Staff photo by Ari Selvey Minnesota Valley Lutheran’s Ziva Zahrt (23) blocks a shot from Madelia’s Kendra Kirchner (3) during a nonconference girls basketball game Thursday at MVL High School.

NEW ULM — Minnesota Valley Lutheran put up a statement win in the opening game of the season, defeating Madelia 87-19 in a nonconference girl’s basketball game on Thursday.

“I think it means a lot to us, just because we haven’t been that strong of a program in the past couple of years,” MVL’s Olivia Hammer said. “This is a statement that proves how much we worked and how much effort our team has put in and how much we want to be there this year.”

It was the most points the team had scored since 2020 and the fewest it had given up since 2019, both coming in the same game. Defense was an emphasis for the team coming into the game, and it showed as the Blackhawks made just seven field goals all game with the Chargers recording 17 steals as a team.

“We went into the game with a defense-first mentality,” Olivia Hammer said. “If we play defense, our offense will translate into that. We never let them have easy shots and we’re always trying to trap as much as we can and play tight defense all game.”

Five different MVL players scored double-digit points on the day, and 13 total players scored at least 1 point. Ziva Zahrt led the Chargers with 14 points, nine rebounds and three steals, while Violet Hammer had 14 points and two assists. Olivia Hammer had 12 points, six rebounds and four steals, and Avery Hahn had 10 points, six rebounds and two steals. Ellie Kaesermann added 10 points.

Grace Tatro led the Blackhawks with 9 points, while Alicia Lugo had 3 points and four rebounds.

The Chargers started off the game with a 17-0 run, led by 8 points by Olivia Hammer. Adrianne Missling ended the scoring drought for the Blackhawks with a midrange jumper, but MVL continued to pile on the points, with Olivia Hammer scoring her 10th point after a steal to put MVL up 29-4. Zahrt became the second Charger in double digits shortly after to increase the lead to 41-4, Violet Hammer scored her 10th point on a layup to make the score 45-4. A 3-pointer by Tori Ringen beat the halftime buzzer and put the Chargers up 55-7 at the break.

The Chargers scored the first 12 points of the second half to go up 67-7, with Kaesermann making three layups during the stretch. Kendra Kirchner hit a 3-pointer for Madelia to make it 67-10, and Tatro scored on a 3-pointer and a free throw to make it a 78-16 game. With nine minutes to play, MVL put in the reserves, who continued to control the game to finish with a score of 87-19.

MVL (1-0) hosts Waseca on Tuesday. Madelia (0-1) plays at Martin County West on Tuesday.