Warriors Open Season Against No. 13 Mustangs

FOREST CITY, IA – The Waldorf men's basketball team opened their season with a home game at Hanson Fieldhouse against the Morningside Mustangs on Friday evening. The Warriors put up a strong fight against the No. 13 Mustangs but lost 66-84.

"Playing a team like Morningside to start the year is going to be really good for us," stated Head Coach Nigel Jenkins. "I saw a lot of good things from our team. We will definitely learn from this."

The Warriors hung in with the Mustangs during the first half. At the 12^th minute mark, the Mustangs were up by most of five points. Kaelon Harkema (JR/Louisville, KY) tied the game at 17. The Mustangs kept the lead throughout the half. 

A three from Noah Gwinn (JR/Liberty, SC) brought the game within one. With just over two minutes left, the Warriors were down by 10. The defense held the Mustangs from scoring and Justin Wiggins (JR/West Palm Beach, FL) made a jump shot and Ugo Ejiofor (JR/Dallas, TX) closed the half with a dunk. The Warriors trailed 27-33.

Morningside took control of the second half by going on an 18-5 run. Waldorf did not give up and fought to bring the game within 11 from a three by Harkema. Back-to-back layups from Ejiofor and Harkema kept the momentum. Ultimately, the Mustangs won 84-66.

Jenkins added, "Way too many turnovers and blown assignments defensively. It's a long season but I do believe that we will get better as we continue. Plenty of good teams left on our scheduled to compete against including Grand View on Wednesday."

The Warriors had three athletes with double-digit points: Khalil Grayson (JR/Milwaukee, WI) had a team-high of 14 off the bench, and Wiggins and Harkema each added 13. Gabriel Sorensen (JR/West Haven, UT) had seven rebounds and four assists. Harkema tallied five assists.

Next up, the Warriors will return to Hanson Fieldhouse for a contest against Grand View on Wednesday, November 1^st, Tip-off is at 7 pm.