Lady Owls Survive Overtime Against Ortonville, Prevail 41-37 Over Trojans

The Hancock Lady Owls received a shock to the system tonight in the form of an overtime battle with Pheasant Conference rival Ortonville, at the Hancock High School gymnasium.
The Trojans had upset on their minds, while remembering the thrashing they received in December when they lost 69-50 in the first meeting.

The Lady Owls, who trailed 20-13 at the half, outscored the Trojans 4-0 in the overtime frame.

Tara Thielke scored a game-high 15 points for Hancock, including two free-throws in the extra period. Jenny Noordmans added 11 points and Chelsea Voorhees eight rebounds.

The Trojans fall to 2-2 in the Pheasant Conference and 8-8 overall. The Lady Owls are 5-0 in the conference and 17-1 overall.

The Lady Owls' next action is Saturday (Feb 3) at 7:30pm at the Hancock High School, when they host the Minnewaska Lakers in non-conference action. The Lakers are currently 10-6 and on a three-game winning streak.

Lady Owls Pick Up Big Section 5A Win Over Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, 64-49

Stacie Cunningham harasses the Fighting Saints' point guard Sarah Carlson at the halfcourt line.


Bree Holleman posts up in the paint to defend the shot from the Fighting Saints. This shot was unsuccessful.


Tara Thielke lines up for a free throw attempt in the second half, in which she went 9-of-10 from the charity strip.




The Lady Owls' defense bottles up the Fighting Saints' star player, Esther Peterson, along the perimeter.

At the home of the K-M-S Fighting Saints in Kerkhoven, the Lady Owls battled hard for a 64-49 victory over one of the top teams in Section 5A-South. It did not come without a fight, though, as the Fighting Saints used ferocious perimeter defense to hang with the Lady Owls through most of the game, until stellar patience and excellent shot selection helped the Lady Owls stretch their lead for the game's final margin.

After Bree Holleman's three-pointer opened scoring for both teams 90 seconds into the game, the Fighting Saints took early leads of 7-3, 10-5, and 14-9 before the Lady Owls' offense got on track.

With 6:31 before halftime, Holleman's one-of-two performance at the free throw line finally got her team to 10 points, trailing 14-10. The Lady Owls' were showing steady and well-executed patience offensively, and it finally paid off when they exploded for 19 points over the final five minutes before halftime.

Trailing 16-11, Jenny Noordman's layup began the rally, and with 5:00 left in the first half, Holleman drained a trey from downtown to tie the game at 16-all. The Lady Owls found their legs and began running the fast breaks, taking their first lead since 12 minutes earlier in the game on Noordman's fadeaway jumper only 30 seconds after the game was tied up.

The Fighting Saints' answered back 20 seconds later on Esther Peterson's pullup shot in the lane to bring the game's second and final tie, 18-18. Noordmans hit the game's next two field goals, putting the Lady Owls ahead 22-18, on a layup and a paint shot off the glass. Chelsea Voorhees' two-for-two performance at the charity strip put her team on top 24-18 with 2:58 before halftime.

The defensive intensity was picking up for the Lady Owls as the final minutes ticked off the clock before halftime, and their first-class press was paying dividends with Holleman's three-point play putting her team ahead 27-18. The Fighting Saints quickly answered back with two layups of their own, though, before Voorhees' open paint shot with one minute on the clock capped the scoring for the first half, which ended with the Lady Owls ahead 29-22. They had just outscored the Fighting Saints 20-8 in the final 6:30 of the first half.

Holleman and Noordmans each had 10 points to lead the Lady Owls' offensive production before the first buzzer, with each hitting key shots from the outside as well as down low. Voorhees dropped six points, Stacie Cunningham had two points, and the Lady Owls' leading scorer, Tara Thielke, had only one point going into the locker room. They still maintained a seven point advantage, meaning only good things could happen in the second half if Thielke began putting in field goals of her own.

Coming out of the locker room, the Lady Owls continued their patience on offense and smart shot selection, beginning with Jenny Noordmans' short-range shot 45 seconds into the second half. She followed that one minute later with two free throws.

With three minutes gone in the second half, the Lady Owls were ahead 33-28. That would be the closest the Fighting Saints would get in the final frame, as the Lady Owls began pulling away as they began working the ball down low themselves, taking a page from the K-M-S offense that had been working the paint for most of their points.

Holleman, Noordmans, and Thielke all hit paint shots to lift their team on top 44-31 with 9:00 left in the game. The Fighting Saints continued trying to pound the ball in the paint, and the Lady Owls would answer back with every run made at them.

After the Fighting Saints got within eight, Stacie Cunningham's baseline shot put the Lady Owls ahead 47-37 with 7:00 remaining, and they would maintain a 10-to-13 point lead the rest of the way until Thielke's layup in the final seconds gave the Lady Owls their final margin of victory.

Lady Owls Boxscore: Stacie Cunningham 7, Bree Holleman 12 (5 assists), Chelsea Vorhees 9, Tara Thielke 18 (7 rebounds, 5 assists), Jenny Noordmans 18 (6 rebounds, 5 steals).

Esther Peterson, who led all scorers, led the Fighting Saints with 24 points and 9 rebounds.

The big win raises the Lady Owls' record against Section 5A opponents to 9-0 so far on the season.

Up next for the Lady Owls: their second meeting of the season with Ortonville, at the Hancock High School, next Tuesday (Jan 30) in a matchup between two Pheasant Conference and Section 5A-South teams. The Trojans will be out for revenge after getting hammered on their own court 69-50 by the Lady Owls last December 19. Ortonville's record in January is 5-2, so they have improved their level of play compared to December when they went a dismal 2-5.

Four of the Lady Owls' final six games are at home, which will help considerably taking into consideration that three of their final six games are also against Class AA teams. Three are must-win games against the following Section 5A teams: Ortonville, Wheaton-Herman-Norcross, and a tough Brandon-Evansville team. A

Lady Owls Hammer the Parkers Prairie Panthers 72-42

Tonight the Hancock Lady Owls traveled to Parkers Prairie in non-conference action to face the Panthers in a matchup between two Section 5A teams. The Lady Owls won big, 72-42, to raise their overall record to 15-1 on the season. The Panthers fell to 7-9 overall.

Meanwhile, at Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa, a team competing with the Lady Owls for the top seed in Section 5A-South, the Osakis Silverstreaks, was dealt their third loss of the season in a 55-53 defeat at the hands of the Lady Jaguars (6-6) to fall to 12-3 overall.

This Thursday (Jan 25) the Lady Owls travel to another tough opponent, this one another potential Section 5A-South foe, the Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg Fighting Saints. It will be a very entertaining basketball game for area fans to enjoy.

Lady Owls Pick Up Hard-Fought 52-49 Win Over Neighboring Rival Benson Braves

From the Lac qui Parle Valley game back in December. Photo by Gregg Cunningham.

Tonight at the Benson High School, the Hancock Lady Owls fought off a late comeback attempt and picked up win number 14 on the season, against one loss. Opening up a big 27-16 lead went a long ways as it was enough to stave off a 15-4 run used by Benson (5-7) to tie the game as the second half unfolded.

The Lady Owls picked up balanced scoring from their starting five, led by Tara Thielke's 15. She was held to only two second-half points but also earned six assists and six steals. Bree Holleman scored 14 points, followed by Jenny Noordmans with 12 (9 rebounds), Chelsea Voorhees with 6, and Stacie Cunningham with 5.

It won't get much easier for the team, as they go on to play Parkers Prairie in a road game next Monday (Jan 22). The Panthers (7-8) are another dangerous team sitting just below .500 on the season. This week they dropped an overtime clash with fellow Little Eight Conference member Battle Lake (9-4). The Battlers sit in second place in the Section 5A-North standings.
What may be their most important non-conference game of the season will be this Thursday (Jan 25) in a road trip to the Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg High School to face the K-M-S Fighting Saints (5-4 Camden, 6-6 overall). The Fighting Saints have won three in a row coming into this week, and have started to mesh as a team while cutting down on turnovers after a dismal 2-5 start to their season. They are averaging 68 points per game in the New Year. The Lady Owls, who are averaging over 66 points per game all season, will face a solid test in this road game that may be the most exciting game in the area this week. The Fighting Saints hope to get top production out of their post players while limiting the Lady Owls' looks from the outside. On paper, the Lady Owls are the favorite going in, but when the high stakes of playoff success is factored in, it could be anyone's game.

Lady Owls Improve to 4-0 in the Pheasant Conference with 65-36 Win Over Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley

The win also improved their overall record to 13-1. It is their fourth straight win over the Wolverines, after losing four straight to C-G-B over the 2003-2005 seasons. The Wolverines fell to 0-3 in the conference and 4-7 overall.

Up next for the Lady Owls: The Benson Braves (5-5) at the Hancock High School this Friday (Jan 19).

Lady Owls Score 81 Points against Fergus Falls-Hillcrest Lutheran Academy

Stacie Cunningham had 20 points, Bree Holleman 18and Tara Thielke 16 to lead a balanced scoring attack for the Lady Owls (12-1). Chelsie Voorhees and Jenny Noordmans had nine points apeice.

Hancock made 8-of-18 three-pointers, led by Holleman with four, during the 81-31 win over the Comets (0-7). As a team, the Lady Owls made 50.8% (32/63) of their field goal attempts, including 44.4% (8/18) from three-point range.

HANCOCK – 32-62 FG (8-18 3-pt); 9-11 FT; 35 rebounds; 8 fouls … Scoring: Stacie Cunningham 20, Bree Holleman 18, Tara Thielke 16, Chelsie Voorhees 9, Jenny Noordmans 9, Lindsie Cunningham 7, Megan Jepma 2 … 3-point shots: Holleman 4, Thielke 2, L.Cunningham 1, S.Cunningham 1 … Rebound leaders: Noordmans 7, Thielke 7 … Assist leaders: Thielke 8 … Steal leaders: Noordmans 5, Holleman 4, S.Cunningham 4, Thielke 4

Up next for the Lady Owls: A tough trip to Clinton on Tuesday (Jan 16) to face the Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley Wolverines (5-6) in a Pheasant Conference tilt, followed by a short trip to Benson on Friday to face the Braves (5-5).

Lady Owls Rally For Big Road Win Over Ashby 65-60

Tonight in Ashby against a tough Section 5A-North opponent, the Lady Owls rallied from a 12-1 deficit in the opening minutes to outscore the Arrows 41-26 before halftime.

In the second half, they outscored the Arrows 23-22 for the 65-60 win, raising their overall record to 11-1 on the season.

Tara Thielke had 19 points and Jenny Noordmans collected 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists to spark the Lady Owls' offense. Chelsea Voorhees also netted 12 points while Stacie Cunningham handed out eight assists, and Lindsay Cunningham put up eight very valuable points.

Up next: A home game against a winless Fergus Falls-Hillcrest Academy team on Friday.

Lady Owls Defeat Campbell-Tintah-Fairmont 62-33

Against their former Pheasant Conference foe, the Campbell-Tintah-Fairmont Rebels, the Hancock Lady Owls came on fire in the second half to put up 38 points for a 62-33 win at the Hancock High School Monday night.

They shot 26-57 from the field and 7-9 from the free throw line. The win improved their overall record to 10-1.

Up next for the Lady Owls is a trip to Ashby (6-3) on Tuesday, followed by another home game this Friday against a second straight Section 5A-North team, Hillcrest Lutheran of Fergus Falls (0-5).

Scoring: Bree Holleman 16, Tara Thielke 13, Jenny Noordmans 12, Chelsea Voorhees 11, Stacie Cunningham 6, Lindsie Cunningham 2, Hannah Newhouse 2 …

3-point shots: Holleman 2, Thielke 1 …

Rebound leaders: Noordmans 7, Thielke 5 …

Assist leaders: Holleman 6, S. Cunningham 5, Thielke 4 …

Steal leaders: L. Cunningham 7, Noordmans 4

Lady Owls Light Up the Nets For 76 Points While Beating Wheaton-Herman-Norcross

Chelsea Voorhees is shown in action against Lac qui Parle Valley.

Jenny Noordmands, a junior for the Lady Owls, takes a shot against Lac qui Parle Valley in last week's tournament. Photos by Gregg Cunningham.


On Tuesday night (January 2) to start action for 2007, the Lady Owls basketball team shot out to a 44-26 halftime lead over the visiting Wheaton-Herman-Norcross Warriors (1-7, 1-1 Pheasant).

Four Lady Owls hit double figures in the scoring column, led by Jenny Noordmans with 17. Nine other Lady Owls scored: Stacie Cunningham 15, Tara Thielke 15, Bree Holleman 12, Chelsea Voorhees 6, Hannah Newhouse 3, Kayla Voorhees 2, Lindsie Cunningham 2, Shaina Cramlet 2, Kelsey Olson 2.

As a team, they shot a solid 26-55 in field goals, but were dismal from three-point range and the free-throw line (2-11 3-pt; 22-36 FT).

Bree Holleman dished out 10 assists, followed by Noordmans with four. Holleman also grabbed five steals, followed by Thielke, Noordmans, and Stacie Cunningham all with three steals apiece.

The Lady Owls have the remainder of the week for practice, as their next action is next Monday, January 8, at home against the Campbell-Tintah-Fairmont Rebels. They also have a key game the next day (Tuesday 1/9) at Ashby against an Arrows team that is currently 6-2. Their only losses to date are against Hancock as well as a solid Battle Lake team (70-67 on December 19).