Basketball Recap: Payton Dzingle Leads a Balanced Attack to Beat Adams Central

Kearney Catholic hadn't done well against Adams Central recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Thursday. The Kearney Catholic Stars walked away with a 53-45 win over the Adams Central Patriots. For the Stars, this counts as revenge for the 46-39 victory the Patriots walked away with the last time they faced one another back in February of 2024.

Kearney Catholic's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Payton Dzingle, who posted seven points along with six boards and five assists. That's the most assists Dzingle has posted since back in February of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Rylie O'Hare, who went 5 of 11 on her way to 14 points.

Kearney Catholic's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-9. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.3 points per game. As for Adams Central, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost seven of their last eight matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 7-11 record this season.

Kearney Catholic and Adams Central could both be facing uphill battles in their next games considering their disadvantage in the MaxPreps Nebraska Rankings. Kearney Catholic (ranked 121st) will meet Scotus (ranked 16th) at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Meanwhile, Adams Central will face off against Minden at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday down 131 places (140 vs. 9).