DES MOINES — Second-ranked Newell-Fonda turned their Class 1A quarterfinal against Kingsley-Pierson into a track meet here on Wednesday night.

The Mustangs (23-1 overall) handed the seventh-seeded Panthers (23-1) their first loss of the season, 88-47.

Newell-Fonda will now face No. 6 seed Montezuma (23-1) — which knocked off No. 3 St. Ansgar, 60-55 on Wednesday night — in the state semifinal round.

The contest will be at 4 p.m. inside Wells Fargo Arena.

Newell-Fonda, the two-time defending state champion, went on three huge first-half runs that the Panthers couldn’t shake. The Mustangs’ three big runs went a total of five minutes and 42 seconds, totaling 44 unanswered points.

“We can play deeper and we were able to establish the tempo,” said N-F head coach Dick Jungers. “We had unselfish play. We can really stretch a defense out and score in a bunch of different ways.

“This group plays great defense. They can read offenses so well.”

The Mustangs’ 12-0 run took one minute, 22 seconds to start the game. They then went on a 64-second blitz of 10 more points.

After the Panthers scored a bucket to start the third quarter, Newell-Fonda ran off a 22-point run to take a 53-17 advantage.

All 15 Mustang players saw the court, with 10 reaching the scoring column. Four hit for double figures.

“It means a lot to get through the first one,” Jungers said. “It’s good to get you focused and be determined against solid teams.

“We shot the ball well.”

Ella Larsen led the way with 19 points, eight rebounds and five steals.

“It feels good to start off with a win,” Larsen said. “We just have to keep working hard and take one game at a time.

“We started the game off strong and we had a lot of energy not only on the court, but on the bench.”

Macy Sievers recorded 15 points and six steals. Bailey Sievers and McKenna Sievers had 13 each.

“Getting the first game under our belt is huge at the Well,” Sievers said. “Playing there is a whole different atmosphere compared to a normal gym.

“Once the game starts, everything just flows and we play our game.”

N-F had 20 steals and forced 26 turnovers and had 43 points off turnovers.

“Now that we have a game under our belt and have some experience for the younger girls, we can go out and compete on Friday and hopefully get a win,” Sievers said. “You always have to remind everybody that there’s no better place to play than at Wells Fargo Arena.”

NEWELL-FONDA 88, KINGSLEY-PIERSON 47

Newell-Fonda — Bailey Sievers 6-8 0-1 13, Macy Sievers 7-11 0-0 15, Maggie Walker 2-7 4-4 9, Ella Larsen 7-8 4-6 19, Ellie Lago 0-2 0-0 0, Anna Bellcock 1-2 0-0 3, Mary alker 5-9 0-0 13, McKenna Sievers 1-3 0-0 3, Nevaeh Lyman 0-0 0-0 0, Laney Hogrefe 0-1 0-0 0, Kierra Jugners 3-5 0-0 6, Isabel Bartek 2-2 0-0 4, Audrey Kosky 0-2 0-0 0, Paige Roberts 0-0 0-0 0, Emma Erickson 1-1 0-0 3. Totals: 35-61 8-11 88.

Kingsley-Pierson — Allison Reinking 0-1 0-0 0, Brooklyn Beery 4-14 0-0 11, Delaney Iseminger 5-14 3-4 17, McKenzie Goodwin 5-8 0-2 10, Abbi Bailey 0-3 5-6 5, MaKenna Bowman 0-0 0-0 0, Hayden Dunne 0-1 0-0 0, Emy Benson 0-0 0-0 0, Avery Schroeder 02- 0-0 0, Carly Huth 0-0 0-0 0, Halle Collins 0-1 0-1 0, Chloe Peschau 1-1 0-0 2, Gabby Boustead 0-1 0-0 0, Rachel Bohle 1-3 0-0 3, Hannah Koch 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 16-49 11-15 47.

Quarter scores: NF led 31-15, 60-24, 80-34. Three-point goals: Newell-Fonda 10-24 (Bailey Sievers 1-1, Macy Sievers 1-2, Maggie Walker 1-5, Larsen 1-2, Bellcock 1-2, Walker 3-4, McKenna Sievers 1-3, Kosky 0-2, Erickson 1-1); Kingsley-Pierson 4-19 (Reinking 0-1, Beery 0-3, Iseminger 4-11, Bailey 0-2, Schroeder 0-1, Collins 0-1); Total rebounds: Newell-Fonda 33, Kingsley-Pierson 28; Total fouls: Newell-Fonda 15, Kingsley-Pierson 12; Turnovers: Newell-Fonda 16, Kingsley-Pierson 26; Steals: Newell-Fonda 20, Kingsley-Pierson 10; Assists: Newell-Fonda 20, Kingsley-Pierson 9.