The Hawks girls basketball has continued to show significant progress throughout the 2023-24 season, veteran Hermantown coach Beth Clark said on Friday morning.
"We have played a number of quality opponents and have done a great job of getting better each practice and game," Clark said of the 1-3 Hawks, who face Duluth Marshall at LSC Day in Cloquet on Saturday at 12:45 p.m. "We are young but have no fear with regards to who we are playing and how much pressure they put on us. Bailey Zagelmeyer and Mikayla Sweeney are our team captains and we continue to lean on them for their leadership with our young team."
Hermantown lost its first two games of the season, both at home, against nonconference Bemidji 57-42 and versus traditional Lake Superior Conference rival Cloquet 72-27.
"We played a tough first half but ran out of gas towards the end of the (Bemidji) game," said Clark. "Aurora Decker led us in both scoring (10 points) and rebounding (12). Against Cloquet, we got off to a slow start and continued to struggle against the hot shooting Lumberjacks from. We had nine players score, albeit no one had over seven points."
The Hawks recorded their first win of the season last Saturday at nonconference Irondale, 46-41.
"We played hard and with lots of energy and it certainly played a role in our win," Clark said of her team's impressive win over Irondale. "We were led by Oliva Johnson with 15 points and Bailey Zagelmeyer had 12, including three 3's. Despite the turnovers, we still managed to get the road win."
Hermantown lost at Proctor 66-39 on Thursday night.
"The kids played hard and continued to play with aggressiveness on both ends of the floor," Clark said of the Lake Superior Conference matchup. "We struggled on the boards and look to improve in that area throughout the season. Bailey Hermanson had a good floor game by breaking down the Rails full court pressure and led us with 15 points."
Duluth Marshall has a ton of experience and will be a tough opponent, Clark said.
"We look forward to the challenge (against the Hilltoppers)," she added.