The Norwalk basketball teams began the 2021 portion of their schedules with a pair of victories Monday evening, sweeping Van Meter in non-conference action on the Warriors’ home court. The Norwalk girls put together a strong four-quarter performance in a 55-39 win, while the boys prevailed in a 69-42 triumph, as aired on 94.3 KNIA.

The girls game started with the Warriors taking control early in what turned out to be a wire-to-wire victory. A 19-11 lead after one swelled to a 12-point lead at the break, and Norwalk extended the lead to as many as 23 points in the second half. The Bulldogs would not go down without a fight, as Van Meter got to within eight before the Warriors put the game out of reach. Junior Jocelyn Bice led the way with 21 points, and says this is exactly what the Warriors needed coming out of Christmas break.

Senior Bren Moritz tacked on 14 points to round out those in double figures. Norwalk improves to 3-5 overall with the win.

The Norwalk boys went back and forth in the opening frame. Van Meter started the game with a 5-0 run, which was answered by another 5-0 run from Norwalk. The Warriors clung to a 15-14 lead after the first, but put the throttle down in the second, outscoring the Bulldogs 20-7 in the period. The lead eventually grew to as high as 34 in the fourth quarter before the reserves came in to finish out the game. Freshman Redek Born scored 11 points in the win, and says his team is prepared for the challenges ahead following a productive winter break.

Senior Ethan Carlson led the way with 17 points while fellow senior Evan Borst added 10. The win moves Norwalk to 5-2 overall. Both teams will return to action Tuesday at Newton, with both games airing on the KNIA3 stream.

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