Ellsworth 68,
Fulda 52
The Panthers opened South Section 3A tournament play against Fulda in Ellsworth. The Panthers trailed at halftime but went on to win 68-52. Scoring from Ellsworth were Noah Kruse with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Grant Jansma getting 14 points. Brandon Kramer added 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Kade Boltjes with 11 and Anthony Lenz with 10 points With the win, Ellsworth faced Southwest Christmas in round two of tournament action.
SW Christian 77,
Ellsworth 40
Eighth-seeded Ellsworth faced top-seeded Southwest Minnesota Christian and was defeated by a score of 77-40 .
The Panthers could not stop SWC’s Avery Pater. Pater came up with four steals in the game’s first three minutes and had nine by halftime. His efforts, along with 16 first-half points by 6-3 junior Jacob Van Dam, sparked Southwest Christian to a 49-22 lead in the game’s first 18 minutes. Pater finished the game with 12 steals, along with 11 points, six rebounds and six assists.
The Panthers shot well in the first half 10-of-19. The Panthers were led by senior veteran with Brandon Kramer’s double, double (12 points, 12 rebounds) and sophomore Anthony Lenz (12 points, eight rebounds).
The Panthers ended the season with a record of 5-19.
