(Harlan, IA) – Harlan Community was dealt a tough matchup to head into the state tournament and was able to take it head-on with a 50-47 win over Cherokee Washington. The Cyclones led at the half by one, Cherokee took the lead by four in the third, and the Cyclones scored 20 in the fourth quarter to capitalize on a hard-fought win. Head Coach Zach Klassen knows that his girls did as much as possible to get over the hump against Cherokee.
The two leading scorers this season are Erica Rust and Aubrey Schwieso with over 14 points per game. Schwieso also leads the team in assists with 4.6 assists and in steals with 3.3. Rust leads in rebounds with 9.2 per game and in field goal percentage at 56.1% from the hardwood. While those two have been leaders on the offensive end, Grace Albertsen, Kenzley Bruck, and Brinley Van Baale have been the keys to the defensive stops this season.
Harlan looks ahead this week to take on Mount Vernon on Monday, February 26th in the first round of the state tournament. The Mustangs are led by Chloe Meester with 13.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while Sydney Huber follows up with 12.6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game this year. With any team in the state tournament, you know it will be a fight to the very end.
Coach Klassen has seen the motivation this season come from the summer workouts all the way to this point. Harlan’s motto this season has always been to, “focus on the next step.”
The Cyclones will travel to Des Moines next week to play in Wells Fargo Arena against Mount Vernon with the opening tipoff at 6:45 p.m.
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