On Saturday, February 18, the girls’ basketball team’s season came to an end. The sub-State game was played at Estherville Lincoln Central and the girls competed in a tough match. The Midgets had an overall record of 23-0 going into the game. The score at the end of the night was 40-82. Tora Solbach, a senior, put up an outstanding performance in her last game. Solbach finished with 4 rebounds and 18 points. With 12 points, Lauren McLaughlin also played well.
The 2022-2023 girls’ basketball season was a journey filled with a lot of growth. This was Noel McLaughlin’s third year as the head basketball coach for the girls. This season the girls put in a lot of hard work and finished with 17 wins and 7 losses overall. The girls finished 2nd in the Conference this year with a Conference record of 12-2.
The girls won their first and second round games of Regionals and lost in their third round against Estherville Lincoln Central. The team will be graduating five seniors: Lillian Etherington, Tora Solbach, A’Lailah Perry, Cailey Carroll, and Maddy Kahler. All Conference players this year include: Lauren McLaughlin (1st team), Lillian Etherington (2nd team), A’Lailah Perry (2nd t
eam), and Casey VanOtterloo (2nd team). Lauren McLaughlin was also selected as a member of the IBCA Class 3A All-Region team.
The boys won their first-round postseason game on Monday, February 20th, against Spencer. The boys played a close game against the Tigers with the final score being 51-49. Simon Feucht had a tremendous game, with 15 points on the night. Caden Weber also played well, scoring 12 points.
The boys’ match against Humboldt in the second round took place on Thursday, February 23rd. The guys defeated the Wildcats due to a fantastic performance by many. Before entering the second round game, the Wildcats had a record of 18-4 on the season. By the time the game was over, the score was 70–64. Tristin Larsen, Caden Weber, and Ben Helmers all played outstandingly. Helmers finished the game with 24 points, 3 blocks, and 8 rebounds. Weber finished with 19 points and 5 rebounds. Larsen scored 11 points and made sure to finish on his opportunities at the line.
The boys’ third round match to compete for a spot at State took place on Monday, February 27. The boys went to Spencer to play MOC-Floyd Valley. MOC was 23-2 overall coming into the third round. The AHS boys upset MOC-Floyd Valley with the final score of 61-58. Both Alex Manske and Ben Helmers had a fantastic game. Manske scored 15, while Helmers scored 18.
The boys played the #1 seed, Bondurant-Farrar, in the State quarterfinals. The game was on Tuesday, March 7, at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. This was the first time since 1999 that a boys’ basketball team from Algona has made it to State. Bondurant had been undefeated all season, with a record of 23-0 going into the game with the Dogs. AHS put up a tough fight against the Bluejays but came up short. The final score of the game was 52-81.
Throughout the 2022-2023 boys’ basketball season, they showed great improvement and had a
lot of exciting moments. This was Jared Cecil’s third season as head coach for the boys. This season the boys worked hard everyday and ended the season overall with 17 wins and 8 losses. They finished 4th in the Conference with a Conference record of 8-6. The boys will be graduating four seniors: Tristin Larsen, Simon Feucht, Caden Weber, and Carlos Gomez. All Conference this year for the boys include: Ben Helmers (1st team), Alex Manske (2nd team), and Landon Welp (3rd team). Helmers also received Class 3A, Region 2 All-Substate honors. “Ball out,” says senior Tristin Larsen.