CANISTOTA, S.D. — A strong first-quarter effort helped the Canistota girls basketball team earn a Region 4B opening-round victory Monday over Mitchell Christian by a score of 56-45.
The Hawks outscored the Golden Eagles 21-5 in the opening quarter and led 31-21 at halftime in the victory. MCS pulled to within seven points on a few occasions in the second half, including with 3 minutes remaining in the game with an Audrey Hofer three-point play. But Canistota managed to keep the lead intact throughout the second half to advance in the region playoffs.
Canistota's Kayla Papendick had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks, with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists for Sydnee Engbrecht. Hannah Hoffman had eight points and Natalie Becker added six points and seven rebounds for Canistota.
Audrey Hofer had a game-high 26 points for Mitchell Christian, with seven points from Keely O'Neill and six points from Rebekah Strong.
The Hawks (4-17) play at Colman-Egan at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 22 in Colman. Mitchell Christian's season comes to an end at 2-17.
