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SE boys ride late surge

Hunter Horn scored 17 of his game-high 33 points in the decisive fourth quarter here Tuesday night, helping eighth-ranked (Class 1A) St. Edmond complete a season sweep over Algona, 82-61.

In a back-and-forth affair between North Central Conference rivals for much of the first 24 minutes, it was the Gaels (13-2 overall, 8-2 in league) who made the final run.

St. Edmond opened the fourth on a 15-4 spurt, spearheaded by Horn, who made six field goals and was 5-for-6 at the free throw line in seven minutes of action. The junior also had a double-double, grabbing 10 rebounds with three blocks and three steals.

Carson Bargfrede added 13 points for St. Edmond, who has won seven in a row. Grant Galles finished with 11 points and Jakob Koopman scored 10 with seven rebounds.

For the Bulldogs (6-9, 3-5), Ben Helmers had 28, with 12 of those coming in the first quarter as Algona led 17-15. Nathan Manske chipped in 14 with seven rebounds.

“We made a couple adjustments to attack the zone and get Hunter some more open looks,” SEHS head coach Adolph Kochendorfer said. “I thought Jack (McElroy) did a tremendous job getting him the ball by attacking that zone and setting up the offense. It doesn’t always show up in the box score, but Jack played a phenomenal game.

“This was a big win for us against a strong, physical team in Algona. It’s always a battle against these schools in the NCC, so it was great to get the victory.”

The Bulldogs went up early on the heels of a 7-0 run in the second quarter before St. Edmond would close the half on a 12-5 rally to tie it up at 31-all on a bucket by Bargfrede just before the buzzer.

In the third, the two teams would exchange the lead for the first three minutes before it was the Gaels gaining control. Horn scored 10 in the period and Bargfrede, Galles and Andrew Clavey all sank a 3-pointer, helping St. Edmond to a 54-48 advantage.

“As coaches sometimes, you just have to take a step back and let them play,” Kochendorfer said. “We did that in the second half. It’s not easy to do, but I was proud of them for how they stepped up.”

Bargfrede also took the defensive challenge of containing Helmers after Koopman was hit with early foul trouble. The Algona senior had just four in the second quarter and scored six late in the fourth when the game was out of reach.

“Carson had his best defensive game of the season,” Kochendorfer said. “He’s long and was able to disrupt what Helmers wanted to do.”

Horn is now tied with Cory Bargfrede, Carson’s brother, for 16th on the career scoring list at St. Edmond with 855 points.

The Gaels return to the floor on Thursday when they host West Bend-Mallard in non-league action before heading to Hampton-Dumont/CAL to close out the week on Friday.

ST. EDMOND 82, ALGONA 61

St. Edmond — Andrew Clavey 2 1-2 7, Jakob Koopman 3 4-5 10, Jack McElroy 2 2-2 6, Grant Galles 4 1-2 11, Hunter Horn 14 5-6 33, Carson Bargfrede 4 3-4 13, Ty Mericle 1 0-0 2, Jackson Calvert 0 0-0 0, Jacob Nieland 0 0-0 0. Totals: 30 16-21 82.

Algona — Evan Allie 3 1-2 9, Ben Helmers 12 4-4 28, Jacob Burns 1 0-0 2, Nathan Manske 6 0-0 14, Jaxon Eischen 0 0-0 0, Levi Walker 2 0-0 6, Landon Campe 1 0-0 2, Skylar Ostwald 0 0-0 0. Totals: 25 5-6 61.

Quarter scores: Algona led 17-15; Tied 31-31; St. Edmond led 54-48. Three-point goals: St. Edmond 6 (Clavey 2, Galles 2, Bargfrede 2), Algona 6 (Allie 2, Manske 2, Walker 2). Total rebounds: St. Edmond 39, Algona 26. Steals: St. Edmond 11, Algona 7. Blocked shots: St. Edmond 2, Algona 1. Turnovers: St. Edmond 12, Algona 13. Team fouls: St. Edmond 9, Algona 17. Fouled out: Manske.

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