Lady Wolves take on State

The Moorcroft Lady Wolves went into the Wyoming State Basketball Tournament as the #1 seed from the East. It was the Moorcroft Lady Wolves' first time in the State Championship game in school history. 

Moorcroft's first opponent was the Lady Eagles from St. Stephens. Going into the tournament, you know that all of the teams that are there have earned the right, so each game is a challenge.

The Lady Wolves got off to the start they wanted in the first quarter while outscoring the Eagles, 16-9. The Lady Eagles battled back in the second quarter and the Wolves took a slim 27-21 lead into the half.

We made some defensive adjustments at halftime and knew we didn't shoot it as well as we would have liked. The second half was all Lady Wolves as they found their groove and were able to pull away from the Lady Eagles for a 65-39 victory.

We got better looks in the second half and I thought our defensive pressure wore them down. It was good to get the first game victory of the tournament. 

The semifinal game found the Lady Wolves facing off against the three-time defending state champion, Wyoming Indians. We knew going into the game that we were going to have to play well right from the start.

Wyoming Indian has a lot of experience being in the state tournament and we knew what the challenge was before us. Wyoming Indian got off to a quick start, outscoring the Lady Wolves 7 to 0 in the opening minutes of the first quarter.

After a quick timeout, we talked about needing to pick up the defensive intensity, which is exactly what the Lady Wolves did. They held Wyoming Indian to only nine first quarter points and six second quarter points to take a 33-15 lead into halftime.

I really thought we played great on the defensive end. We hustled after loose balls and converted on the offensive end and then got the stops we needed on the defensive end.

We knew Wyoming Indian wouldn't be beat easily and they came out of the half and scored five quick points. The Lady Wolves found answers and again held Wyoming Indian to single digits of seven points in the fourth quarter to secure a 55-34 victory.

Defensively, we did what we set out to do by holding them under ten points in three of the four quarters while knocking down shots on our end. Our ball movement was good and we made the passes necessary to get high percentage shots.

The State Championship game found the Lady Wolves against the Lady Grizzlies from Rocky Mountain. Going into the game, we knew Rocky Mountain was a similar team to us and they liked to get up and down the floor.

The first quarter was quick with the Grizzlies jumping out to a 14-10 lead. They were able to extend their lead to 30-19 going into the half.

The Wolves found some footing in the second half but came up short, falling to the Lady Grizzlies, 46-35. We had great effort and just came up on the short end of the game.

The girls fought and did their very best. We ran into a tough team but that doesn't take away anything that these Lady Wolves have accomplished. 

Overall, it was a great season. This group of talented girls finished the season with a record of 23 wins and five losses.

They won the 2A East Regional for the first time since 1980. They advanced to the State Championship game for the first time in school history.

It really is a tribute to their attitude and effort that they put into a season. They showed up to every practice ready to work and get done what was asked of them.

They have all progressed individually and then combined their individual talents to make the team what it was this year. I couldn't be more proud of them. They are all really good players, but even better young ladies, with great character.

We have appreciated all of the community support and the turnouts we have every game. I can't thank their parents enough for the sacrifices they have made to make this season what it has been.