The Hiawatha Boys basketball team continued their recent winning ways with their 3rd win of the season over a state-ranked team with a 68-62 victory over #9 in 3A, St.Marys, at the Roundhouse in Hiawatha on Valentine’s Day.

St.Marys took a 24-22 lead into halftime thanks to a three pointer from the volleyball line from Ben Devader. That three pointer was a precursor of what was to come in the 3rd quarter as both teams put on a show from beyond the arc, combining for nine treys in the stanza as Hiawatha’s Cameron Boswell went bonkers from long range, knocking down 5 triples and Ethan Morton added another trey of his own as hit 3 consecutive treys in a 9-0 spurt that turned a 40-34 deficit into a 43-40 Redhawk advantage. Not to be outdone, Devader added 2 triples and McCann had one of his own for the Bears but Boswell’s 5th three-pointer closed out the 3rd and gave Hiawatha a 46-43 lead heading into the 4th.

In the 4th, Morton and Braylen Siebenmorgen both hit timely 3’s to keep Hiawatha in front and the Redhawks closed out the upset going 12-14 from the foul line to pick up their 4th straight win to improve to 7-9 overall and 5-4 in the Big East League.

Morton led the way for the Redhawks with 18 points and 2 triples, Boswell had 15 of his 17 points in that explosive 3rd quarter thanks to his 5 treys while Siebenmorgen tallied 12 and Michael Jensen added 11.

Devader paced the Bears with 19 points and 3 treys while Brady Hurla scored 16 and Howie Rezac chipped in with 11.

The loss was costly for St.Marys (13-4, 7-3) as they missed out on a share of the Big East League regular season title as Nemaha Central defeated Riley County and Silver Lake won at Royal Valley to tie for 1st with 8-2 league records. The Thunder take the league title due to their regular season win over Silver Lake. St.Marys and Rossville tied for 2nd in the league with 7-3 marks.

The girls contest was tied at 27 at intermission.  Hiawatha led 17-10, but the Bears went on a 11-0 run to lead 21-17.  The game turned in the 3rd as St.Marys (9-8, 5-5) turned a 32-31 lead into a comfortable 47-31 margin thanks to a 15-0 spurt keyed by Bear’s guard Isabel Hurla who hit 3 treys in the 3rd. She finished the night with a career high 29 and broke the school’s single game record for made three-pointers (she held the old record with 6) as Hurla buried 7 triples on the evening. All-State Center, Hayden Heim, went off for 23 points as the Hurla/Heim duo combined for 52 of the team’s 59 points in the Bear’s 59-43 triumph. 

Hiawatha has now lost 5 in a row and is 8-8 overall, 4-5 in the Big East. Kylie Nelson led the Redhawk offense with 18 points and 3 treys while her sister, Kenzie, contributed 10.