The Wrangell Wolves basketball team has returned from regionals in Juneau, another season completed. Much like their season this year, regionals saw both wins and hard-fought losses for the team. While they did not reach the championship or runner-up spot, Coach Cody Angerman said he was very proud of his team’s performance. The end of the season is always a bittersweet moment for him, he said, as he’s proud of how his team played but sad to see his senior players graduate and move on.
“Overall I’m proud of the way we played,” he said.
The Wolves went up against the Craig Panthers first. Angerman noted that it was a tough fight for them. The two teams stayed neck and neck for three quarters, he said, with the Wolves only managing to pull ahead in the fourth. He could not remember the exact score, he said, but the Panthers did well.
“It was probably the best Craig’s played against us all year,” he said.
After that victory, the Wolves moved up to play against the 1st place seed of Regionals, their old rivals the Petersburg Vikings. Angerman said that Petersburg had a very strong team this year. The game was close, and Angerman said they were in it for most of the game. At one point they were tied 30-30, he said. However, the Vikings maintained a lead that the Wolves could not overcome. The final score was 34-45, a loss for Wrangell.
After this defeat, the Wolves were moved down to the losers’ bracket, to compete for the 2nd place seed in the state tournament. They went up against the Metlakatla Chiefs. Wrangell held the lead for a good portion of the game, thanks in part to some strong plays by senior Trevor Miller. However, Miller received an injury during the game and had to be temporarily removed from the court. Angerman said player Brett Abrahamson did a good job of handling a leadership role on the court, but Metlakatla took the lead. The Wolves were only one point behind in the final minute of the game, Angerman said, but some bad calls on their part let the Chiefs pull ahead farther. The final score was 40-46, a loss and the end of the season for Wrangell.
“With Metlakatla, to be honest, I thought we played really well that game,” he said.
While the Wolves were taken out of the season a little earlier than the rest, it turned out that Regionals was the end of the season for everyone. The ASAA decided that due to worries about the COVID-19 Coronavirus, the state championship would be cancelled. Angerman said that his main concern had been just to get his team home and back to their families. While cancelling the championship may be an overreaction, he added, he said it was better to be safe than sorry. It was disappointing, but understandable.
“Being at regionals this year … It was pretty eerie with everything that’s going on in the world,” said Angerman.
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