Zach Hayenga poured in 30 points and Jacari Swinea added 19 more Tuesday night as the Worthington Trojans boys basketball team cruised to a 78-57 home win over Southwest Minnesota Christian.
The Trojans, now 2-0, built a 20-point halftime advantage for the second time this season, as they led 44-24 at the break. The Eagles, who are 1-1, came out and scored the first eight points of the second half, but Worthington quickly regrouped. It didn’t hurt that Hayenga got hot, as he connected on three consecutive 3-pointers at one point to help the Trojans push their lead to 30. Many of the team’s reserves and JV players took the floor for the final minutes of the game.
Trevin Prins led Southwest Minnesota Christian with 14 points, Joshua Van Dam added 12 and Aidan Schaap had nine.
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In girls basketball Tuesday, Windom led 38-24 at the half and went on to defeat visiting Worthington 74-59. Trojans head coach CJ Nelson said he believes his team is continuing to get a little bit better each game, with the biggest thing continuing to be trusting each other on both ends of the floor. WHS was paced offensively by New Gora’s 19 points and Jayden Spartz’s 11; they played for a second straight game without injured third-year starter Madison Beckmann, who’s expected to return to the floor for Friday’s game at Marshall.
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The Worthington High School gymnastics team started its season off strong Tuesday night with a 139.725-129.5 home victory over Luverne.
Senior Hali Bullerman was the winner in the all-around for the Trojans with a composite score of 35.925. Teammate Addison Gerber was second at 35.05 and Amira Cowell of Luverne third.
Bullerman was the winner on both the bars and vault for WHS, as she scored an 8.8 on the bars and 9.375 on the vault. Cowell was second on the bars and Gerber third. On the vault, Cowell was second and the Trojans; Brooklyn Dykstra third.
Gerber captured first place on the floor with a score of 9.45, and Trojans Olivia Barber and Bullerman were second and third. Barber took the beam with a score of 9.3, with Gerber right behind at 9.25 and Bullerman third.
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The Worthington girls hockey team played a close one at home Tuesday night against Austin, but the Packers ended up tallying the game-winner in overtime to edge the Trojans 3-2.
WHS took a 1-0 lead in the first period on a goal by Marin Pederson, but Austin had a pair of goals in the second to move ahead 2-1. Addison Joens then tied the score at 2 on an assist from Breeta Johnson at 9:57 of the third period, setting the stage for overtime. Austin put 35 shots on goal compared to just eight for the Trojans. Macie Mahlberg had 32 saves for Worthington.
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The Trojan boys hockey team, meanwhile, ran into a very talented Waseca team on the road and lost 19-0.
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In area girls basketball Tuesday, it was:
Adrian-Ellsworth 80, Red Rock Central 31
Russell-Tyler-Ruthton 57, Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda 13
Edgerton 61, Murray County Central 33
Southwest Minnesota Christian 61, Westbrook-Walnut Grove 56
Martin County West 44, Lake Crystal Wellcome Memorial 37
Minneota 77, Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 28
Hills-Beaver Creek 60, Mountain Lake Area-Comfrey 42
Jackson County Central 81, St. James Area 53
West Lyon 60, Sheldon 22
Central Lyon 63, MOC-Floyd Valley 50
Sioux Center 52, Okoboji 33
Harris-Lake Park 56, MMCRU 55 (OT)
Hinton 59, Trinity Christian 23
In area boys basketball:
Martin County West 63, Nicollet 58
Windom 74, Westbrook-Walnut Grove 71
Mountain Lake Area-Comfey 78, St. James Area 73
Red Rock Central 59, Sleepy Eye 58
Edgerton 69, Adrian-Ellsworth 67
Hills-Beaver Creek 77, Luverne 65
Marshall 85, Willmar 50
West Lyon 66, Sheldon 27
MOC-Floyd Valley 60, Central Lyon 53
Sioux Center 57, Okoboji 54
Rock Valley 63, Sibley-Ocheyedan 48
Hinton 61, Trinity Christian 43
In area girls hockey:
Marshall 3, Windom Area 1
Willmar 5, Luverne 3
Rochester Century 8, Fairmont 4
In area boys hockey:
Faribault 10, Fairmont 5
Marshall 6, Windom 0
