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Hermantown opened its boys basketball season with a 97-78 nonconference loss at Princeton on Saturday afternoon, a high-scoring debut that showed both the Hawks’ youthful promise and their growing pains.
Superstar guard Ben Sundland led Hermantown with 24 points. Sawyer Senst added 12 and Corbin Petcoff finished with 11 for the Hawks, who cut the deficit to 13 points twice in the second half but couldn’t close the rest of the gap.
“While we came up on the wrong side of the scoreboard (against Princeton), we have a lot of positives to continue to build upon,” said Hermantown coach Andy Fenske. “Being a very young team, we battled some mistakes that multiplied quickly. We had two stretches in the first half that got ugly for us, and that was the major difference.”
The Hawks regrouped after halftime and made two pushes, but the Tigers maintained control with timely shooting and transition scoring. Hermantown moved several underclassmen into larger roles this year.
“Twice in the second half, we had the lead cut down to 13 points, but we just couldn't close it up from there,” Fenske said. “The most encouraging thing, in my eyes, was the fact that no matter which five guys we had on the floor, no matter the score, they were playing their hearts out.”
Hermantown now enters a challenging two-game weekend that will test its depth early in the season. The Hawks visit Hibbing on Friday at 7:15 p.m., then face Caledonia on Saturday at 1:15 p.m. at Minnehaha Academy.
“Our road doesn't get any easier with traveling to Hibbing to take on the section favorite,” said Fenske. “Then we have a quick turnaround Saturday morning heading to the Twin Cities for a showcase game vs. Caledonia.”
Hermantown's home opener is Tuesday, Dec. 9 against Proctor at 7:15 p.m.
