The Norwalk basketball teams host their home and conference openers this evening, as Pella Christian makes the visit to Norwalk for a girls-boys doubleheader. Both the Norwalk girls and boys will be looking for their first wins of the season. The Warrior girls faced an extremely tough team in Ballard on Tuesday night to begin the post-Thanksgiving portion of the season, but saw growth from several key role players in that loss. Head Coach Jill Martin says that the two early-season games against tough 4A squads have prepared her team for the heart of the conference schedule.

The Warriors will look for continued strong leadership from junior Jocelyn Bice, who so far has led the team in scoring this season. Freshman Ava Johnson has gotten her high school career off to a strong start, and will look to make a name for herself as one of the top players in the Little Hawkeye Conference. The Eagles bring in a large group of returning players, with senior Allison Van Gorp and junior Emma Witzenberg averaging a whopping 20 and 19.5 points per game in helping their team to a 2-0 start.

Meanwhile in the boys game, the Warriors will try to shake off a rocky start to their season after falling by 25 points at Ballard Tuesday. Norwalk is hoping that game helped get key players settled into new roles on the court. Seniors Max Juergens and Cole Tunender each scored 11 points in that game, and both will try to use their versatility in leading the Warriors to their first win. Pella Christian finds themselves in a similar scenario, and hopes to carry the momentum from Tuesday’s fourth quarter, in which they came up just short in a valiant comeback attempt against Albia. A Norwalk win would put the Warriors on the right track to a fourth straight season with at least a share of the Little Hawkeye Conference title.

Tonight’s doubleheader will air live on 92.1 KRLS with Jon Mohwinkle and Steve Wermerskirchen calling the action. Pregame coverage begins at 5:45 p.m., with the opening tipoff from Norwalk High School at 6:15.

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