MW BASKETBALL: MW sweeps basketball twin bill

Minnesota West swept a women’s and men’s basketball doubleheader Saturday at Rainy River Community College.

WOMEN

Minnesota West 68,

Rainy River 56

INTERNATIONAL FALLS — Brittany Hulstein had 31 points as Minnesota West (5-3 overall) won its fourth straight game with a 12-point victory against Rainy River on Saturday.

Hulstein also had nine rebounds and three steals, helping the Lady Jays use a quick start to claim a 33-20 halftime lead.

“Even though the pace was a little slow, we had a good start by getting an early 16-8 lead,” Minnesota West head coach Mike Fury said. “We built a 14- to 16-point lead midway through the first half, until Rainy River cut it to about eight points with 4 minutes left before halftime.”

The Lady Jays fought back with a few baskets and some free throws to grab a 13-point edge at the break. Hulstein then began the second half by draining a 3-pointer as Minnesota West cruised the rest of the way.

Tiffany Gehl had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Lady Jays, while Katey Granstra added nine points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots and Lindsay Drooger created four assists.

“I think we’re starting to play a lot better together,” Fury said.

Mara Eichenberger chipped in nine rebounds, but Minnesota West dropped the battle on the boards 62-59.

The Lady Jays host Iowa Lakes at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Worthington High School.

MW 33 35 — 68

Rainy River 20 36 — 56

MEN

Minnesota West 82,

Rainy River 63

INTERNATIONAL FALLS — Orie Brown produced 29 points as Minnesota West ran past Rainy River in a non-conference game Saturday.

Mitch Hopkins added 12 points, while Luke Roddy created 10 assists for the Bluejays, who improved to 5-2 this season.

“We did a nice job in the first half by playing strong defense and we rebounded much better than (against Hibbing on Friday),” Minnesota West head coach Justin Heckenlaible said.

The Bluejays kept increasing their lead throughout the first half and limited Rainy River’s leading scorer, Jeff Romeus, to 12 points.

Mitch Olson pulled down eight rebounds for Minnesota West, which controlled the boards by a 36-31 margin.

“I thought it was a good effort by our players after suffering a close loss (78-76 at Hibbing) Friday,” Heckenlaible said.

The Bluejays host Iowa Lakes at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Worthington High School.

MW 49 33 — 82

Rainy River 31 32 — 63

WRESTLING

MSU-Moorhead Open

MOORHEAD — Three Minnesota West wrestlers placed among the top six of their respective weight classes Saturday during the Minnesota State University-Moorhead Dragon Open.

Ten weight classes were split into two divisions — one for freshmen and one for upperclassmen.

In the upperclass division, Greg Gainey finished sixth at 165 pounds. He used a 15-13 decision to advance to the fifth-place bout, but was pinned in 2 minutes, 55 seconds.

In the freshmen division, Jared Kinley ended up sixth at 141. He ousted teammate Matt Magner in the consolation quarterfinals with an 8-6 decision before scoring a 12-9 decision in the consolation semifinals to make the fifth-place bout. But Kinley received sixth place after dropping a 15-9 decision.

At 184, Jerrell Ferguson posted a 7-1 decision in the consolation semifinals before losing a 17-6 major decision to also finish in sixth place.

The Bluejays’ John Bush (125, upperclass) and Tavaras Poindexter (285, freshman) were eliminated in the consolation quarterfinals. Jaden Evans (149, freshman) and Michael Tanner (149, freshman) bost lost in the consolation first round.

Tags: minnesota west sports, sports, basketball