Comets cruise past Lynx, 70-45; to face No. 1 Lions in final

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

WEBSTER CITY — It was a heat check than turned into a crowd check.

Charles City senior Jack Molstead was having a good shooting night — which usually spells doom for Comet opponents … even when he has an average shooting night — against Webster City, Thursday night in the Class 3A-Substate 2 semifinal.

So after pushing the ball up the floor, Molstead pulls up for a 30-foot jumper — he already hit four 3-pointers through the first 10 minutes of play.

This shot missed, but Comet junior Bradley Andrews was also running the floor and was there to score the putback with an emphatic jam.

That got the Comet faithful off their seats as Charles City took a 30-16 lead.

And it didn’t get much better from there on for the Lynx as the Comets rolled to a 70-45 final that really wasn’t as close as the 25-point margin of victory indicated.

“Our kids put together a complete game and stuck to our game plan,” said Comet head coach Ben Klapperich, whose team improved to 14-7 and will face No. 1-ranked and undefeated Clear Lake in the substate final Monday at Mason City High School with a tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. “We executed on both ends of the floor. Our spacing and ball movement on the offensive side was tremendous.”

Molstead would only miss one other shot in the first half while going 11 of 13 and scoring 28 of his game-high 36 points. Molstead, who is the Comets’ all-time leader in scoring and assists, also dished out 11 assists.

While Molstead may have been in a zone during the first half, it was the Comets’ trapping zone defense on the other end that perhaps addled the Lynx the worst. Webster City had a hard time establishing 6-foot-7 senior Henry Hoversten in the post. Most of his scoring opportunities came from offensive rebounds, and for the most part Hoversten and the rest of Lynx didn’t get too many of those as the Comets repeatedly held them to one-shot possessions and many times no-shot possessions.

And when Charles City switched to man-to-man several times in the second half, Webster City’s response was even more sluggish.

“On the defensive end our rotations were tight and didn’t allow many easy looks,” said Klapperich, whose team has eliminated the Lynx in the substate semis for the second year in a row.

JJ Ritter scored 12 points, Andrews added 12, and Tait Arndt scored 6 and was a factor trapping Lynx players deep behind the backboard while using the endline as a teammate.

In his final high school game, Hoversten scored 20 for Webster City (15-8).

As for Charles City’s next opponent … Clear Lake came to Comet Gym early in the season and spanked the Comets while shooting the lights out in a 27-point victory. The closest the Lions have come to losing this season was a 1-point win over North Central Conference rival Webster City.

CHARLES CITY 70,
WEBSTER CITY 45

Scoring By Quarters

CHARLES CITY 25 16 19 10 — 70

WEBSTER CITY 11 10 12 12 — 45

CHARLES CITY — Jack Molstead 36, De’Ontaye Hoefer 1, JJ Ritter 12, Dawson Hinders 3, Colton Slinger 2, Bradley Andrews 10, Tait Arndt 6.

WEBSTER CITY — Dylan Steen 12, Drake Doering 3, Tavis Eklund 6, Tyler Olson 2, Jack Van Diest 2, Henry Hoversten 20.