ALGONA — The St. Edmond boys got off to a strong start here on Monday, knocking off Bishop Garrigan 67-42 on the road.

The Gaels (1-0 overall) built an 18-point first half lead and never looked back.

“We talked about playing well right away and getting off to a fast start,” said SEHS head coach Adolph Kochendorfer. “Going into the third quarter, we wanted to keep the intensity up even though we were (relatively in control).”

The Gaels did exactly that to start the second half, extending their lead to 27 points.

“It’s nice to get the season going and play against someone (officially),” Kochendorfer said. “Our defense played and put a body on defenders for the most part. There were a couple of stretches where we struggled, though.”

The Gaels placed three players in double figures, while two had nine each.

Senior Hayden Mayer led the way with 20 points. Noah Simpson and Caleb Schaeffer had 10 points a piece.

Quinten McCarville and Zach Smith checked in with nine each.

St. Edmond swished eight three-pointers in all.

“The balanced scoring was huge,” Kochendorfer said. “We had some guys coming off the bench and doing well. We want them to play defense and move the ball around and maybe score five or six points in the process.

“The more we can even things out, the better.”

Jacob Leerar scored nine points for the Golden Bears. Jack Grandgenett and Andrew Fogarty contributed eight points each.

The Gaels are back in action on Friday when they travel to Clarion-Goldfield/Dows. Girls tip at 6:15 p.m. with the boys to follow at approximately 7:45 p.m.

ST. EDMOND 67, BISHOP GARRIGAN 42

St. Edmond — Hayden Mayer 20, Noah Simpson 10, Caleb Schaeffer 10, Quinten McCarville 9, Zach Smith 9, Jackson Palmer 2, Sam Mericle 3, Issac Landerwhr 4.

Bishop Garrigan — Jack Grandgenett 8, Jacob Leerar 9, Andrew Fogarty 8, Ryan Noonan 5, Hollis Bode 2, Grant Haugland 2, Drew Muller 6, Nate Bronk 2.

Quarter scores: St. Edmond led 18-12, 32-14, 51-24.