Wolves gearing up for new season

While the season's schedule is still tentative amid the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wrangell Wolves are preparing for a new season of basketball. This will be Coach Cody Angerman's fourth season leading the high school boys team.

The upcoming season will be unique in a variety of ways, he said, but his goals for the team are the same as always.

"I have this same kind of mentality coming into every season," he said. "I just want to make sure that we're the best team possible when it comes tournament time. If you can be the best team possible then, that's your best chance of winning, really."

Angerman said there are several challenges facing the Wolves this season. For one thing, several players graduated at the end of last season and would not be returning. However, he pointed out that the team would have five or six returning players with experience.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also created a unique situation for the team. Angerman said the Wolves would be following several safety precautions to protect themselves, others, and the basketball season in general.

Players will be wearing masks at all times when they are not playing, he said. Before coming into the court at all, they will also have their temperature taken and checked for any symptoms of COVID-19. This will all be documented, he said.

Angerman said he is taking these precautions seriously, as normal life has already been disrupted by the pandemic and he wants to make sure that his team can still enjoy a basketball season. The team is going to take the season one day at a time, he said.

"For the sake of those guys that have been putting in the time and putting in the work, we just want to make sure that we can somehow get some games in," Angerman said.

"What I've been telling them is I'll do whatever it takes to make sure that happens for them, and that we just have to do all the right things accordingly, and follow all the mandates and protocols to make sure and ensure that we can at least play some games."

Practices for the Wolves begins on Jan. 11, Angerman said. According to a schedule provided by WHS Activities Director Trisa Rooney, their first games are tentatively scheduled for Jan. 30 against Metlakatla. Angerman said that they were planning some games against Petersburg to start the season on Jan. 15, but these were pushed back to later in the season.

The Lady Wolves, the girls basketball team, is still being organized. Coach Christy Good said she would have more information on the team in the near future.