Rebels break through to state, beat Hawks

MARSHALLTOWN – After two consecutive defeats in the substate final, Gladbrook-Reinbeck didn’t squander a third opportunity on Saturday night.

The Rebels held off Lynnville-Sully, 56-53, to advance to the Class 1A state tournament that begins next week in Des Moines. G-R will play Remsen St. Mary’s in a quarterfinal at 3:45 p.m. on Monday, March 6 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

G-R senior William Kiburis led the way with 27 points and added 11 rebounds. Isaac Clark scored 13 points, Caleb Egesdal had six points and Drew Eilers finished with five points and 10 rebounds.

The Rebels led 45-39 midway through the fourth before Lynnville-Sully clawed back in within 53-51 with 43.5 seconds left. Eilers scored to push the lead back to four with seven seconds left, which ended up being enough for G-R to clinch its first state tournament berth since 2017.

Remsen St. Mary’s is 22-2 overall and defeated LeMars Gehlen to reach the state tournament. The Hawks were rated seventh in the last 1A rankings from the IHSAA.