Lady Wolves lose to Tikigaq in bid for state title

The Lady Wolves came off their Southeast regional championship with the confidence to compete all the way to the state title for the first time since 1985, eventually falling one game short.

In three games in Anchorage last week, the Wrangell High School girls basketball team twice showed why they entered the Division 2A state tournament as the top seed, but it was not enough to overcome the strong defense and speed of the Tikigaq High School squad from Point Hope.

The Tikigaq Harpooners of the North Slope Borough School District community defeated Wrangell 56-42 Saturday evening. It was Tikigaq's fourth state title since 2012, its third in the past six years. The Point Hope school is about the same size as Wrangell, roughly 250 students.

Wrangell started the tournament last Thursday at the Alaska Airlines Center on the University of Alaska campus when it took on last year's state Division 2A champion Hooper Bay, a small community on the coast about 150 miles northwest of Bethel. The No. 8-ranked Hooper Bay had a hard time keeping up. The only point the Lady Warriors made in the first period was from a free-throw attempt. The period ended with Wrangell 11 points ahead.

The second period wasn't much different, with Hooper Bay only scoring once near the end of the period. Wrangell kept up a strong defense and continued scoring. The period ended 26-3.

Senior Kendra Meissner began the second half by sinking a three-pointer, while a series of fouls sent senior Jamie Early to the free-throw line, making two of four attempts. Hooper Bay wasn't able to put points on the board until a field goal at just over three minutes in. The period ended with Wrangell up 38-8.

Meissner copied the third quarter by making the first points of the fourth quarter with a three-pointer nearly halfway through the period. The Lady Warriors only added three more points as Wrangell surged ahead.

In league play, the game ends if either team is up by 40 points. Hooper Bay was able to keep their opponents from scoring, keeping the point deficit under 40. But with less than a minute to play, the Lady Wolves put the final points on the board, ending the game at 52-11.

The competition Friday was much tougher for Wrangell as the girls faced the No. 4-ranked Glennallen Lady Panthers.

Glennallen stuck to a strategy of playing the perimeter, trying to keep Wrangell's defense spread out. The Lady Wolves covered the competition, while using junior Kiara Harrison's height at the post, a significant advantage over Glennallen. Wrangell was ahead 13-8 at the end of the period.

The Lady Panthers used their perimeter play to make three-pointers that would shrink the deficit in the second period. A long bomb at the buzzer gave them another three points to end the second period down 14-17 to Wrangell.

In the second half, Glennallen was able to snag rebounds and close the point gap. Another three-pointer tied up the game 19-19 with 2:38 left to play in the period. Senior Jamie Early answered the play to put Wrangell back on top to end the third period.

Glennallen again took the lead at the start of the fourth quarter with a three-point basket. Back-and-forth drives gave each team the lead until Meissner started making a series of baskets, with a two-point field goal followed by two three-pointers in a row.

As Wrangell began to take the lead and the time dwindled, Glennallen began to foul the Lady Wolves to stave off any more points. The tactic wasn't enough as Wrangell won 33-25, sending them to the state championship game on Saturday against Tikigaq, which had defeated Nenana and Metlakatla for a shot at the 2A title.

From the onset, the Harpooners dominated the hardwood, stealing the ball and sinking a three-pointer less than 30 seconds into play. A foul on Meissner led to two failed free throws and Tikigaq answered with another three-pointer.

Tikigaq ran away with the lead, making it difficult for Wrangell to catch up. The more pressure the Lady Wolves put on their opponents, the harder Tikigaq played.

A series of failed shots and a high turnover count led to a large point deficit that Wrangell couldn't close. Tikigaq landed 12 of 23 two-point attempts, seven of 16 three-pointers and 11 of 17 free throws. Wrangell made 16 of 41 two-point shots, one of nine three-point attempts and just seven of 21 free throws.

"Tikigaq caught fire early and that didn't stop," said head coach Christina Good. "You can't really do anything when teams are shooting well. They are a very good, disciplined team. The pace really caught us off guard."

Wrangell performed their best plays when the ball would get to Harrison and she would make shots from the post. She led the Lady Wolves with 17 points. Meissner was the second-highest scorer with nine points, due to her ability to charge through traffic and land shots. Tikigaq's Jadyn Lane totaled 22 points and teammate Jennifer Nash scored 21.

"The girls are still pretty bummed. It will take some time," Good said. "Overall, we've accomplished great things as a team. I'm super proud of each player and their effort all season long."

It had been a long time since the Wrangell girls team had played for a state title. The Lady Wolves took second place in state in 1985, losing to Haines in overtime 49-51.