By Chad Koenen

Publisher

The Frazee Hornets came just four points shy of doing something no other team has been able to do so far this season—knock off undefeated and 10th ranked Warroad. The Hornets fell to the Warriors 66-62, but overcame a 13 point halftime deficit to tie the game at 62-62 late in the contest.

The loss comes on the heels of a pair of convincing non-conference wins over Wadena-Deer Creek by a score of 77-64 and Roseau by a score of 70-44 to leave their record at 5-4 overall. 

This week the Hornets will travel to Perham on Tuesday night, before heading to Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal on Thursday night. 

December 27

The Frazee Hornets picked up their third straight win as they defeated Wadena-Deer Creek by a score of 77-64 in non-conference action. The win improved the Hornets to 4-3 overall in the 2024 portion of their schedule as they gear up for a busy January on the road. 

As a team the Hornets shot over 46 percent from the floor and went an impressive 10-26 from behind the 3-point line, including six 3-pointers from Asher Blaine alone. 

“Asher Blaine got us going early with some sharp shooting, hitting 5 treys in the first half,” said head coach Ryan Vigen. “Dawson Lyman and Andrew Aho stepped up with some big plays in the second half.”

Frazee led for most of the first half, before the Wolverines went on a late run to take a 35-34 lead at the break. In the second half it was all Hornets as they outscored Wadena-Deer Creek by a 43-29 margin in the final 18 minutes of action. The Hornets forced 17 WDC turnovers and held a commanding 40-16 advantage in points in the paint. 

The Hornets were led offensively by Adam Vigen who scored 23 points to go along with nine rebounds and three assists.
Blaine scored 22 points and went 6-9 from behind the 3-point line, while Dawson Lyman scored 10 points, Carter Sonnenberg scored nine, Andrew Aho scored seven and Noah Mekalson rounded out the scoring with six points and seven rebounds. 

Friday

Carter Sonnenberg scored 17 points and pulled down 22 rebounds as the Frazee Hornets blew past the visiting Roseau Rams by a score of 70-44 on Friday night. The Hornets took the lead midway through the first half and held a 32-21 lead at the break. Frazee went on to outscore the Rams 38-23 in the second half.

“Carter had a monster game on the boards for us,” said head coach Ryan Vigen. “I felt everyone contributed tonight. An all around great team win.”

As a team the Hornets dominated the Rams down low as they held a 38-14 advantage in points in the paint and held a 15-5 advantage in offensive rebounds.

In addition to Sonnenberg’s double-double, Adam Vigen scored 16 points to go along with four assists, while Dawson Lyman  also reached double figures with 11 points. 

Asher Blaine scored eight points, while Ayden Grossman scored seven points, Benjamin Reierson scored five points, Noah Mekalson scored four points and Conner Erickson rounded out the scoring with two points. 

Saturday

One day after picking up a big win over Roseau, the Frazee Hornets came out a bit slow and fell to the visiting Warroad Warriors 66-62 on Saturday afternoon. The Warriors, who are ranked 10th in the state and are a perfect 12-0 on the season, led by 19 points in the first half and held a 42-29 lead at halftime. The game was tied at 62-62 before the Warriors scored the final four points of the game. 

“We started a little slow getting down 19 in the first half, but battled back to make it manageable,” said head coach Ryan Vigen. “Very happy how we battled back to tie it up with Carter’s clutch free throws at 62.  I love how my team has no quit in them.”

The Hornets managed to outscore the Warriors 33-24 in the final 18 minutes of action, but were ultimately unable to overtake the powerful Warroad team despite tying up the game with Sonnenberg’s free throws late in the second half. 

While Frazee has been able to utilize its size over the past few games, Warroad held a 42-22 advantage in the paint and forced 22 Hornet turnovers. 

The Hornets were led offensively by Carter Sonnenberg who recorded his second double-double in less-than 24 hours as he scored 14 points to go along with 10 rebounds and five assists. 

Adam Vigen also reached double figures as he scored 13 points and tied for the team-high in assists with five. Asher Blaine also scored 11 points and pulled down five rebounds, while Ayden Grossman scored eight points, Noah Mekalson scored four points to go along with nine rebounds and Andrew Aho scored one point in the loss.