Hanson cruises in win over Centerville

PARKSTON — Balanced scoring, led by freshman Kynedi Cheeseman’s 22 points, gave the Hanson Beavers a 73-58 win over the Centerville Tornadoes at the Parkston girls’ basketball classic Friday.

The first quarter was a see-saw affair. Centerville, ranked fourth in Class B, held an early 14-9 lead, but the Beavers bounced back to grab an 18-16 lead. Tornado standout Kieran O’Malley hit a 3-point basket to give Centerville a 19-18 advantage at the end of the first quarter.

The Tornadoes led 22-20 with 7:05 left in the second period when Hanson, ranked fifth in Class B, reeled off seven straight points to take a 27-22 lead. A basket from Centerville’s Gabrielle Larson cut the Beaver advantage to 33-30 with just over two minutes remaining until halftime, but that’s as close as the Tornadoes got. Hanson closed out the half with a 10-4 run and a 43-34 lead at intermission.

Centerville looked to get into the contest early in the third quarter as O’Malley and Larson each hit 3-point shots to get the Tornadoes to within 47-40. Hanson answered with a 10-2 run powered by five points from junior Cassidy Graham for a 57-42 advantage. Hanson led 57-46 at the end of the third quarter.

Hanson put the game away early in the final stanza, outscoring Centerville 8-2 for a 65-48 lead.

“The girls think I’m always mad at them and never positive with them,” said Hanson coach Jim Bridge, “but I’m the biggest fan of our team. But I’m going to ride them hard because I want them to get better, and I do think we are getting better.”

The Beavers go deep into their bench with as many as 10 girls seeing playing time.

“It creates problems because not everybody gets enough playing time,” he said. “So for them to be unselfish enough to take their turn and sit out is the key to why things are going well.”

The Beavers (7-0) got 11 points from Graham and Kelli Wenande and Kendra Cheeseman each finished with 10 points.

Hanson was 30-of-52 for 58 percent from the field and 11-of-16 for 69 percent from the free-throw line. The Beavers pulled down 32 rebounds and committed 19 turnovers.

Centerville (5-1) was led by O’Malley with 31 points and Carleigh Oster with 10 points.

No other statistics were available for the Tornadoes.

Hanson’s next game is Jan. 5 against Avon in Alexandria.

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