By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Black Hawk undisputed atop East
BHvsPecGBBA7251
BLACK HAWKS Abby Argall knocks down two of her four points in the Lady Warriors Six Rivers East-clinching victory over Pecatonica on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

    SOUTH WAYNE – With runaway victories over Pecatonica and Argyle, the Black Hawk Warriors girls’ basketball team put the finishing touches on a perfect season in the Six Rivers East.
    The #2-ranked Lady Warriors (19-0 overall, 10-0 SRE) locked up the outright conference championship with a 70-16 win over the visiting Pecatonica Vikings on Tuesday, Feb. 7, and then completed an unbeaten East finish with a 54-20 win over the visiting Argyle Orioles on Senior Night and Parents’ Night at BHHS on Friday, Feb. 10.
    “The girls have exceeded our expectations. We thought we could compete for a conference title this season, but were not envisioning an undefeated record in conference. The players should be proud of this accomplishment, because conference titles just don’t happen that often,” said Black Hawk head coach Michael Flanagan, whose Warriors won their 10 league games by an average of 30 points per game.
    Freshman Natalie Leuzinger led the way against Pecatonica with 18 points, two assists and four steals, while fellow frosh Hannah Butler recorded 13 points, four assists and two steals and senior Sammy Lovelace chipped in with 11 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals.
    Junior Hannah Herbst provided nine points, five assists and three steals for the Warriors. Junior Brianna Hagen added seven points and sophomore Mia Jackson netted a season-high six points for the hosts.
    Freshman Val Carr and senior Adriana Johnson scored eight apiece to lead the Vikings (0-19, 0-9).
    “We held Pecatonica and Argyle down in the scoring column. Our team is playing pretty well on the defensive end, and we have had some nice scoring balance. In the tournament, playing tough on defense and having multiple offensive weapons multiplies a teams chances of advancing. We will see what happens,” Flanagan commented.
    Against Argyle, Hagen poured in a game-high 16 points to lead the Warriors. Leuzinger tallied 12 points, six assists and four steals, while Butler added 11 points, eight rebounds and five steals.
    Lovelace, the team’s lone senior, registered six points, five rebounds and three assists on Senior Night, and Herbst chipped in with five points, five assists and three steals.
    The WIAA Division 5 tournament will begin on Tuesday, Feb. 21. Black Hawk received the #1-seed and will have a bye in the quarterfinal round.
    The Warriors will host the winner of the #9-seed Randolph (10-10) vs. #8-seed Argyle (7-14) opener in a regional semifinal game at BHHS on Friday, Feb 24, at 7 p.m. The regional final is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 25, also at 7 p.m.
    “Records are out the window next week, and with our receiving the bye for the first round, we will face a team who has already notched a tournament victory,” added Flanagan. “Getting the number one seed is a nice honor for the body of work a team has done during the season, but it really means nothing in a lose-and-go-home scenario like the WIAA tournament.”

Pecatonica…………….   5    11 – 16
Black Hawk…………… 34    36 – 70
    Pecatonica – Carr 8, Johnson 8. Totals – 7  0-4  16.
    Black Hawk – Brianna Hagen 7, Hannah Herbst 9, Natalie Leuzinger 18, Hannah Butler 13, Mia Jackson 6, Sammy Lovelace 11, Abby Argall 4, Sydney Delzer 2. Totals – 31  3-3  70.
    3-point goals– P 2 (Carr 2), BH 5 (Hagen 1, Herbst 1, Leuzinger 1, Butler 1, Lovelace 1). Total fouls– P 4, BH 11. Fouled out– None.
 
Argyle………………… 12      8 – 20
Black Hawk………….. 29    25 – 54
    Argyle –     Nelson 2, Granberg 2, Leigh 4, Ostby 2, James 2, Lantz 4, Je. Saalsaa 2, Ja. Saalsaa 2. Totals – 10  0-6  20.
    Black Hawk – Brianna Hagen 16, Hannah Herbst 5, Natalie Leuzinger 12, Hannah Butler 11, Maddy Huschitt 4, Sammy Lovelace 6. Totals – 20  7-12  54.
    3-point goals– A 0, BH 7 (Hagen 3, Herbst 1, Leuzinger 1, Butler 2). Total fouls– A na, BH 9. Fouled out– none.