The Beresford Watchdogs's 15-6 record from last season is now well into the rear view mirror after another tough outing. They opened the new year with a less-than-successful 58-45 loss to Baltic. While losing is never fun, Beresford can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' South Dakota basketball rankings (they are ranked 92nd, while Baltic is ranked 27th).
Baltic got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Kellen Artz out in front who dropped a double-double on 12 points and 11 rebounds. Those 11 rebounds set a new season-high mark for him. The team also got some help courtesy of Jack Erickson, who scored 20 points along with eight rebounds.
Beresford's loss was their fourth straight on the road dating back to last season, which bumped their record down to 1-6. As for Baltic, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 6-2.
Beresford won't have much time to rest: their next matchup is against McCook Central/Montrose on January 5th. As for Baltic, they will head out on the road to face off against Flandreau at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
