Submitted photo/Iowa Central Athletics: Aleaha Pommer, a Fort Dodge Senior High grad, dribbles the ball for Iowa Central on Tuesday night inside Hodges Fieldhouse.

First-year Iowa Central head women’s coach Sabah Dickerson was quick to put into words Tuesday night’s 55-51 victory over the William Penn JV inside Hodges Fieldhouse.

“A good first win,” Dickerson said. “We fought hard and we battled. We need to get more consistent, but we’ve got 11 new players and we just have to understand that being patient is the key right now.

“It will come together, it is just going to take time and patience.”

Jayden Frank, a returning sophomore, scored a team-high 17 points with seven rebounds, knocking down three 3-pointers. Emma Scurek, another sophomore, added 12 points with eight rebounds, including five on the offensive glass, while freshman Kaitlyn Tendal chipped in 10.

The 19th-ranked Tritons led at the end of the first, second and third quarters, but were never able to put the Statesmen away. They trailed in the fourth before a three-point play by Tendal with just over two minutes to go.

“We have a lot of different players who can do different things,” Dickerson said. “We have to figure out who works well with who, and who works well in our sets.

“It’s just game three of a long season.”

Aleaha Pommer, a Fort Dodge Senior High grad, added six points with four rebounds, three steals, an assist and a blocked shot, while Tessa Grooms chipped in six points and three rebounds.

Emily Theiss had six rebounds, four assists and three steals, Ellyse Ball had four rebounds and two blocked shots, and Jorja Hanselman grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds with two blocks and four points.

Grooms had a bucket with 1:21 left to put Iowa Central up 53-49, while a putback from Hanselman sealed the win.

For William Penn JV, Erica Martin scored a game-high 22 points and had 10 rebounds.

The Tritons (2-1 overall) head to Beatrice, Neb. on Saturday to face Southeast before returning home for another date with the Statesmen next Tuesday.

IOWA CENTRAL 55, WILLIAM PENN JV 51

Iowa Central — Jorja Hanselman 2-7 0-0 4, Kaitlyn Tendal 3-6 4-5 10, Jayden Frank 5-17 4-6 17, Brynn Bass 0-3 0-0 0, Emma Scurek 6-10 0-2 12, Alivea Harms 0-2 0-0 0, Aleaha Pommer 2-9 2-4 6, Maggie Godfrey 0-0 0-0 0, Emily Theiss 0-7 0-0 0, Ellyse Ball 0-2 0-0 0, Tessa Grooms 3-5 0-0 6, Jaci Christensen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 21-68 10-17 55.

William Penn JV — Jasmine Davis 1-7 1-3 4, Kiera Sutton 0-10 0-0 0, Jaida Smith 3-9 2-2 11, Maggie Grady 1-5 3-4 5, Erica Martin 8-13 6-8 22, Amaria Turner 1-6 0-0 2, Mia West 1-5 0-0 2, Addi Schilling 0-1 0-0 0, Hailey Miranda 0-1 0-0 0, Kylie Bell 0-1 0-0 0, Carissa Musgrave 2-6 0-0 5. Totals: 17-64 12-17 51.

Quarter scores: Iowa Central led 18-14, 26-23, 37-36. Three-point goals: Iowa Central 3-17 (Frank 3), William Penn JV 5-27. Total rebounds: Iowa Central 54, William Penn JV 45. Assists: Iowa Central 8, William Penn JV 10. Steals: Iowa Central 10, William Penn JV 8. Blocked shots: Iowa Central 6, William Penn JV 5. Turnovers: Iowa Central 17, William Penn JV 16. Personal fouls: Iowa Central 11, William Penn JV 14.