Lady Wolves face tough competition in Casper

The Lady Wolves Basketball team wasn't prepared for the speed of the game that they saw hitting the court on Thursday.

Their first tournament of the season was an eye-opener for the young team. The Lady Wolves played against some of the top teams in the state. Although it was a very good experience for them, it was very hard to walk away without a win.

The first game against Cheyenne Central ended in a loss for Green River by 33 points, the final score was 66-33. The Lady Wolves' top players were Brianna Strauss with nine points, Ella Stanton with eight rebounds, Jayla Braden with two assists and Addison Demaret making two three-point shots. Green River played very well at the beginning of the game. The second half they had too many turnovers and didn't rebound like they needed to, and that ultimately hurt the team's shot at making more baskets.

"The young girls that are playing, I don't think they understood the difference in the speed of a varsity game," explained Head Coach Rick Carroll. "I think the speed of the game was a real shock, but as the weekend went on, we adjusted and played much better."

In the second game against Natrona on Friday, the girls played extremely well. It was definitely an intense game. The Lady Wolves' top players were Jayla Braden with 20 points and Ella Stanton with 13 rebounds and eight assists. Braden and Demaret both had three three-point shots. Down to the last couple seconds, it was anyone's game. The Lady Wolves were ahead with less than a minute left in the game. Natrona got control of the ball, made their last shot and ended up winning by one point with a final score of 58-57.

Green River's last game was against Cheyenne East, who is rated number one in the state, on Saturday. The Lady Wolves put up a good fight, but too many attempts at the basket hurt their scoreboard and they lost to Cheyenne with a score of 72-47. Top players of the game were Ella Stanton with 19 points and nine rebounds and Jayla Braden with nine assists. Stanton and Braden both made two three-point shots.

"We learned that we need to take better care of the ball," added Carroll. He thinks the girls need to work on rebounding and less turnovers. The girls need to stay consistent in how well they play defense because there were times they played really well and there were times they didn't and it hurt them.

Green River will be hosting the Flaming Gorge Classic today through Saturday. The Lady Wolves will play Mountain View in the main gym at 6 p.m. Tomorrow they will play Bear Lake in the main gym at 4:20 p.m. Saturday they will take on Lyman in the main gym at 6 p.m.

Oil City Tip-off Tournament in Casper

Thursday, December 8

Final Score: Cheyenne Central 66 Green River 33

Final Score: Cheyenne East 49 Kelly Walsh 28

Final Score: Natrona County 78 Evanston 39

Friday, December 9

Final Score: Cheyenne East 57 Evanston 38

Final Score: Natrona County 58 Green River 57

Final Score: Cheyenne Central 45 Kelly Walsh 32

Saturday, December 10

Final Score: Cheyenne Central 59 Evanston 33

Final Score: Cheyenne East 72 Green River 47

Final Score: Natrona County 61 Kelly Walsh 32