As we move into the winter season, there are high hopes for the Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball programs. This is remarkable considering it is only Horace’s 3rd year with varsity programs across the board. Girls’ basketball finished top 5 last year at state and boys’ basketball made it into the EDC tournament for the first time in history. Both teams are projected to go to the state tournament this year, and all eyes are on the Hawks.
Girls’ basketball made it to the EDC championship but unfortunately lost a close game to Red River. At state, they dropped the first game to Bismarck High but came back to win against their rivals West Fargo Sheyenne and the Legacy Sabers. These wins got the program their placement at state ever. The Hawks didn’t graduate any seniors last year and brought back all five of last year’s starters. The Hoopster ranked Horace 2nd coming into this season. Their biggest competition will be Minot as they are ranked 1st and won a state title 3 years ago. Minot has many talented players but the most prominent are Lele Bell and Maggie Fricke. Both have multiple Division One scholarship offers and have been on the All-State team for the past 4 years. Horace has a few college-bound players of their own. Jaiden Haile, Jordan Christofferson and Laken Donnelly all hold Division One offers and were on the All-EDC team last season. Their non-conference schedule will be a challenge, but the Hawks can handle it.
Boys’ basketball is a different story, but they are looking to improve their record from last year and make a run at the state tournament. The Hawks graduated 6 seniors, 3 of which played consistently. Though the program lost experience, many strong players remain. Junior, Carter Evanson, is among them. He was the only Hawk player to receive the All-EDC award last year. Brady Westphal also just recently signed to play college basketball at the University of Minnesota-Crookston. These players have both made significant strides in the off-season and will be a big part of the Hawks’ success this year. The Hawks were ranked 8th in the state and 4th in the EDC in the pre-season polls. This marks their first-ever top ten state ranking!
Girls and Boys basketball is going to make waves this year and it wouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone if both placed at the state tournament. Working together as a team will be key for both programs if they want to find the success they’re prophesized to have. North Dakota may be entering sub-zero temperatures, but the Hawks will be bringing the heat.