June 30, 2025

PCM boys cruise to easy road win over Fairfield

Mustang girls can’t overcome slow start against Trojans

By Troy Hyde

PCM junior Durant Van Dyke (24) had 11 points and nine rebounds in the Mustangs' win over Fairfield on Monday night. (Troy Hyde/Newton News file photo)

FAIRFIELD — Four players scored in double-figures and a fast start helped PCM’s boys’ basketball team to an easy non-conference road win over Fairfield on Monday night.

The Mustangs led by seven after one quarter and the trend continued in the second and third frames as PCM downed the host Trojans 74-46.

PCM made more than half the shots it took on the night and turned a 16-9 advantage after one quarter into a 40-21 lead at halftime.

Andrew Mitchell led the Mustangs (6-6) with 17 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals, while Gatlin Boell added 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Durant Van Dyke and Grant Landgrebe also finished in double-figures with 11 and 12 points, respectively. Van Dyke also grabbed nine rebounds and dished out three assists and Landgrebe chipped in three rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Carson VandeLune scored eight points, dished out three assists and swiped four steals, August Stock put in seven points and Sage Burns scored three points.

The Mustangs shot 52 percent from the floor, hit 6-of-17 from 3-point range and were 12-of-21 from the free-throw line. PCM also turned it over only 11 times. Fairfield fell to 1-5 on the season.

GIRLS

Fairfield 44, PCM 30

The Mustangs were held to four points in the first half and couldn’t recover during a 44-30 road loss to Fairfield in girls’ basketball non-conference action on Monday.

PCM shot just 28 percent from the floor and turned it over 20 times. It trailed 18-2 at one point in the first half.

“They wanted a track meet and we complied in the first half and it didn’t work out,” PCM head coach Jeff Lindsay said. “We controlled the tempo better in the second half. We got some buckets in transition. We just got into a hole we couldn’t dig out of.”

The Mustangs outscored Fairfield 16-12 in the third and got the deficit down to eight or 10 in the period but couldn’t get any closer. Both teams scored 10 points in the fourth.

Lilli Baird had 13 points and two steals to lead the Mustangs (1-12). Emma George had six points and two rebounds, Riley Hjortshoj finished with three points, four rebounds, two steals and two blocks and Paige Steenhoek grabbed six boards. Celeste Wagaman also had five rebounds.

The Mustangs shot 14-of-18 from the line.

“We did a tremendous job with our free throws,” Lindsay said. “We continued to fight. They didn’t lay down and quit.”

Hannah Simpson led the Trojans (4-1) with 13 points and 11 rebounds.