March 28, 2025
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Third-ranked Rebels edge L-S boys in substate championship game

Hawks fall one game shy of state tournament for the second straight season

By Troy Hyde

Lynnville-Sully senior Preston Rodibaugh, right, led the Hawks with 15 points and seven rebounds in the team's substate championship game loss to third-ranked Gladbrook-Reinbeck on Saturday. (Noah Rohlfing/Marshalltown Times-Republican)

MARSHALLTOWN — The third time was the charm for the Gladbrook-Reinbeck boys’ basketball team on Saturday.

The Class 1A No. 3 Rebels built a narrow first-half lead over Lynnville-Sully and held off the Hawks in the second half during a 56-53 win in the 1A Substate 6 championship game at the Marshalltown Roundhouse.

The Hawks lost in the substate championship game for the second straight season. The Rebels advance to the state tournament for the first time since 2017 after losing in the substate final the past two seasons.

“The guys kept battling back all night long,” L-S boys head basketball coach Nick Harthoorn said. “We struggled to get the big stop and rebound when we needed it.”

Lynnville-Sully (22-3) trailed 15-14 after one quarter and 23-19 at halftime. The Hawks outscored the Rebels by one in the second half, but it wasn’t enough.

Lynnville-Sully junior Corder Noun Harder (11) scored 14 points and grabbed four rebounds in the Hawks' 56-53 loss to third-ranked Gladbrook-Reinbeck in the substate championship game on Saturday in Marshalltown. (Noah Rohlfing/Marshalltown Times-Republican)

Gladbrook-Reinbeck used an 11-0 run in the third to create some separation, but L-S responded with a 14-4 spurt of its own. The Hawks got within two points in the fourth, but G-R never trailed in the second half.

Preston Rodibaugh led the Hawks with 15 points, seven rebounds and two assists and Corder Noun Harder added 14 points, four rebounds and two assists.

Klayton Van Dyke registered six points, five boards and two blocks, Mitchell Miller added six points and two rebounds and Conner Maston chipped in three points and five boards.

Dawson James finished with seven points and six boards and Keegan DeWitt grabbed four rebounds off the bench.

“It was a special season and a special group of guys,” Harthoorn said. “I loved having the opportunity to work with these young men.”

The Hawks shot 40.4 percent from the floor, made 4-of-14 from 3-point range and turned the ball over eight times.

The Rebels (23-2) shot 35.7 percent from the floor but made 7-of-21 from 3 and committed six turnovers.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck had a significant advantage at the free-throw line. The Rebels were called for 14 fouls and connected on 19-of-28 from the foul line, while the Hawks committed 19 fouls and buried 7-of-12 from the charity stripe.

William Kiburis led the Rebels with 27 points and 11 rebounds. Isaac Clark scored 13 points and Drew Ellers grabbed 10 boards.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck earned the No. 3 seed for the boys’ state tournament and will face sixth-seeded and seventh-ranked Remsen-St. Marys at 3:45 p.m. on March 6 inside Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.