VAN HORNE — The varsity Lady Spartans opened 2024 by escaping Benton Community with a 36-33-win last Thursday dodging an upset bid by the Bobcats. Solon entered the contest ranked No. 1 in Class 3A while Benton was No. 9 in the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union’s weekly rankings released earlier in the day.
The Bobcats led 11-9 at the end of the first period, but strong Solon defense allowed only two points in the second as the Lady Spartans took a 17-13 halftime lead ahead of a 26-23 advantage going into the final period.
“We played another great game on the defensive side,” said Coach Jamie Smith. “We were a little cold on the shooting end. Some of that had to do with Benton playing great defense.”
Benton’s Emma Townsley led all with 15 points while Callie Levin and Hailey Miller led Solon with a dozen points each. Levin hit a career milestone as she set a new Solon High School record for three-point baskets with a total of 161, surpassing former Lady Spartan and Iowa Hawkeye standout Lindsey Meder. Anna Quillin produced five points with three apiece from Mia Stahle and Laeni Hinkle, and one point from Kobi Lietz. Levin led all with 11 rebounds while Quillin had nine.
Upcoming events
Friday, Jan. 12 – At West Delaware High School (Manchester), 6:00 p.m. (JV girls & freshmen boys play at 4:30 p.m., sophomore boys at 6:00 p.m., and varsity boys at 7:15 p.m.)
Tuesday, Jan. 16 – Home vs. Mount Vernon, 6:00 p.m. (JV girls & freshmen boys play at 4:30 p.m., sophomore boys at 6:00 p.m., and varsity boys at 7:15 p.m.)
Friday, Jan. 19 – At Independence, 6:30 p.m. (Frosh-soph girls & freshman boys play at 4:00 p.m., sophomore boys at 5:20 p.m., and varsity boys at 8:00 p.m.)
IGHSAU Class 3A weekly rankings 1/4/24
1 Solon
2 Mount Vernon
3 Des Moines Christian
4 Estherville-Lincoln Central
5 Dubuque Wahlert
6 Roland-Story
7 Harlan
8 Monticello
9 Benton Community
10 Forrest City
11 Algona
12 Spirit Lake
13 Cherokee
14 Williamsburg
15 Chariton
WaMaC East standings 1/7/24
Conference Overall
Mount Vernon 6-0 10-0
Solon 6-1 10-1
Marion 2-1 9-2
West Delaware 4-3 6-6
CPU 2-5 2-9
Independence 1-5 3-8