Harlan Community BKB Drops DH to St. Albert

Harlan Community BKB Drops DH to St. Albert -

(1-9-26) – Progress is being made, even if it’s not being seen in the win column.

Harlan Community basketball was able to make some headway as both the girls’ and boys’ team try to reel in their seasons, even though they dropped a pair of games St. Albert on the road in a pair of Hawkeye Ten Conference contests on Friday.

The boys’ game would go down to the wire as Morgan Young nailed a 3-pointer with :25 sec left to and that would be the difference as the Falcons topped the Cyclones 56-53.

Harlan Community Coach Dean Mosher was proud of his team’s performance despite the loss.

“Played really hard. I thought we were really efficient, especially to start the game. We started off really hot, really good, and stuff to keep that momentum going. You know, I'd like to, but that's just stuff. We had a great first quarter. But the effort throughout the whole game was great. We stuck with it. We got a little down and stayed right there in contention.”

The Cyclones got off to a fast start, running out to a 24-16 1st qtr lead, the largest for either team in the contest. But a poor shooting 2nd qtr saw their lead evaporate and the Falcons took a one-point lead into the halftime break.

Harlan Community took a two-point lead after 3 quarters of play, thanks to terrific defense by Gabe Arkfeld, who had 11 pts in the contest.

“He did a great job tonight on both ends of the floor,” said Mosher of Arkfeld’s play. “It's good to see the ball go in the hoop and his defense has always been great. So, it's good to have him on the floor and kind of a glue guy on both ends of the floor. People feed off his energy and how he plays.”

But St. Albert wouldn’t give up, getting the ball down low to Colt Spencer often, while Hudson Whitney and Young came off the bench to hit big shots from beyond the arch.

Even though Harlan Community has now lost four straight contests, Mosher is seeing his players improving their team play.

“We've really worked on our rebounding and our defensive philosophy of helping out and helping the helper and, especially the last two games, I think that's been a great improvement.”

The Cyclones got 18 points from Dallas McDowell. Spencer led the Falcons with 16 points.

In the girls’ contest, St. Albert was just too much for Harlan Community early, running out to a 17-pt 1st qtr lead as the press defense by the Saintes forced the issue for the Cyclones, who dropped a 74-43 decision. They would eventual adjust and Coach Zach Klaassen was pleased with signs of improvement against a difficult opponent.

“I thought we handled the press really well. For the most part, three of the four quarters, it was just we dug ourselves such a big hole, you know, in that first quarter because of the offensive boards and the turnovers. But happy with the effort.”

Klaassen hopes the lessons learned in this contest will hold for his players moving forward.

“I think it's starting to take a little bit. Now the next game we're out, we'll see if we can build upon that or if we're going to go backwards and I think the girls, I mean, with their effort that they give every night, I know they want to get better. It's just making those small adjustments.”

Klaassen also wants his players to work together on building their confidence on the floor.

“If somebody makes a mistake, you got to go up to them during that dead ball and say, ‘It's going to be okay, all right? Try to stay away from the sideline,’ or, ‘Hey, just let it go. All right? Next play, we're ready to go.’”

Harlan Community will next play a doubleheader at home against Glenwood on Tuesday.

View past scores by visiting the Iowa High School Athletic Association's website, Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union website,
or Iowa Quik Stats