Basketball Recap: Hershey Starts off Right with Win over Perkins County

Hershey had to travel to play their first game of the season, but the final result was worth the trip. They came out on top against the Perkins County Plainsmen by a score of 56-45 on Thursday. This was payback for the Panthers, who suffered a 41-34 defeat the last time these two teams met.

Lexi Pinkerton

Points

12/04/25 @ Perkins County	13
02/20/25 @ Bridgeport	2
02/19/25 vs Chadron	4
02/13/25 @ St. Patrick's	3
02/08/25 vs Grand Island Central Catholic	2
+ 11 more games

Leading Hershey to victory were Kenna Bringewatt and Lexi Pinkerton. Bringewatt shot 58% from the field en route to 16 points and six assists, while Pinkerton went 5-for-6 to rack up 13 points in addition to eight boards and five assists. That's the most points Pinkerton has posted since back in January. Ryleigh Melvin was another key player, putting up five points along with five rebounds and three steals.

They weren't the only ones working in the assist department: Hershey was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. They racked up eight more assists than Perkins County's also-impressive total of 12.

Despite the loss, Perkins County saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Addison York dropped a double-double with 13 points and 15 boards. Another player making a difference was Madison Potts, who had eight points.

Coming up, Hershey is taking a road trip to take on Cozad at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The game will give the Panthers their first taste of in-conference action this season. As for Perkins County, they have already played their next contest, a 60-34 defeat against Bridgeport on the 5th.