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MANKATO -- Fairmont forward Dustin Schultz, center Wyatt Frank and their Cardinal teammates gave head coach Jared Thompson the perfect belated Christmas present -- the 2018 KwikTrip Holiday Basketball Tournament championship at Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato on Saturday night.
Schultz and Frank each produced double-double performances to help Fairmont upend the Class 1A, No. 6-ranked and previously-unbeaten Minnesota Valley Lutheran Chargers, 56-53, in the championship game.
Schultz generated a game-best 20 points and pulled down 11 boards, while the 6-foot-7 Frank scored 14 points and hauled down a game-high 14 rebounds for Fairmont, which captured its third consecutive victory after tipping off the season with five straight losses. Frank and Schultz paced the Cardinals' 37-25 edge on the boards on the night.
Jack Hested delivered 11 points, Lucas Denney netted five points, while Zach Jorgensen chipped in seven rebounds, five assists and three points for Fairmont.
The Cardinals made 22 of 45 field goals overall, including 5 of 17 from 3-point range, but hit only 7 of 14 free throws.
Jake Kettner scored 13 points for MVL, Dunwa Omot tallied 12 points, while Kyreis Harrson added 11 points.
Fairmont (3-5) plays host to Martin County West at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 4, in the second game of a varsity doubleheader at Cardinal Gym.
Minnesota Valley Lutheran (10-1) travels to New Ulm Cathedral on Monday, Jan. 7.
FHS 29-27--56
MVL 27-26--53
Fairmont defeated Mankato Loyola, 43-39, to capture third place in the KwikTrip Holiday junior varsity tournament on Saturday in Mankato.
Tanner Rosch netted 13 points to top the Cardinals' victory, Jake Harris supplied 10 points and Caleb Snelson contributed eight points.
St. Croix Lutheran downed Fairmont, 39-25, during Friday's junior varsity semifinal in Mankato.
Jake Harris scored nine points to pace the Cardinals, while Tony Ortega tallied eight points.
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Girls Basketball
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 66, Fairmont 57 -- The Fighting Saints rallied from a nine-point deficit at halftime to down the Cardinals by nine during a nonconference game Saturday in Windom.
KMS utilized the free throw line to fuel its second-half comeback, making more charity tosses -- 18 of 30 -- than Fairmont attempted from the line -- 7 of 16.
Katie Krieger sank 6 of 8 free throws to help pace her game-leading 23-point performance for the Fighting Saints, while teammate Maret Gjerde connected on three 3-pointers and hit 5 of 6 free throws to highlight her 20-point outing.
Morgan Lesteberg delivered nine points and a team-high seven rebounds for KMS, which made 22 of 51 field goals overall, including 4 of 11 behind the 3-point arc.
Taylor Crissinger topped Fairmont's statistical charts, including a double-double performance of 13 points and a game-best 12 rebounds, to complement four assists and three steals.
Faith Olson connected for three 3-pointers to highlight her 11-point effort for the Cardinals, while Cadee Becker also produced 11 points.
Lexi Lunn scored nine points and pulled down five rebounds, while Rayah Quiring netted eight points for Fairmont.
The Cardinals connected on 23 of 53 field goals overall, including 4 of 16 behind the 3-point arc.
Fairmont (4-6) travels to Redwood Falls on Thursday, Jan. 3, to face Redwood Valley in a Big South Conference game.
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg (6-3) plays host to Lakeview on Thursday, Jan. 3, in Kerkhoven.
FHS 32-25--57
KMS 23-43--66