Warhawks pass opening district test

SHEFFIELD — West Fork’s fifth-ranked Warhawk cagers passed their opening boys’ postseason test in style with last Thursday’s 93-34 Class 1A district quarterfinal win over the Clarksville Indians.

The victory boosted West Fork to 20-2 for the season and moved them into Tuesday’s district semifinal clash at Sheffield against AGWSR — a 65-57 winner over BCLUW in last Thursday’s opening game at Sheffield.

Tuesday’s West Fork game was preceded by the clash between Grundy Center and the Meskwaki Settlement School.

Clarksville ended its season with a 4-19 record.

The West Fork point total in the Clarksville game was a season single-game high and ties the school mark for most points scored in a game for the Warhawks.

West Fork’s aggressive pressure defense helped to set the tone for the contest from the outset. The Warhawks were able to push the pace and converted a total of 15 steals into a number of transition points.

West Fork also passed the ball well throughout the game, with 26 of its 37 field goals coming via assists.

The Warhawks also shot the ball well from the perimeter, connecting on 10 of 23 tries from three-point range.

West Fork rang up the first 14 points of the game, capped off by a pair of Ian Latham free throws with 5:53 remaining in the first quarter.

Freshman Jacob Stauffer got the Indians on the board with his field goal 45 seconds later.

West Fork ran off the next 17 points to build a 31-2 edge near the two-minute mark of the quarter.

Ethan Schmidt knocked down four straight free throws for the Indians in the late going to leave them down 36-6 entering the second stanza.

Eight straight West Fork points in the last 1:42 of the second quarter sent the hosts to the locker room up by a 59-16 count.

The Warhawks continued their run by scoring 10 straight points to start the third quarter. Kayden Ames concluded that surge with a bucket with 4:51 to go on the clock to make it 69-16.

Schmidt connected on a field goal for Clarksville to snap the Indians’ dry spell.

West Fork led by as many as 55 points in the quarter and took a 51-point margin, 79-28, into the final frame.

The final 59-point margin matched a lead that West Fork achieved midway in the fourth quarter.

Five Warhawk players finished in double figures, led by junior post player Joe Ingham with 14 points. He connected on all seven of his field goal tries.

Jakob Washington netted 13 points, while Ian Latham and Ames collected 12 each and Noah Maske garnered 11.

Schmidt finished with a team-high 12 points for Clarksville. Deric Trees added nine, while Alek Kellogg notched six.