NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | Freshman Dyan Keahna leads the fast break against Mount Vernon.

Both the STC girls and boys basketball teams hosted Mount Vernon last Tuesday night, January 7. It was a difficult night for both, with the boys losing 67-28 and the girls falling 100-21.

Coming into the game, the girls knew it would be a tall task to hang with the Mustangs. Mount Vernon came into the night as the #1 ranked team in class 3A. South Tama battled hard to open the game, thanks to scoring by seniors Aubrey Dolezal and Janette Cervantes, and freshman Dyan Keahna and Stella Zmolek. But the Mustangs went on a tear at the end of the first quarter and opened up a 34-9 lead.

STC’s only scoring in the second quarter came from a basket by freshman Scout Ridout and Mount Vernon took a 63-11 lead into the halftime break. Ridout continued to lead the team in scoring in the second half, scoring an additional 6 points. But the Mustangs were too much and ran away with a 100-21 victory.

The Trojans were led in scoring by Ridout with 8 points. She was followed by Cervantes (4), Keahna (4), Dolezal (3), and Zmolek (2). The Mustangs were led in scoring (23) and rebounding (8) by senior Chloe Meester, who has signed to play volleyball at the University of Louisville. Senior Sydney Huber added 22 points for Mount Vernon on the evening.

In the boys’ game, early baskets by juniors Tanner Large and Nick Upah kept STC within striking distance of Mount Vernon. But the Mustangs ended the first quarter with a 20-4 advantage, thanks in large part to the inside scoring of junior Kellen Haverback, who had 8 points in the opening quarter.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | STC senior Janette Cervantes goes up for a shot against Mount Vernon's Courtney Franck.

STC picked up the scoring in the second quarter, led by Large who hit an early 3-pointer and later chipped in 4 more points. But Mount Vernon raced out to a 44-15 halftime lead. Turnovers hurt the Trojans all game, as they committed nine in the second half and twenty total for the game. The Mustangs continued to stretch their lead and finished with a 67-28 win.

For the game, STC was led by Large in scoring with 9 points. He was followed by junior Cyrell Etzen (7) and Upah (4). A quartet of Trojans chipped in 2 points each: junior Barrett Jesina, senior Jerome Kapayou, junior Marion Harris, and sophomore Michael Henry.

After both the boys and girls teams fell to Mount Vernon, both teams also lost on Friday, January 10, at Solon. This put the girls’ record at 2-9 and the boys’ record at 0-10. Both teams travel to Grinnell to play the Tigers on Friday night, January 17.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | Freshman Cahysia Kapayou drives to the basket against Mount Vernon.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | STC freshman Stella Zmolek scores in the first half against Mount Vernon.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | Trojan freshman Scout Ridout breaks the press against Mount Vernon's Savanna Wright.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO BY STEVE BRANT | Sophomore Olivia Hala sets up the offense guarded by Mount Vernon's Eryn Jackson.