The Mitchell Kernel boys’ basketball team held off Harrisburg 58-50 in the DWU Culver’s Classic Saturday night at the Corn Palace. The Kernels shot just 30 percent in the second half after making 50 percent of their tries in the first half but were able to seal the win by going 11 for 11 at the free throw line in the second half. Caden Hinker scored 24 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and blocked two shots. Carter Jacobsen finished with 10 points and Ben Helleloid chipped in eight points and five rebounds. Mitchell faces Sioux Falls O’Gorman at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Sioux Falls.
The Mitchell Kernel girls’ basketball lost 82-51 to No. 4 Harrisburg Friday night at the Dakota Wesleyan University Culver’s Classic. Harrisburg scorched the Palace nets by shooting 73.3 percent from the field and 9-for-14 from 3-point range. Mitchell shot 43.9 percent from the field, including 58.8 percent in the first half. Macy Kempf had 13 points to lead the Kernels with Haley Hohn and Camryn Krogman scoring 10 points each. Mitchell hosts Yankton at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Corn Palace.
Emily Moody recorded a pair of top-six finishes for the Kernel gymnastics team at the Class AA state individual gymnastics meet on Saturday in Aberdeen. Moody finished third in the vault and sixth in the floor. Moody finished ninth in the all-around. Kyra Gropper posted a fifth-place finish in the bar and tied for seventh in the beam. The Mitchell Kernel gymnastics finished runner-up to Watertown in the state team competition Friday. Watertown defended its title with 145.925, while Mitchell finished with 144.750.
The Mitchell High School wrestling team dropped the first five matches and seven of the first nine in a 38-24 loss to Pierre on Friday. The Kernels end the regular season at 10-7 overall, which currently places them outside the top-eight spots needed to compete in the state dual meet. Mitchell returns to action in the Region 3A tournament at 10 a.m. Saturday at Aberdeen Central.
The Dakota Wesleyan University men’s basketball team overcame a three-point halftime deficit and topped Doane University 79-64 on Saturday. Mason Larson was one of four players to reach double figures with 19 points and four blocks. Sam McCloud and Ty Hoglund both netted 18 points apiece. Koln Oppold scored 12 points while adding eight rebounds and seven assists. The Tigers host Northwestern College at 8 p.m. on Wednesday at the Corn Palace. Northwestern and DWU are tied for second in the GPAC standings.
The Dakota Wesleyan University women’s basketball team ran its winning streak to four games on Saturday beating Doane University, 84-48. Kynedi Cheeseman scored 29 points and made five 3-pointers. Sarah Carr added 17 points and five rebounds. Carr moved into fifth on the DWU women’s basketball all-time scoring list as she now has 1,691 career points. Maekala Karst tossed in 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds. DWU is tied with Dordt College for fourth place in the GPAC standings. The Tigers host Northwestern College at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the Corn Palace.
Sophomore Matt Dentlinger totaled 18 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots and South Dakota State dominated the second half and beat Purdue Fort Wayne 75-64. Dentlinger made all eight of his shots from the floor in picking up his fifth double-double of the season for the Jackrabbits. The Jackrabbits have won 23 straight games at home, currently tied for the nation’s second-longest active streak. South Dakota State heads North for a midweek game in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The Jackrabbits and North Dakota Fighting Hawks tip at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
South Dakota State women’s basketball team defeated Purdue Fort Wayne 89-43 Saturday afternoon at Frost Arena in the 2020 Pink Game. The Jacks dominated from the start, jumping out to a 15-0 lead before the Mastodons scored their first bucket and led 28 to 6 after the first quarter. Paiton Burckhard led all scorers with 23 points while Tylee Irwin scored a season-best 16 points, added six rebounds and a career-high six assists and four steals. Plankinton native Megan Bultsma had 11 points. The Jackrabbits improved to 19-8 overall and 11-2 in Summit League play. South Dakota State travels to take on North Dakota Thursday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
Chloe Lamb scored a career-high 24 points and No. 21 South Dakota held on to defeat Oral Roberts 77-73. The Coyotes, who won their 14th straight, had their first league game decided by single figures as the Golden Eagles used a 26-14 advantage in the second quarter to close within 35-31. Inside the final two minutes, Oral Roberts got within two several times but Monica Arens scored six points, going 4 for 4 from the foul line and Madison McKeever and Ciara Duffy went 2 for 2 at the stripe for the win. South Dakota returns to the court at home on Thursday, hosting North Dakota State at 7 p.m.
Oral Roberts beat South Dakota 94-80 in men’s basketball Saturday night. Stanley Umude led the Coyotes on Saturday night with 26 points. South Dakota returns home to face North Dakota State on Wednesday inside the Sanford Coyote Sports Center at 7 p.m.
It was a weekend of top-10 placements as four individuals and a 4×800-meter relay team moved into the Dakota Wesleyan University track and field top-10 record books at the SDSU Indoor Classic Friday and Saturday in Brookings, S.D. Freshman Justin Sorensen moved into third on the all-time list in the 1,000-meter run with a time of 2:38.03 minutes, placing him in ninth in the meet. Fellow freshman Wyatt Baldauf moved into 10th all-time in the 1,000-meter run in 2:44.61, placing him in 17th. Devin Rihanek (Plankinton, S.D.) recorded a time of 1:27.53 in the 600-meter run, which was good for the eighth-fastest time in program history. Jared Rabenberg competed in the high jump and tied for second place following a leap of 6-08.75 feet. Jumpers on the women’s side in the triple jump were Lydia Gerber and Claire Stoller Gerber took fifth with a mark of 35-04, while Stoller placed sixth with a leap of 35-03.5. Freshman Annika Vermuelen moved into fifth all-time in the 1,000-meter run following her time of 2:23.29. Her time was good enough to place her in 13th. Mckenna Rogers finished just ahead of Vermuelen with a time of 3:15.85, good for 11th. In the men’s 4×400-meter relay, the team of Rihanek, Baldauf, Sorensen and Rex Schlicht recorded the fourth-fastest time in program history in 8:19.80. The Tigers compete next at the Great Plains Athletic Conference Championships on Friday and Saturday in Mitchell, S.D.
The Dakota Wesleyan University baseball team opened its’ 2020 campaign against Kansas Wesleyan University and finished the weekend 1-2 versus the Coyotes on Saturday and Sunday in Salina, Kan. In the lone game on Saturday, the Tigers defeated the Coyotes 4-3. In the first game on Sunday, DWU fell by a score of 14-5 and lost the second 5-2. The Tigers take the diamond next against Mayville State University Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.
The Dakota Wesleyan University softball team finished the weekend 3-1 after splitting their games on Friday and winning both games on Saturday at the Presentation College Dome Classic in Aberdeen. In the season opener, the Tigers defeated Dakota State University, 6-3. The second game of the weekend Dickinson State downed the Tigers, 10-1. In the final game of the weekend, DWU defeated the host school Presentation College, 4-2. DWU battles Presentation in a doubleheader beginning at 5 p.m. Thursday in Aberdeen, S.D.
Registration is now open for Mitchell baseball this spring and summer. Go to mitchellbaseball.net to register and sign-up. Registration will have a firm closing of March 8th. Players that register AFTER the date will be placed on a waiting list and will not be guaranteed a roster spot on any team. Further questions or for more details and information, contact the Director of Baseball Luke Norden at 605-770-0744.
Meet the Senior Kernel basketball players can be found on kornradio.com, click on Sports and then click on Meet the Kernels. Four Kernel seniors are featured with a full-length in-depth interview. Meet the Senior Kernels are sponsored by Taco John’s in Mitchell.