The boys middle school basketball team gathered to celebrate a season ending in a thrilling one-point championship at the Stikine Invitational. Back row, from left, Head Coach Graham Gablehouse, Max Voltz, Tymon Teat, Mikel Smith, River Guggenbickler, Caleb Groshong and Dustin Johnson. Front row, from left, Jonah Comstock, Stone Guggenbickler, Issac Mingming, Skyler Lofftus, Kellan Eagle, Jacob Hamm, and Riley Blatchley. Not pictured; Brian Schwartz, Trevor Miller, Ryan Soeteber, and Ashtyn Hayes.
The Middle School basketball team concluded its six-week season in mid-November with a win at the Stikine Invitational in Craig.
The invitational features teams from all over Southeast, and is held in Petersburg, Craig and Wrangell on a rotating basis.
The Wolves this year featured two teams, an A team and a B team, and the B Wolves team seized the championship on the back of a single-point win over Craig to close out the tournament, said coach Dustin Johnson.
"We went back and forth," he said. "Craig was up most of the game. We came on and tied it. One of our players got to the line with one second left on the clock. It doesn't get much closer than that."
Skyler Lofftus missed his first of two free throws, and remembers thinking about his grandfather.
"I was thinking about my grandpa, my great-great grandpa," he said. "He died two years ago."
Then sixth-grader Skyler lined up one more time, fired, and sank it for the championship.
"It felt pretty good," he said.
It was the first year sixth graders were allowed to participate, coaches for both the girls and boys teams said.
The girls team also improved on their performance during the very short season, said girls coach Heather Howe.
"We saw a lot of improvement," she said. "It was the first year we had sixth graders play on the team."
At the program's awards banquet, Johnson told the kids he was proud of them.
"In Craig we really picked it up," he said. "We showed Petersburg that we can compete with them and we're among the best in Southeast. This isn't just all about basketball. It's hopefully to teach you guys to be better community members, and that we're a team. We're all a team and we all grow up together."
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