The Aberdeen Roncalli Cavaliers picked up a 48-46 overtime win over the Dell Rapids Quarriers Saturday, February 1st, at the Dakota Schools Classic held at the Sioux Falls Pentagon.  Dell Rapids raced out to an early 12-0 lead in the first quarter, and took a 16-5 lead into the second quarter.  The Cavaliers were able to cut into the Quarrier lead by halftime, and trailed 27-20 at the break.  The Roncalli defense held Dell Rapids to just nine third quarter points, and after the third quarter the game was tied 36-36.  Each team was only able to score six points in the fourth quarter as the score remained tied 42-42 at the end of regulation.  Dell Rapids was only able to score four points in the 4:00 overtime period, and Roncalli held on for the two-point win.

The Quarriers finished the game shooting 19-40 (48%) from the field, 2-9 (22%) from three-point area, and 6-14 (43%) from the free-throw line.  Roncalli shot 18-54 (33%) from the field, 5-27 (19%) from three-point area, and 7-10 (70%) from the free-throw line.  The Cavaliers out-rebounded Dell Rapids 35-34 in the game.  Dell Rapids committed 19 turnovers compared to just 13 for Roncalli.

Only five Quarriers scored in the game.  Cody Nielsen finished with 16 points and six rebounds.  Zach White had 10 points and nine rebounds.  Riley Schmidt had eight points in the game, all in the first quarter.  Ty Hoglund finished with seven points, and Ben Hammer added five points.  Zane Schumaker dished out six assists for Dell Rapids.  Roncalli was led by Brayden McNeary with a game-high 17 points.  Daniel Holmstrom finished with nine points.

The Quarriers fall to 7-5 on the year.  Dell Rapids will travel to Canton on Tuesday, February 4th, for their next game.

	1	2	3	4	OT		Final
Dell Rapids	16	11	9	6	4		46
Roncalli	5	15	16	6	6		48

Highlights:

The Vermillion Tanagers proved why they are in the conversation as a top team in Class A boys basketball.  The Tanagers defeated the Dell Rapids Quarriers 68-53 on Thursday, January 30th, in Vermillion.  Vermillion got out to a quick lead in the first quarter and held a 22-15 advantage after the first quarter.  Dell Rapids was able to close the gap by halftime, as Vermillion led by just two 33-31 after the first half.  Both teams put up 15 points in the third quarter, and the Tanagers maintained their two-point lead at 48-46.  However, the Tanagers exploded in the fourth quarter and held Dell Rapids to just seven points for the 15-point win.

The Quarriers finished 18-54 (33%) shooting from the field, which is well below their season average of 46%.  They were just 5-19 (26%) from the three-point area, and 12-16 (75%) from the free-throw line.  Dell Rapids as a team had 32 rebounds, 12 steals, 10 assists, and 13 turnovers.

Ty Hoglund had a game-high 19 points, along with three rebounds, four steals, and four assists.  Cody Nielsen, Zach White, and Ben Hammer each had eight points apiece in the game for the Quarriers.  White and Hammer also had six rebounds apiece.  Vermillion had four players in double-figures led by Cooper Williams with 17 points.  Tyrell Harper had 16 points, Jayce Huska and 14, and Nick Jensen finished with 12 points.

Dell Rapids falls to 7-4 on the year.  The Quarriers will take on Aberdeen Roncalli in the Dakota Schoolers Classic held at the Sioux Falls Pentagon on Saturday, February 1st, at 6:00 p.m.  The game will be webcast on Big Sioux Media.

	1	2	3	4		Final
Dell Rapids	15	16	15	7		53
Vermillion	22	11	15	20		68

In front of a packed gym in Dell Rapids, the Madison Bulldogs picked up a Dakota XII Conference and Region 3A win over the Dell Rapids Quarriers 71-61 on Thursday, January 23rd, in Dell Rapids.  The Bulldogs used an early 10-0 run in the first quarter to take an 18-7 lead, a lead in which they never lost.  Dell Rapids closed the gap to 18-11 by the end of the first quarter.  Both teams scored 15 points in the second quarter as Madison maintained a seven-point lead of 33-26 at halftime.  The Quarriers closed the gap by one point by the end of the third quarter at 41-47.  With the Bulldogs leading 43-49 in the fourth, Madison went on a 7-0 run to regain momentum and made their free throws down the stretch to hang on for the win.

Ty Hoglund led the team with 22 points, four steals, and three assists in the game.  Cody Nielsen finished with 12 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.  Zach White was also in double figures with 10 points and six rebounds.  Ben Hammer ended with five blocks on the night.  Preston Nordling and Trae VandeBerg each had 17 points to lead the Bulldogs.

The Quarriers shot 23-58 (40%) from the filed while going 5-14 (36%) from three-point area and 10-13 (77%) from the free-throw line.  They had a combined 32 rebounds as a team, seven blocks, seven steals, 13 assists, and 18 turnovers.

The Quarriers fall to 7-3 on the year and 5-1 in the Dakota XII Conference.  Dell Rapids will travel to Vermillion on Thursday, January 30th.  The game will be webcast as part of a double-header with the girls on Big Sioux Media.

	1	2	3	4		Final
Madison	18	15	14	24		71
Dell Rapids	11	15	15	20		61

Highlights:

The Dell Rapids Quarriers boys basketball team picked up a win over Region 3A foe, the Garretson Blue Dragons, 68-63 on Tuesday, January 21st, in Dell Rapids.  The Quarriers got out to a quick start once again, scoring 21 first quarter points and taking a 21-12 lead after the first quarter.  The Blue Dragons were able to cut into the Quarrier lead in the second quarter and trailed Dell Rapids 35-32 at halftime.  Garretson again picked up a couple of points in the third quarter, and Dell Rapids held just a one-point lead, 54-53, after the third quarter.  Dell Rapids was able to hold Garretson to just 10 points in the fourth quarter for the win.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “Coming off of the tough, emotional loss against Cheyenne-Eagle Butte and then missing our Monday practice due to bad weather, I sensed our team was a little flat coming in to the Garretson game.  We were able to start pretty quickly in the first quarter by moving the ball well and forcing a few turnovers, but I thought we lacked defensive intensity most of the game.”

Dell Rapids shot 24-55 (44%) from the field in the game.  They were 7-20 (35%) from three-point area and 13-18 (72%) from the free-throw line.  The Quarriers pulled down 47 rebounds as a team and dished out 17 assists.  However, Dell Rapids only had six steals in the game and turned the ball over 19 times.

“We dominated the battle of the boards in this game and that was a huge key to coming out on top.  Zach White was an absolute monster on the boards, finishing the night with 18 rebounds, with six of them coming on the offensive end.  We had way too many turnovers in this game, with most of our turnovers coming in the half court set when we were too impatient on offense,” said Fersdahl.

White led the team with 15 points, 18 rebounds, and four assists in the game.  Cody Nielsen had a team-high 17 points and six rebounds.  Zane Schumaker finished with 12 points, Ben Hammer had 11 points, and Ty Hoglund added 10 points.  Hoglund also had four assists.

Dell Rapids improves to  7-2 on the year.  The Quarriers will host #1 Madison on Thursday, January 23rd.  The game will be webcast on Big Sioux Media.

Fersdahl added, “Garretson was able to drive into the lane and break our defense down almost at will, and that is something we cannot let happen.  We also need to do a much better job at defending the three point line and that comes through better communication on defense. We will need to refocus on the defensive end and eliminate some of our careless turnovers on offense to have success throughout the rest of the season.”

	1	2	3	4		Final
Garretson	12	20	21	10		63
Dell Rapids	21	14	19	14		68

JV Results
The Dell Rapids Quarriers JV team defeated the Garretson Blue Dragons 53-38.  Cordell Wright had 13 points and 10 rebounds for Dell Rapids.  This was his best game of the year.  Sam White was high-point man once again with 14,  while Brett Mogen finished with 10 points and a couple of three-point shots.  Tanner Heim added five points and four steals in the game.  Dell Rapids was 8-16 from the free-throw line in the game.  Dell Rapids led at all quarter breaks and held off a surge in the third quarter by the Blue Dragons, who had pulled within eight points.

The Dell Rapids Quarriers took a 21-point lead into halftime, but had to fight to hang on for the win 61-57 against the Sioux Falls Christian Chargers on Tuesday, January 14th, in Dell Rapids.  The Quarriers started the game on a 12-2 run, and ended the first quarter with a 15-point lead at 21-6.  Dell Rapids was able to extend that lead to 43-22 at halftime.  The third quarter was tough on both teams as neither offense could get anything going.  The quarter ended with Dell Rapids ahead 49-32.  However, the Chargers made a come-back in the fourth quarter.  SF Christian cut the lead to 12 points at the 3:40 mark, and then got the lead down to just four points with :30 remaining.  Dell Rapids wouldn’t let the Chargers get any closer as the Quarriers hung on for the win.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “We played our best basketball of the season thus far in the first half against a tough Sioux Falls Christian team.  Our pressure defense had SFC frustrated, and we were able to convert their turnovers into transition points early.  We knew that SFC was too good of a team to not make a strong second half run, and they were able to do that in the fourth quarter.”

Dell Rapids finished the game shooting 24-42 (57%) from the field, 20-33 (61%) from 2-point range, 4-9 (44%) from 3-point range, but only 9-25 (36%) from the free-throw line.  The Quarriers also had a total of 22 team rebounds, six blocked shots, 10 steals, 16 assists and 13 turnovers.

“We did not shoot free throws well throughout the game, and we left some opportunities on the table to maintain the comfortable lead we built in the first half.  Offensively, we got stagnant in the second half and, when you are not making free throws, things tend to tighten up even more,” said Fersdahl.

Dell Rapids had three players finish in double-figures, led by Ty Hoglund with 20 points and five assists.  Cody Nielsen finished with 19 points, and Zach White added 16 points.  White also had a team-high eight rebounds in the game.  Riley Schmidt had four steals defensively for Dell Rapids.

“In the end though, we earned another conference victory over a tough opponent, and we showed glimpses of the type of team we can be,” added Fersdahl.

The Quarriers improve to 6-1 on the year, and 5-0 in the Dakota XII Conference.  Dell Rapids will host Cheyenne-Eagle Butte on Saturday, January 18th.  The game will be webcast on Big Sioux Media.

	1	2	3	4		Final
Sioux Falls Christian	6	16	10	25		57
Dell Rapids	21	22	6	12		61

Highlights:

JV Results
The Dell Rapids boys JV team was defeated by a tough Sioux Falls Christian JV team by as score of 42-56.  Even though it was a loss for the team, it was clearly the best basketball that the Quarriers had played this season.  The Chargers shot 8-11 from the free-throw line in the last quarter to seal their victory.  Sheldon Siemonsma was the leading scorer for Dell Rapids with 16 points,  while Sam White added 10, and Tanner Heim chipped in eight points.  Sam White led all rebounders with five for the Quarriers.

The Dell Rapids Quarrier boys basketball team remained perfect in Dakota XII Conference play with a 72-62 win over the Beresford Watchdogs on Thursday, January 9th.  In the first quarter, neither team had a lead of more than five points, and it was the Quarriers that held a slight 17-15 lead after the first quarter.  Beresford held a 32-31 lead with 1:53 to play in the second quarter before the Quarriers closed the quarter out on a 10-0 run to take  41-32 lead into halftime.  The Watchdogs scored the first 11 points of the third quarter to regain the lead at 43-41 at the 4:47 mark.  The Quarriers scored their first basket of the third quarter with 4:08 to go to tie the game at 43-43.  Both teams would score six points each to end the third quarter tied at 49-49.  The Watchdogs took their final lead of the night with 7:30 left in the game at 52-51.  Dell Rapids then delivered the knock-out punch, scoring the next 15 points over three minutes to take a 66-52 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “This was really a game of runs; it seemed that everytime we were able to extend the lead, Beresford would respond by hitting some big shots.  Fortunately, we were able to make a strong fourth quarter run, and I think our constant defensive pressure throughout the game wore them out a bit down the stretch.”

Dell Rapids finished the game shooting 26-48 (54%) from the field, 5-17 (29%) from three-point area, and 15-17 (88%) from the free-throw line.  The Quarriers picked up 28 total rebounds, 11 steals, 16 assists, and had 12 turnovers in the game as a team.

“Beresford shot lights out most of the night, hitting nine three-pointers for the game, and there were not very many of those shots that were not strongly contested by our defense.  We continued to get good shots on the offensive end, and we were able to finish strong at the basket throughout the night.   We shot free throws better than we have all year,” said Fersdahl.

The Quarriers were led by Ty Hoglund with 18 points.  Cody Nielsen finished with 14 points, and Zach White had 12 points.  Nielsen led the team with seven rebounds in the game.  Ben Hammer and White each had five rebounds.  Hoglund also led the team with three steals and six assists.

Fersdahl said, “We were a little too impatient at times on offense and we will need to improve in this area to increase our chances of winning close games.”

Dell Rapids improves to 5-1 on the year, 4-0 in the Dakota XII Conference.  The Quarriers will host the Sioux Falls Christian Chargers on Tuesday, January 14th.  The game will be webcast on Big Sioux Media.

	1	2	3	4		Final
Beresford	15	17	17	13		62
Dell Rapids	17	24	8	23		72

Highlights:

JV Results
The Dell Rapids JV team outscored the Beresford Watchdogs 30-19 in the second half after a 21-21 tie at halftime for a 51-40 win.  Leading the way for the Quarriers were Mason Peter with 13 points, Sheldon Siemonsma had 12 points, and Sam White finished with eight points.  Dell Rapids shot 9-14 from the free throw line and held Beresford to eight points in the third quarter to pull away for the win.

The Dell Rapids Quarriers boys basketball team picked up their fourth win of the year in Pipestone, MN on Tuesday, January 7th.  The Quarriers defeated the Arrows 84-68.  Dell Rapids led by just one point at halftime, 41-40, but held Pipestone to just 28 points in the second half on the way to the win.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “Defensively, Pipestone presented some matchup problems for us as Moeller was really tough in the post.  We were able to make things much more difficult for them in the second half and I think we were able to tire them out a little bit with our defensive pressure.”

Dell Rapids shot 27-50 (54%) from the field, 6-14 (43%) from three-point area, and 24-33 (73%) from the free-throw line.  The Quarriers also pulled down 34 rebounds as a team, had 10 steals, 13 assists, and only turned the ball over 10 times in the game.

“Offensively, I thought this was the best we have played so far this season as we had pretty good ball movement, and we shot the ball well from the field.  We played this game at a fast pace, and we are at our best when we are able to do that.  I was pleased that we ended the night with only 10 team turnovers, and we out-rebounded a tough Pipestone team,” said Fersdahl.

The Quartiers were led by Ty Hoglund with 26 points, five steals, and three assists.  Zane Shumaker finished the game with 21 points and four assists.   Cody Nielsen added 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds.  Ben Hammer had three blocked shots in the game.

Dell Rapids improves to 4-1 on the year.  They will host the Beresford Watchdogs in a Dakota 12 Conference game on Thursday, January 9th.  The game will be webcast on Big Sioux Media.

Highlights:

 

JV Results:
The Quarriers JV team lost to Pipestone by a score of 29-44. Dell Rapids was led by Sheldon Siemonsma with 10 points, Mason Peter with seven points, and Tanner Heim with five.  Josh Benda led the rebounders with six rebounds.  The Quarriers were behind 12-17 at halftime.  They shot 6-9 from the free throw line as a team.

The Dell Rapids Quarrier boys basketball team earned a victory over the Elk Point-Jefferson Huskies 66-55 on Saturday, January 4th, in Elk Point.  The Huskies held a 17-11 lead after the first quarter, but Dell Rapids took a two-point lead into halftime at 28-26.  The Quarriers led 47-44 after the third quarter before outscoring Elk Point-Jefferson 19-11 in the final quarter for the win.

Head coach Jason Fersdahl said, “I am proud of our team for coming together in overcoming a rough start in the first quarter by digging in and playing aggressive defense and beating EPJ on the boards on the night.  We thought going in to the game that we could use our speed and athleticism to force EPJ into some turnovers and we were able to do that, especially in the second half.”

Dell Rapids finished the game shooting 26-55 (47%) from the field, 3-15 (20%) from three-point range, and 11-21 (52%) from the free throw line.  The Quarriers pulled down 39 rebounds, had 11 steals, 12 assists, and turned the ball over 12 times in the game.

The Quarriers had three players in double-figures, led by Cody Nielsen with 23 points and 14 rebounds.  Ty Hoglund finished with 17 points, three steals, and two assists, while Zane Schumaker tossed in 11 points, pulled down five rebounds, and had four assists.  Ben Hammer finished the game with six blocks.

” Cody Nielsen played a great overall game, leading us in scoring and rebounding and making a ton of hustle plays that often go unnoticed.  I also thought our guards pushed the ball well in transition and handled the defensive pressure EPJ applied.  Ben Hammer did a good job on the defensive end by controlling the paint and blocking six shots on the night while altering many others,” said Fersdahl.  “Every Dakota XII conference game this season will be difficult and we look forward to continuing our strong start in conference play.”

Dell Rapids improves to 3-1 on the year and 3-0 in the Dakota 12 Conference.  The Quarriers will travel to Pipestone on Tuesday, January 7th.

	1	2	3	4		Final
Elk Point-Jefferson	17	9	18	11		55
Dell Rapids	11	17	19	19		66