Photo by Jodie Casey: Hunter Horn of St. Edmond drives to the basket against Mason City Newman in a Class 1A district final on Tuesday night in Webster City.

WEBSTER CITY — The message at halftime from Adolph Kochendorfer to his fourth-ranked (Class 1A) St. Edmond boys was simple: Remember what got you this far.

Down by one point to Mason City Newman here Tuesday night in a district final, the Gaels came out of the break firing on all cylinders. They used a 20-6 run on their way to a 63-54 victory, which advances them to Saturday night’s substate championship round.

St. Edmond (21-3 overall) will meet rival Bishop Garrigan (21-3) in Humboldt for a state tournament bid. Earlier this year, the Gaels picked up a 56-51 home triumph over the Golden Bears.

Hunter Horn recorded a monster double-double to lead the way last night, scoring 28 points while grabbing 17 rebounds with three blocked shots and a steal. Carson Bargfrede added 13 points, including eight during the key third quarter that saw St. Edmond take a 48-33 lead into the final eight minutes.

“We just reminded them that wasn’t the way we’ve played all year,” Kochendorfer said. “We weren’t moving the basketball, we weren’t rebounding, we weren’t playing well on defense. We just asked if this is where they wanted the season to end, or if they were willing to fight and battle to get (over the hump).

“In that third quarter, the kids responded and played like they are capable.”

The Gaels took control in the first four minutes of that frame, as Bargfrede and Ty Mericle hit back-to-back 3-pointers. Horn added a bucket to turn a 31-28 lead into an 11-point cushion.

Along with Bargfrede’s eight in the quarter, Horn scored six after putting together a 14-point first half that kept St. Edmond within striking distance of the Knights, who bow out at 17-5.

“I thought we came out nervous,” Kochendorfer said. “Heck, I was nervous before the game. We didn’t really respond well to what (Newman) was doing and we let them control the tempo. Once we were able to settle in, we were able to dictate what we wanted to do.

“The kids did a nice job of getting out in transition more, which was possible because we rebounded the ball better in the second half.”

Along with Horn’s 17 boards, Jakob Koopman had eight to go along with eight rebounds and three blocks. Jack McElroy grabbed seven rebounds and Andrew Clavey had four.

For Newman, sophomore Thomas McGuire scored 19, including 10 in the fourth as the Knights mounted a comeback after falling behind by as many as 17. Westley Cole, the squad’s leading scorer, added 15 points, but just five in the second half.

“(McGuire) hit some tough shots,” Kochendorfer said. “Heck, they hit a lot of tough shots even when we were defending well.”

Koopman’s bucket to start the scoring in the fourth put St. Edmond up 50-33. Newman slowly chipped away at the deficit, getting back to within six with just over a minute to play.

Horn responded with four consecutive points, though, and Grant Galles sank two free throws to clinch the win.

“Hunter really battled in there all night long,” Kochendorfer said. “They were running two or three guys at him. I thought that was really big of Grant to knock those free throws down there late for us, too.”

After shooting just 2-for-15 to start the game, St. Edmond went 16 of 29 from the field with five 3-pointers over the second and third quarters combined, erasing a six-point hole in the process.

Bishop Garrigan knocked off Lake Mills for a district title last night, 63-51.

ST. EDMOND 63, MASON CITY NEWMAN 54

St. Edmond — Andrew Clavey 1-5 1-2 4, Jakob Koopman 4-7 0-0 8, Jack McElroy 1-3 1-1 3, Grant Galles 1-9 2-2 4, Hunter Horn 11-21 6-8 28, Carson Bargfrede 5-10 0-0 13, Ty Mericle 1-3 0-0 3. Totals: 23-57 10-13 63.

Mason City Newman — Thomas McGuire 7-11 19, Isaiah Kesten 2-5 1-3 5, Colin Bleile 3-7 2-5 8, Cal McGuire 1-7 0-0 2, Westley Cole 6-19 1-1 15, Brady Martin 1-2 0-3 2, Lucas Nelson 1-2 0-0 3. Totals: 21-53 4-12 54.

Quarter scores: Mason City Newman led 9-7, 25-24; St. Edmond led 48-33. Three-point goals: St. Edmond 5-19 (Clavey 1-4, Galles 0-4, Horn 0-1, Bargfrede 3-7, Mericle 1-3), Mason City Newman 7-24 (T. McGuire 5-8, Bleile 0-2, C. McGuire 0-3, Cole 2-12, Martin 0-1, Nelson 1-2). Total rebounds: St. Edmond 39, Mason City Newman 29. Steals: St. Edmond 6, Mason City Newman 4. Blocked shots: St. Edmond 6, Mason City Newman 7. Turnovers: St. Edmond 10, Mason City Newman 14. Team fouls: St. Edmond 17, Mason City Newman 10.