Busy week for Bulldog teams

SHS Boys

It was a busy week for the Bulldog boys' basketball team, who played six games throughout the week, bringing their season record to an even 5-5.

The Bulldogs went up against two South Dakota teams to start the week, facing the Lead-Deadwood Gold Diggers and the Newell Irrigators. Starting off with a make-up game from the snowed-out Stateline Shootout, the Bulldogs faced the Lead-Deadwood Gold Diggers.

It was a very aggressive matchup between the two teams as Sundance jumped out to an early lead and maintained their composure throughout the game to walk away with a 58-46 victory. Keaton Mills led the team in with a double double, scoring an impressive 27 points and pulling down 13 rebounds for the night.

Teammate Jake Schommer also had a double double with 11 points and 14 rebounds, while Parker Skeens put up double-digit scoring, adding 11 points to the Bulldog total for the night.

Next up for the Bulldogs was another South Dakota team, the Newell Irrigators. With all of the team seeing time on the floor, the Bulldogs added another win to their record, defeating the Irrigators 53-34.

Mills once again led the team in scoring, putting in 10 points for the night as teammate Eli Gill was right behind him scoring seven points and securing 6 rebounds throughout the game. 

The weekend sent the Bulldogs north to participate in the 2A East Smackdown, a tournament in which the teams from the eastern side of the state play in a cross-quadrant matchup. The Bulldogs started the Smackdown Friday afternoon with two close games.

Going against Niobrara County (Lusk) in their opening matchup, Keaton Mills was able to find his rhythm, scoring 26 points as the Bulldogs rolled on to a 67-54 win.

Shortly thereafter, Sundance was facing another tough opponent, Pine Bluffs. A slow start in the first quarter put the Bulldogs down by 13, a deficit they were unable to overtake as the Hornets maintained the lead and secured the win, 51-43. 

Day two of the Smackdown found the Bulldogs without Keaton Mills, who suffered an ankle injury. Sundance was up against two more strong teams from the south, Burns and Lingle Ft. Laramie.

The Bulldogs were able to stay close to the Broncs throughout the game, but unfortunately fell 47-61 in the end.

The final matchup of the Smackdown put Sundance against the powerhouse of Lingle Ft. Laramie. The Bulldogs put up their best effort, but were no match for the Doggers as they dropped another game 28-66. 

The Bulldogs will have a lighter week this week with only two games. On Tuesday, the team will travel to Hulett to face the Red Devils and, on Saturday, they will cross the border as they travel to Hill City (SD) to take on the Rangers. 

SHS Girls

The Sundance Lady Bulldogs had a full schedule of games this week with a makeup game against Lead-Deadwood and participating in the 2A East Smackdown in Burns over the weekend. 

Opening play on Tuesday, the Lady Bulldogs got right to work against the Lead-Deadwood Gold Diggers. Starting the game with an aggressive full court press, Sundance was first on the board and didn't let up against the Diggers.

Jaylin Mills led the way in scoring for the Bulldogs, putting up 11 points for the night, followed closely by teammate Lexie Marchant, who chipped in 10 as Sundance went on to beat the Diggers 48-28.

The team was on the road Friday and Saturday, traveling to Burns to take part in the 2A East Smackdown, a cross-quadrant tournament for the teams on the eastern side of the state. The Bulldogs were up against the Niobrara County (Lusk) Tigers in their opening matchup.

It was Rylie Marchant and Savannah Williams who led the charge for the Bulldogs, both scoring in double digits for the team as they would go on to take a 47-30 victory over the Tigers.

Game two on Friday was a low scoring game for both the Sundance Bulldogs and their opponent, the Pine Bluffs Hornets. Senior Zoe Skeens led the offensive charge for the Bulldogs with 10 points, followed by Jaylin Mills who added 9 in their 33-26 victory.

The Lady Bulldogs were back in action on Saturday as they faced the final two teams from the south, Burns and Lingle Ft. Laramie. It was a slow start for the Sundance team taking on Burns in the first matchup for the day.

Scoring only five points in the first half, the Lady Bulldogs had their work cut out for themselves throughout the second. While the offensive effort improved throughout the second half, it wasn't enough to overtake the initial deficit and the Lady Bulldogs fell to the Burns Broncs, 27-45.

It was a tight matchup for the final game of the Smackdown as Sundance faced Lingle Ft. Laramie. The two evenly matched teams went basket for basket down the stretch and it was Lingle Ft. Laramie who came out on top with a score of 48-42. Savannah Williams was the top scorer for the Bulldogs for the night, dropping in 18 points and securing four rebounds.

The Sundance Lady Bulldogs came out of the 2A East Smackdown with a 2-2 record, improving their overall record to 5-4 for the season. 

It will be another busy week for the Bulldog team as they play their final makeup game from the Stateline Shootout on Monday when they host the Belle Fourche Broncs. They will also travel to Hulett on Tuesday to face the Lady Devils and round out the week hosting the Harding County Ranchers on Thursday.

Stats

SHS Boys vs. Lead-Deadwood: 58-46

Scoring: Mills 27 (5/6 FT, 0/2 3pt), Schommer 11 (0/2FT, 1/5 3pt), Skeens 11 (2/4 FT, 1/4 3pt), D. Gill 5 (1/2 FT, 0/1 3pt), E. Gill 2 (2/7 FT, 0/2 3pt), Harmon 2

Rebound Leaders: Schommer 14, Mills 13

Assists: Skeens 4

Steals: Mills 4

SHS Boys vs. Newell: 53-34

Scoring: Mills 10 (0/2 3pt), E.Gill 7 (3/3 FT), Skeens 6 (0/6 3pt), Harmon 6, D. Gill 6 (1/2 FT, 1/2 3pt), Schommer 5 (1/2 FT, 0/4 3pt), Watt 4 (0/1 FT), Tenke 3 (3/5 FT), Gaylord 2 (2/2FT), Downey 2, Banker 2

Rebound Leaders: Fleenor 6, E. Gill 6, 

Assists: Mills 4

Steals: Mills 4

SHS Boys vs. Niobrara County: 67-54

Scoring: Mills 26 (3/4FT, 1/2 3pt), Skeens 15 (1/1 FT, 2/5 3pt), Schommer 9 (5/6 FT, 0/3 3pt), E. Gill 4 (0/1 FT), Harmon 4, D. Gill 4, Fleenor 4 (2/2 FT)

Rebound Leaders: Mills 11, Skeens 7, Schommer 6

Steals: Skeens 6

Assists: Skeens 6, Harmon 4 

SHS Boys vs. Pine Bluffs: 43-51

Scoring: Schommer 14 (1/2FT, 1/7 3pt), Skeens 9 (1/4 3pt), E.Gill 8 (2/2FT, 0/2 3pt), Mills 4, Harmon 3 (1/4FT), D.Gill 3 (1/2FT), Fleenor 2

Rebound Leaders: Skeens 9, E.Gill 9

Steals: Skeens 3

Assists: Schommer 2

SHS Boys vs. Burns: 47-61

Scoring: E.Gill 12, Skeens 10, Schommer 9 (1/4 3pt), Tenke 8 (2/6 3pt), D.Gill 6 (1/2 FT, 1/4 3pt), Fleenor 2

Rebound Leaders: E.Gill 7, Skeens 7

Assists: Fleenor 4, Skeens 3

SHS Boys vs. Lingle Ft. Laramie: 28-66

Scoring: D.Gill 9 (2/4 FT, 1/1 3pt), Fleenor 7 (1/2 FT), E.Gill 5 (0/2FT, 1/4 3pt), Skeens 2, J. Harmon 2, H.Harmon 2, Schommer 1 (1/2FT)

Rebound Leaders: E.Gill 6, Skeens 5, D.Gill 5

SHS Girls vs. Lead-Deadwood: 48-28

Scoring: Mills 11 (3/3 FT, 0/1 3pt), L. Marchant 10 (0/4 FT), R.Marchant 5 (0/2FT, 1/3 3pt), Banker 5 (3/11 FT), K.Marchant 4, Gillespie 4 (0/13pt), Williams 4 (1/2 FT, 1/2 3pt), Haughen 3 (1/2 FT), Gill 2

Rebound Leaders: L.Marchant 12, Banker 8, Mills 5

Steals: Mills 4, Williams 3

SHS Girls vs. Lusk: 47-30

Scoring: RMarchant 12 (2/4 FT, 2/3 3pt), Williams 11 (0/2FT, ⅛ 3pt), Gillespie 7 (1/2FT), Skeens 6 (0/2 3pt), Karol 6 (0/1 FT), Mills 3 (1/1 3pt), Banker 2 (0/2FT)

Rebound Leaders: Karol 4, Williams 4

Steals: Mills 3, Banker 3

SHS Girls vs. Pine Bluffs: 33-26

Scoring: Skeens 10 (2/4 FT, 2/2 3pt), Mills 9 (4/4 FT, 1/2 3pt), Karol 5 (1/2 FT), Gillespie 3 (1/4 FT), R.Marchant 2 (2/4 FT, 0/1 3pt), Banker 2 (0/2 FT), Williams 2

Rebound Leaders: Mills 6, Skeens 5

Steals: Mills 5

SHS Girls vs. Burns: 27-45

Scoring: Mills 12 (5/9 FT, 1/2 3pt), Williams 6 (2/4 3pt), Skeens 3 (1/2 FT, 0/2 FT), Gillespie 2 (2/4 FT, 0/2 3pt), Banker 2 (2/4 FT), Karol 2 (0/3 FT)

Rebound Leaders: Mills 6, Banker 5, Skeens 4

SHS Girls vs. Lingle Ft. Laramie: 42-48

Scoring: Williams 18 (3/4 FT, 5/7 3pt), Mills 7 (0/2 FT, 1/2 3pt), Skeens 6 (2/5 FT, 0/5 3pt), Gillespie 5 (1/3 FT, 0/2 3pt), Banker 5 (5/8 FT), Karol 1 (1/2 FT)

Rebound Leaders: Gillespie 4, Mills 4, Williams 4

Steals: Skeens 4