Oaklee Hanks lines up a shot as she deals with pressure from a player from Jackson Thursday afternoon. The Lady Wolves sent the Jackson team home for the season after a 59-30 victory at home.
The boys and girls are headed to the state basketball tournament this weekend. For the girls, they're entering as the second seed following a loss to Natrona County following the regional championship game Saturday, following two wins at home.
The boys enter the tournament ranked third, rebounding against Rock Springs Saturday following a loss to Star Valley.
For both teams, the next week is their chance to shine as the season wraps up for them.
The girls will take on Cheyenne Central at Casper College Friday. The boys will face Thunder Basin at noon Friday.
"We need to continue focusing on defense and rebounding, head boys coach Laurie Ivie said. "Thunder Basin is full of extremely great athletes and good shooters."
Ivie said the key to a Wolves win will be in making sure Thunder Basin's players don't have a second chance at missed shots, while making them work hard for every shot they take.
Ivie said she wasn't aware the boys would beat Evanston Thursday until the buzzer sounded, sealing the Wolves' 49-42 win.
"We were super excited about the way we played, and incredibly happy about qualifying for the state tournament, she said.
While the boys took a 42-33 loss against Star Valley, they rebounded against their Sweetwater County rivals from Rock Springs 59-29.
"It seemed strange to travel to Riverton to play our cross county rivals, but we knew that was a possibility heading into the tournament," she said. "The boys played amazing team ball against Rock Springs. They focused on rebounding and defense, and that sparked our offense. We put together four solid quarters of basketball."
Girls head coach Rick Carroll said he's pleased with how the girls are playing this late in the season, saying the girls' strong rebound skills have given them a few more chances to make baskets.
"We're pleased with how we're playing," he said.
Overall, he said the girls' had a great weekend of regional play, playing great basketball through much of the tournament. He said that momentum started to stall in the fourth quarter against Star Valley in their 34-25 win.
"We played seven great quarters," he said of the action Thursday.
He said the Lady Wolves let Star Valley come back during the fourth, but were able to finish well and leave with the win.
With Natrona, Carroll said the girls struggled with scoring and offense, with the Lady Wolves being outrebounded.
"We wish we played a little better Saturday," he said.
He said the girls also threw some passes away and couldn't get easy baskets throughout the game.
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