Sophomore Taylor Bean sets up on defense against a Haines Lady Glacier Bear player during the final quarter of a 24-30 victory home match Saturday.
The varsity Lady Wolves outlasted the Lady Glacier Bears twice over the weekend to put two chicken scratches in the win column.
The girls team won by six points both Friday (31-25) and Saturday (30-24). It marks the first set of conference play wins on the season for the girls, and three wins overall, evening the conference record to 2-2 after losses to Craig and Metlakatla. The girls team also marked a win over Craig in Ketchikan for invitational tournament play.
The team has gradually improved, particularly the fourth-quarter kick, said varsity coach Edna Abella-Nore.
"From the beginning of the season, every game, we improve and improve," she said. "The puzzle's coming together."
Both games were close, though in the end, the Lady Wolves made good on a pre-game prediction, Abella-Nore said.
"Yesterday (Friday) they all came in and they said 'We're gonna win this game,'" she said. "And I go 'All right, we're gonna win it.'"
The Lady Wolves' trailed by a single point at the half Friday. A 20-point tie set in late in the third quarter, and lingered into the fourth quarter, when Wrangell sank a field goal to put Wrangell ahead for their first unanswered lead of the game.
After that, it was all Lady Wolves. The Wrangell squad went on a 10-4 run – six points of which were scored from the line – to lock in the win. Wrangell received fourth quarter contributions from five players.
Wrangell trailed all the way through the end of the third quarter Saturday before out-shooting the Lady Glacier Bears 10-3 in the fourth. The Lady Wolves again struck from the field and line in an identical ratio, though this time sophomore Taylor Bean led the pack to the buzzer, with four-fourth quarter points.
"In our past games, we've always been really strong, third or fourth quarter," she said.
Among the skills that might have marked the difference between this week's two-for and home losses to Metlakatla the previous weekend, third and fourth quarter offensive rebounding picked up substantially, Abella-Nore said.
"It's still a thing that we need to work on, remembering that on offense we still need to rebound," she said. "We do a great job rebounding on defense, but I think on offense, some of the girls are like 'Oh, look at that pretty shot.'"
"This is the game that I knew they were capable of playing," Abella-Nore added. "I've told them from day one: hard work pays off."
Friday, senior Erica Smith led the Lady Wolves' offense with 14 points, with three field goals and one three-point shot. Smith shot 5-for-14 from the line and drew only two personal fouls. Junior Darian Meissner and Bean followed Smith with four points each.
Senior Libby Jacobson led the way for the Lady Glacier Bears with eight points on two three-pointers and two free throws, followed by junior Celia Bower with seven points.
Meissner claimed the Wrangell scoring crown Saturday. She made two field goals and shot 6-for-14 from the line. Bean followed with seven points on two field goals and three free throws.
Jacobson contributed seven points to lead the Haines offense Saturday on two three-point shots and a free throw. Junior Natalia Taylor trailed behind with four points on two field goals.
The JV Lady Wolves split games against the Haines squad this weekend.
They lost the Friday night game 35-25, but took the Saturday sequel by eight points.
Wrangell junior Kimberly Cooper and freshman Alex Campbell led the offense Friday night with six points each. Cooper did it all from the field, shooting zero-for-two from the line. Campbell shot one field goal and 4-for-14 from the field. Sophomores Kyla Teat ands KayDee Howell contributed five points each.
The Glacier Bears answered with 20 points from the field to overwhelm the Wolves. Haines freshman Olivia Wing led the offense with nine points on two field goals and four free-throws. Sophomore Destinee Cowart followed with six points.
Saturday, the Wolves came back strong. Cooper worked the inside and shot 8-for-13 from the line to lead the offense with 10 points. Teat followed with eight points on straight two-point field goals.
Wing topped her Friday total to lead the JV Lady Glacier Bears with 10 points Saturday. Taylor, freshman Jordan Stigen, sophomore Janae Larson, and sophomore Autumn Gross each contributed four points.
The Lady Wolves continue their season next weekend at home against Petersburg.
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