ROCHESTER &045;

The Albert Lea girls&8217; basketball team did something it hadn&8217;t done it at least 25 years Tuesday. The Tigers beat Rochester Mayo in Rochester 71-55.

&8220;For us to come to Rochester and beat Mayo knowing we can still play better is a real positive for this team,&8221; Albert Lea head coach Karol Hansen said. &8220;This is the first time in at least 25 years we have beaten them, and it was a clean sweep because the B-squad and ninth grade won too.&8221;

The Tigers did not build a double digit lead until the second half, but Albert Lea dominated much of the game going into the locker room with a 36-28 advantage. Albert Lea owned the boards outrebounding the Spartans 54-28.

Offensively, the Tigers got contributions from many different players led by Niki Hendrickson who had 25 points and went 11 of 12 from the free throw line. Both Hali Hendrickson and Ali Demmer recorded double-doubles with Hali getting 21 points and 15 rebounds while Demmer went for 13 and 12, respectively.

&8220;We have seven kids who have hit for double figures this season and that is really nice to have that kind of balance,&8221; Hansen said. &8220;We are putting kids out on the floor in different combinations and they are accepting the role they are being asked to play.&8221;

Albert Lea dominated the free throw line hitting 26 of 37 free throws while the Spartans attempted just 23 free throws in the game.

The victory was the second straight conference win for the Tigers who are now 5-2 on the season and 3-2 in the Big Nine Conference. Albert Lea is back in action Friday when it travels to Fairmont before taking a break for Christmas.