Wrangell varsity player Anna Allen passes a ball around alumnus player MiKayla Stokes over to teammate Kaylyn Easterly (not pictured) during last week's fundraiser game. The Lady Wolves beat their elders in a close game, and collected over $4,000 for their travel fund.
With the holiday break freeing up the season schedules, Wrangell High School's basketball and volleyball teams continued a long-standing tradition by hosting home alumni matches.
The series started last week on December 21, with the volleyball girls taking on a team of former players.
"The game went pretty well," said coach Jessica Whitaker. "We had a solid group of alumni girls show up."
The alums ended up taking the tourney, winning best of five after four matches. The games were all for fun, capping off the end of the team's season. The Lady Wolves ended up finishing in third place at Region V earlier in the month, to which they had been seeded fourth.
The evening also was a time to hand out awards to players. Quite a few categories were covered, and players Makena Hammer and Kayla Hay both were named "most valuable player" for their season's performance.
The next evening, the Lady Wolves varsity basketball team took on a squad of alumni in its first combination fundraiser-holiday game. The team raised $4,123 for itself through a spaghetti dinner, 50/50 raffle, auction and sweatshirt sales.
"We are going to use the money to go to non-conference tournaments," explained head coach Laurie Brown. For example, the travel fund would cover matches like the team's tournament in Klawock, which it ended up taking first in just before the winter break began. Brown said the team would also like to attend a training camp in Anchorage this June.
During the alumni game, the graduate players led throughout, but the varsity girls were able to turn it around in the fourth period for a 40-37 win.
"It was a great game and we were really thankful to everyone who came out," said Brown. "We are so indebted to this community," she continued, listing the parents, fans and volunteers who made the program possible.
The boys basketball team was set to finish off the holiday series with its own alumni game and fundraiser Tuesday evening. Coach Ray Stokes explained the program has been doing the combination event for years, and the money raised ends up supporting the team's extra trips and travel expenses.
Once the basketball season resumes, Wrangell's boys will be headed to Metlakatla on December 6 and 7, while the girls will be hosting their counterparts the same weekend.
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