By Chad Koenen

Publisher

The top ranked Henning Hornets secured their fourth straight undefeated and Park Region Conference championship on Friday night with a commanding 82-41 win on the road against the Verndale Pirates. The conference win wrapped up their conference schedule with a perfect 14-0 record and pushed their Park Region Conference winning streak to an astounding 59 games in a row. 

The Hornets jumped out to an early lead and held a 49-23 advantage at the halftime break. The pace of the game slowed a bit in the second half with the Hornets outscoring the Pirates by a 33-18 advantage down the stretch. 

As a team, Henning shot 48 percent from the floor, but made just 8-32 shots from behind the 3-point line.
Defensively the Hornets forced 24 Pirate turnovers, which led to some easy points in transition throughout the contest.

“We didn’t shoot particularly well, but we were able to turn Verndale over which resulted in extra possessions and some easy baskets,” said head coach Randy Misegades. 

The Hornets were led offensively by Kale Misegades who scored 27 points on just 12-27 shooting, while also pulling down nine rebounds and six assists. He also led the team with five steals in the win. 

Todd Bjerke had one of his best games of the season on the offensive end of the court as the junior scored 16 points to go along with five rebounds. 

“Todd Bjerke was aggressive tonight and got us going offensively early in the game,” said Misegades.

Zack Wiederich also reached double figures with 13 points, while Ryan Despard scored nine, Andrew Suchy scored six points, Beck Thorson scored four, Dawson Bushman scored three and Trevor Arndt and Brandon Grabe rounded out the scoring with two points apiece. 

The win improved the Hornets to 24-0 on the season as they will wrap up their regular season with a pair of home games this week. On Tuesday night the Hornets will host Brandon-Evansville, before hosting Underwood on Friday night in their regular season finale. 

The Rockets come into Friday’s contest with a record of 18-5 overall and are one of eight teams ranked in the top 39 in the QRF in a very competitive Section 6A. The Hornets are currently ranked fifth in the QRF and trail just Pelican Rapids in fourth place in the section. 

The Section 6A tournament will get underway next week. 

Henning vs. Verndale

POINTS: Wiederich 13, Bushman 3, Bjerke 16, Despard 9, Thorson 4, Misegades 27, Arndt 2, Suchy 6, Grabe 2

ASSISTS: Bushman 3, Bjerke 4, Despard 4, Thorson 2, MIsegades 6, Arndt 3, Severson 1

REBOUNDS: Misegades 1, Wiederich 6, Bushman 5, Bjerke 5, Despard 2, Thorson 2, Misegades 9, Wiirre 1, Arndt 2, Severson 1, Suchy 3

STEALS: Wiederich 2, Bushman 2, Bjerke 1, Despard 4, Thorson 1, Misegades 5, Arndt 1