of his game-high 14 points in the period, thanks in part to a pair of three-pointers. Dalrymple scored four points for Marion. By the end of the quarter, Hillsboro’s lead had grown to 47-24.
The teams played fairly evenly through the fourth quarter, which ended with Hillsboro in front, 61-37.
Wes Shaw joined Werth in double digit scoring for Hillsboro with 11 points.
Zachary Stuchlik led Marion’s effort with 10 points.
Coming—Hillsboro will host Nickerson Tuesday, Jan. 3. Marion will host Ell-Saline Friday, Jan. 6.
