Henning to participate in Fergus Falls tournament

By Chad Koenen

Publisher

In a match up between two unbeaten teams atop Section 6A, the Henning Hornets overcame a slow start to blow by Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal 60-47 to hand the Titans their first loss of the season on Tuesday night.

The Hornets trailed 25-15 midway through the first half, but hit some key shots in the waning minutes of the first half to be down just 25-24 at the halftime break. 

“We dug ourselves an 11 point hole, but finished the first half strong to close the gap. Then we were able to finally hit a few shots and get some defensive stops to start the second half. That helped us open a nice margin that we were able to maintain to close out the game,” said head coach Randy Misegades. 

The late run set up a dominant second half for the Hornets as they outscored the Titans 36-22 in the final 18 minutes of action, despite going just 4-12 from behind the 3-point line. Henning went an impressive 18-23 from the free throw line with Teigan Bjerke leading the charge by going 8-10 from the charity stripe.

“Another grinder tonight, this time at home. NCE-UH is a very skilled team and they know how to play. They are another example of a really quality team in Section 6A,” said Misegades.

As a team the Hornets shot 43 percent from the floor with Bjerke leading the way with 19 points and 7 rebounds.

Noah Umland scored 14 points and pulled down five rebounds, while Logan Kostelecky scored 10 points in the win.

Eli Reinbold finished with eight points, Dawson Misegades scored seven points and Ryan Despard finished with two points to round out the scoring. 

The win improves the third ranked Hornets to 5-0 on the season. Despite the win, Misegades said there are some areas where the Hornets can look to improve on over the next few weeks. 

“We are excited to get the win, but definitely have some areas where we need to improve,” said Misegades. 

The Hornets were scheduled to take on Parkers Prairie on Friday, Dec. 20 in Henning and Central Cass on Saturday, Dec. 21 at a Concordia College in Moorhead. 

This week Henning will participate in the Fergus Falls Tournament. They will take on Class AA Morris/Chokio-Alberta on Friday at 12:30 p.m., before taking on either Class AAA Fergus Falls or Class AAA Worthington on Saturday. Henning is the lone Class A team in the four-team tournament. 

Henning vs. NCE-UH

POINTS: Bjerke 19, Despard 2, Reinbold 8, Umland 14, Kostelecky 10, Misegades 7

ASSISTS: Bjerke 3, Reinbold 3, Bjerke 1, Misegades 3

REBOUNDS: Bjerke 7, Reinbold 6, Umland 5, Kostelecky 3, Bjerke 3, Misegades 7

STEALS: Bjerke 1, Reinbold 4, Umland 1, Kostelecky 2