After suffering a loss at home just hours earlier, the Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinal girls basketball team bounced back with a 50-45 win over the Ipswich Tigers at the Mustang Seeds/DSU Classic in Madison on Saturday, January 11th.
The Cardinals used a strong offensive performance in the first half to fuel the win. St Mary shot 56% (14-25) from the field and 58% (7-12) from three-point area in the first half to build a lead they wouldn’t lose. The Cardinals led by just three points at the end of the first quarter at 18-15, but outscored the Tigers 20-6 for a 38-21 lead at halftime.
The Tiger defense held St Mary to just 12 second half points, but the Cardinal lead was too much for Ipswich to overcome. The Tigers outscored St Mary 10-6 in the third quarter to cut the lead to 44-31 heading into the fourth quarter. Ipswich then outscored St Mary 14-6 in the final quarter, but wasn’t enough as the Cardinals hung on for the win.
Ella Heinitz finished the game with 19 points, five steals, and four rebounds. Ella Griffin had nine points, five rebounds, and three assists. Karlie Klein finished with eight points and five rebounds, and Sydney Klein added six points and five rebounds.
St Mary (5-4) will host the Deubrook Area Dolphins on Thursday, January 16th. The game can be seen on Big Sioux Media.