TESSA SKARTVEDT OF SOUTH HAMILTON defends against St. Edmond at Wells Fargo Arena. (Photo by Britt Kudla)

DES MOINES — The South Hamilton girls got the opportunity to compete on the state basketball court here Thursday night.

Taking part in the Iowa Wolves High School Hoops Series, the Hawks dropped a tough 35-26 decision to St. Edmond.

The game was originally scheduled to tip at 6:30 p.m., but was pushed back over an hour after the contest before went into overtime.

Both teams struggled out of the gates, scoring just a combined eight points. Tied at 4-all after eight minutes, the Gaels were able to put together the first rally, taking a 14-10 lead into the break.

Claire Hewitt led all scorers with 12 points for South Hamilton, as Tessa Skartvedt added five.

St. Edmond, who got 11 points from Chloe Palmer and nine from Payton Bradley, used a slim advantage in the third to keep the Hawks at a distance.

Coming into the evening, South Hamilton had won four straight against the Gaels.

On Friday, the Hawks were defeated by 10th-ranked Monroe-PCM by a final of 58-27. Skartvedt scored eight points while also grabbing four rebounds. Hewitt snagged five boards.

Isabel Swenson had three rebounds and a pair of steals.

South Hamilton is back in action on Monday when they host Perry.