The Hawks had been hoping to get tested by an opponent, and on Saturday the Bengals of Benedictine took it to visiting Hiland.
The Division II powerhouse jumped out early and rolled to an 82-56 thumping of the Hawks, handing Hiland its first loss of the season after 12 straight wins, Saturday, Jan. 30, in Cleveland.
Hiland trailed 20-13 after the opening eight minutes of action, but found themselves down by 20 at intermission as the Bengals erupted for 25 points in the second quarter to take a 45-25 lead.
Noah Boyd connected on five 3-point bombs for the Hawks on his way to 19 points. Dylan Kaufman also scored 19, hitting one triple.
Hiland got little other support, as Jalen Miller was next in the scoring column with six points. Luke Burch added four points, Josh Yoder three, Chaise Gerber two, and Neil Gingerich split a pair of free throws to round out the Hiland offensive.
Nick Harney poured in 28 points to pace Benedictine. Cameron Wright added 20 and Derek Jackson 10 for the ninth-ranked Bengals.
