Girls' basketball: Avon beats Corsica to start 2-0

CORSICA -- Avon improved to 2-0 this season with a 47-23 win at Corsica on Tuesday. The Pirates built a 23-14 halftime lead and continued to pull away throughout the second half.

Kela Cihak led Avon with 21 points, and Blair DeJong had 11 rebounds for the Pirates, who managed to win despite hitting just 1-of-10 free throws.

Avon held Corsica, which was led by eight points from Lacey Nepodal, to just 26 percent shooting in the contest. Avon also held a 35-19 advantage in rebounding.

Avon will now get set to host Hartington Cedar Catholic (Neb.) on Tuesday. Corsica, which fell to 0-3, will host Plankinton on Friday.

Avon won the JV game 33-23.

Elk Point-Jefferson 58, Bon Homme 47

ELK POINT -- Elk Point-Jefferson erased a 20-9 deficit after the first quarter and beat Bon Homme 58-47 on Tuesday.

EPJ hit 24-of-50 shots from the field and was led by 16 points from Molly Hammitt, who had 16 points. Kelsie Pace had 12 points and five rebounds, Chrissy Strassburg had 11 points and Ali Truhe had 10 points. Mary Nebelsick had eight rebounds and five assists for EPJ, which was 5-for-7 from the charity stripe and turned the ball over just 11 times.

Bon Homme also shot well from the floor in the loss, hitting 15-of-30 shots and 14-of-20 free throws. Cassie Schuurmans had 13 points and five rebounds to lead the Cavaliers, and Liz Ruppelt and Raychel Genant each had nine points.

EPJ is now 3-0 and will travel to Sioux Falls Christian on Friday. Bon Homme is 1-2, and the Cavs play at Scotland on Friday. EPJ won the JV game 29-13.

Lake Preston 52, Montrose 48 (OT)

MONTROSE -- Lake Preston overcame a four-point first quarter to beat Montrose 52-48 in overtime Tuesday behind 18 points from Beth Swaney and 17 more from Khrysta Casper.

Lydia Nelson had 11 rebounds and Casper had six for Lake Preston, which made 16-of-46 field goal attempts. Casper and Tayla DeKnikker each had six steals. Angela Sabers had a big game in the loss for Montrose, recording 26 points, six rebounds and four steals. Betsy Johnston had 11 points and eight rebounds, and Paula Kappenman had nine points.

Montrose, which is now 0-2, will host Marion on Thursday. Lake Preston is now 2-1. Lake Preston won the JV game 39-15.

Dakota Christian 54, Gregory 41

GREGORY -- Dakota Christian built a 20-9 lead after one quarter and held on the rest of the way Tuesday to pick up a 54-41 road victory over Gregory.

Alyssa Veurink had 27 points to lead the Cadets, which hit 21-of-60 shots from the floor and 9-of-16 free throws. Gregory got 13 points from Alissa Kruse, 11 from Melissa Petersen and nine rebounds from Kaira Kruse. Dakota Christian held Gregory to 24 percent shooting, and the Gorillas hit 10-of-20 free throws.

Dakota Christian improved to 1-1, and Gregory is now 0-3. Gregory won the JV game 33-28.

Kimball 59, Platte-Geddes 52

PLATTE -- Despite giving away a sizeable first half lead, Kimball hung on Tuesday for a 59-52 win over Platte-Geddes.

Kimball held a 12-point lead after the first quarter and a 32-25 lead at the half. Platte-Geddes rallied to take a one-point lead into the fourth quarter, but wasn't able to hold off the Kiotes. Jacey Jandreau had 18 points for Kimball, and Jada Blaisus and Melissa Kroupa each had 11. Kimball shot 43 percent from the field and made 19-of-28 free throws. Platte-Geddes got 10 points from both Teri VerSteeg and Rachel Sternberg, and 12 rebounds from Austin Taylor. P-G made 7-of-12 free throws but shot just 25 percent from the floor.

Platte-Geddes is now 1-1, and Kimball is 3-0. Platte-Geddes won the JV game.

Chamberlain 57, Wessington Springs 29

WESSINGTON SPRINGS -- Chamberlain jumped out to a 21-10 lead after the first quarter and allowed only one point in the second quarter on its way to a 57-29 win over Wessington Springs.

Stevie Nelson led the Bears with 12 points and Tenelle Choal and Kelsey Schindlar each added 10. Chelsie Johnson led the Spartans with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Wessington Springs controlled the boards 26-20, but also committed more turnovers than the Bears (23-8).

The Spartans will play Monday at Corsica and Chamberlain hosts Parkston Friday.

Scotland 71, Menno 26

MENNO -- Three players hit double digits in scoring for Scotland as it defeated Menno 71-26. The Highlanders held the Wolves to no more than six points in any of the four quarters.

Calsie Skorepa scored 17 points, Kelsey Walloch added 15 and April Winne had 13 to lead Scotland. Walloch also had nine rebounds and Winne had four assists. The Highlanders shot 70 percent from the line and 44 percent from the field while Menno shot just 38 percent from the line and 26 percent from the field. Rachel Wollmann scored seven points to lead the Wolves and Tessa Goehring grabbed nine rebounds and had four assists.

The Wolves are now 1-2 and play at Hanson on Friday while Scotland climbed to 2-0 and hosts Bon Homme on Thursday. Scotland's JV team won 49-22.

Chester 63, Howard 56

HOWARD -- Foul trouble plagued Howard throughout the night and gave Chester the edge at the freethrow line as the Tigers were defeated 36-25.

Chester made 27 of its 49 free throw attempts and 16-of-28 from field-goal range. Kelsey Backus led the way with 26 points and Kaylie Eich had 10. Vanessa Laible led Howard with 13 points and Jamie Krempges added 12. The Tigers went just 7-of-17 from the line and made 23-of-51 field goal attempts.

Chester is now 2-1 and Howard fell to 0-3. The Tigers will host McCook Central on Friday. Chester's JV won 36-25.

Oldham-Ramona-Rutland 35, Freeman Academy 30

FREEMAN -- Oldham-Ramona-Rutland overcame a 12-for-60 shooting night from the floor to score a 35-30 win over Freeman Academy in Freeman on Tuesday night.

Neither team had a player reach double figures in scoring in a night where the shooting may have been colder than the temperatures outside. The Bobcats were just 9-for-32 from the floor and 10-for-20 on free throws, while O-R-R managed to convert just 8-of-18 free throws. Alicia Hofer led Freeman Academy with nine points, and Lori Rensink pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds. Chelsea Macomb matched Hofer's nine points for O-R-R and Brooke Lingbeck grabbed nine rebounds in the win.

The teams were nearly identical on the boards, FA held a 31-30 edge, but the Bobcats turned the ball over 28 times to just 18 for O-R-R.

Freeman Academy is now 0-2 and travels to Hurley on Thursday. O-R-R improves to 3-1 and is at Lake Preston on Thursday. O-R-R also took the JV game.

Sanborn Central 36, Canistota 29

CANISTOTA -- Cassie Edwards poured in 19 points to help Sanborn Central sneak past Corsica Tuesday night, 36-29.

Edwards was the only player to reach double figures in the game. The Rebels shot 10-of-29 from the floor while the Hawks were 13-for-44 on field goals. Canistota was just 3-for-14 on free throws, while Sanborn Central was 15-for-37 from the charity stripe. Brooke Zoss pulled down a team-high eight rebounds for Sanborn Central in the win. Ashley Schenkel led Canistota with eight points and Brooke DeKramer grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

Sanborn Central improves to 3-1 with the win, while Canistota falls to 2-1.

James Valley Christian 73, Highmore 36

HURON -- James Valley Christian built a 13-2 lead at the end of one quarter and a 36-7 lead by halftime to take control of Tuesday night's game against Highmore.

JVC went on to win, 73-36, on its home floor in Huron. Stephanie Hofer led JVC with 24 points. Samantha Kleinsasser added 11 points and Audrey Wipf also reached double figures in the win with 10. JVC had 10 different players reach the scoring column in the win.

JVC is still unbeaten at 3-0, and Highmore falls to 1-1. JVC also took the JV game, 39-15.