Sanz and Hunstad help Hawks roll past North Platte

NORFOLK, Neb. – It was a complete game effort on Monday night as the Northeast Community College women's basketball team stomped North Platte Community College 89-45 at the Cox Activities Center in Norfolk.

The first 12 points of the game belonged to the Hawks (9-7), before the Knights eventually hit two free throws with five minutes to play in the first quarter. Northeast allowed only five more points to close out the quarter as the Hawks went on to secure 20.

Sophomore Lauren Hunstad (Parker, S.D.) made her presence known in the second quarter, hitting back-to-back layups to spark an offensive attack from the Hawks. Later in the quarter, Hunstad hit another layup, followed by a Blake Mann (Burwell, Neb.) jumper and a 3-pointer from Irene Sanz (Vilassar de Mar, Spain) to give the Hawks a 38-14 lead at halftime.

Sanz went right to work out of the gate in the third quarter, hitting a contested 3-pointer. Jade Blackburn (Surrey, England) followed suit with a 3-pointer of her own to push the Hawks lead to 26 points. Mann did most of her damage in the third quarter, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers. She went on to record 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field.

The Hawks managed to put up 30 points in the fourth quarter, thanks to four-straight points from freshman Caitlin Orton (Mills, Neb.) early in the quarter. With 1:53 to play, the Hawks secured their largest lead of the game by 48 points after a pair of 3-pointers by Teagan Pompa (Elgin, Ill.) and Macey Kulhanek (Howells, Neb.).

Northeast shot 48 percent from the field, compared to 23 percent by North Platte. The Hawks also out-rebounded the Knights 45-34.

Sanz finished with 20 points and seven rebounds, while shooting 8-of-14 from the field. Hunstad was 6-of-10 from the field for 15 points and five boards.

The Hawks are back in action at 6 p.m. tomorrow night, taking on Concordia University JV in Norfolk.

Each member of the Hawks squad scored a point or more in the win.

For all news related to Northeast Community College athletics, visit northeasthawks.com for complete coverage. Fans can also follow the Hawks on Twitter @NortheastHawks for game-day coverage.