The Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinal boys basketball team stopped the Estelline/Hendricks Redhawks from completing a fourth quarter comeback. The Cardinals held their ground for a 53-47 win on Friday, January 7th.
After a close first quarter that ended with the Cardinals leading 9-8, St Mary was able to grow their lead in the second quarter. The Cardinals took an eight-point lead into the locker room at halftime, 23-15. St Mary continued to add to the lead in the third quarter as well. The Cardinals had a double digit, 38-26 lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Redhawks chipped away at the lead in the fourth quarter getting it down to four points, 47-43, with 1:29 to play. Nic Gaspar and Dylan Mathis made back-to-back layups for the Cardinals to push the lead to 51-43 and put the game away.
The Cardinals finished the game shooting 40% (19-47) from the field, 25% (4-16) from three-point area, and 46% (11-23) from the free-throw line. Estelline/Hendricks shot 34% (17-50) in the game, 20% (4-20) on three pointers, and 9-10 from the free-throw line.
Mathis had 15 points, seven rebounds, two steals, and two assists. John Pica finished with nine points, 12 rebounds, and two steals. Ty Brown also had nine points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Gaspar added eight points, five rebounds, and three steals. CJ Smith had seven points, two rebounds, and two assists.
St Mary (5-2) will host Elkton/Lake Benton on Monday, January 10th.