WILLMAR - Hutchinson made 9-of-15 3-point attempts and rejected a Willmar comeback at the free-throw line, allowing the Tigers to take a 72-66 non-conference win Saturday.
The Cardinals never led and trailed by as many as 15 in the first half. Fighting back, the home team tied it up at 56 with six minutes left on consecutive baskets by Courtney Magnuson, who led all scorers with 23 points, and Cayle Hovland.
But the Tigers responded with a 3-pointer by Tori Wortz followed by a three-point play by Erin Corrigan.
Willmar closed the gap to 65-62 with Kaitlynn Kienholz scored inside at the 1:55 mark, but the Tigers (2-1) would can 7-of-9 shots at the foul line to close out and keep Willmar winless.
Leah Ruter added 12 rebounds, 11 points, five assists and three steals for the Cardinals.
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Kienholz finished with 12 points and Lexi Orlowski also hit double digits by netting 10 points. Cayle Hovland pulled down a team-high 13 rebounds, but Willmar made only 3-of-14 shots from beyond the arc and committed 23 turnovers.
Corrigan paced Hutchinson with 20 points with Wortz following with 17 and Traci Schwantes.
Willmar will play its next three games on the road, starting Tuesday at St. Cloud Apollo.
Hutchinson 72, Willmar 66
Hutchinson (2-1) 44 28 - 72
Willmar (0-3) 35 31 - 66
Hutchinson
21-63 FG; 21-35 FT; 22 fouls … Scoring: Nicole Schommer 4, Traci Schwantes 10, Tori Wortz 17, Morgan Kurth 2, Erica Ellefson 6, Ireland Szymanski 2, Erin Corrigan 20, Alli Einck 6, Kenzie Rensch 5 … 3-point shots: Schwantes 3, Wortz 1, Ellefson 2, Corrigan 1, Einck 1, Rensch 1 … Rebound leader: n/a … Assist leader: n/a … Steal leader: n/a
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Willmar
26-56 FG; 11-18 FT; 29 fouls … Scoring: Courtney Magnuson 23, Ingrid Figenskau 2, Sarah Smith 2, Leah Ruter 11, Cayle Hovland 6, Lexi Orlowski 10, Kaitlynn Kienholz 12 … 3-point shots: Magnuson 1, Ruter 2 … Rebound leader: Hovland 13, Ruter 12 … Assist leader: Ruter 5 … Steal leader: Ruter 3
