Cardinals garner three more wins

It was very productive week for the Garner-Hayfield/Ventura boys, as they picked up three more wins.  The Cardinals are in a three way tie for third place in the North Iowa Conference with a record of 3-2.  Belmond-Klemme, 6-0, and North Iowa, 7-0, are currently leading the conference.

G-H/V 60, Osage 51

A strong first half helped the G-H/V boys cruise to a victory over Osage on Tuesday, Dec. 11.

The Cardinals came out strong in the first quarter to jump to a 15-9 lead against the Green Devils.  They stretched that lead to 27-16 by halftime.

Osage regrouped a bit in the second half, and even outscored the Cardinals 15-10 in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough as G-H/V captured the 60-51 win.

“The guys did a great job responding each time Osage made a run by attacking the hoop or getting the best shooter,” said Coach Joe Albertson.  “On the night we were able to get two-thirds of our points in the paint, and that usually leads to success.”

Zach Buseman had a good game off the bench for the Cardinals, collecting 19 points, six rebounds, two assists and one steal.

Braden Meints also had a good game with 14 points, four rebounds, two steals and three blocked shots.

Rounding out the Cardinal scoring was Austin Kropp, Joel Toppin and Jake Wolf, all with six points apiece.  Heath Hutcheson added five points and Spencer Shaw and Alex Van Gerpen had two points apiece.

Toppin and Wolf led under the boards with seven rebounds apiece.

Hutcheson led the team in assists with six.

G-H/V 68, Central Springs 60

The Cardinals picked up a win in a non-conference tilt against Central Springs on Thursday, Dec. 13.

The Cardinals were able to garner a 10-point lead by halftime, 37-27.  With five minutes remaining in the game, G-H/V was able to get a 17-point lead by making good shots in the paint.  The Panthers didn’t roll over, however, and they made a run.  The Cards put the ball in the hands of Heath Hutcheson at the end of the game and he hit six straight free throws in the fourth for the final, 68-60, Cardinal victory.

Three players scored in double figures.  Braden Meints with 18, Joel Toppin had 14 and Heath Hutcheson added 12.  Also scoring was Jake Wolf with eight, Alex Van Gerpen had seven, Zach Buseman chipped in four, Spencer Shaw had three and Austin Kropp had two.

Meints led under the boards with eight rebounds, followed by Hutcheson with six and Kropp with five.  Toppin and Wolf each had four rebounds.

Shaw and Van Gerpen led the team in assists with five and four respectively.  Kropp was the team leader in steals with three.

G-H/V 57, Nashua-Plainfield 50

The Cardinals played Nashua-Plainfield in the NIACC gym on Saturday, Dec. 15.  Despite a slow start by both teams, it was an exciting game to the finish.

Both teams struggled to score in the first four minutes of play, for a very low 6-6 first quarter score.

“I liked how we attacked the glass early in the game, we just didn’t have much to show for it,” said Coach Joe Albertson.

Spencer Shaw got things rolling in the second quarter behind two three-pointers.  The shots helped the Cardinals take an 18-16 lead into - Read More Via e-Edition