The Green River High School girls basketball team may not have won any games at state last weekend, but they fought hard to finish a competitive season.
In both state games the Lady Wolves played they had three good quarters but one quarter where they struggled, which kept them from ultimately catching up, according to Coach Rick Carroll.
Green River’s first game was against Thunder Basin, which they lost 47-38.
“In that game I think we played three really good quarters,” Carroll said. “We got in a hole in the first quarter, we were down 14 to three. So we came out with I think a little bit of jitters and didn’t score the ball very well.”
The Lady Wolves were able to come back during the next three quarters and got within four points with four minutes left, but with Thunder Basin making free throws and Green River missing a few baskets at the end, the Lady Wolves couldn’t make up the difference and lost the game.
Despite the loss, Green River’s top scorers helped close the gap during the game, with Megan Counts scoring 15 points, Daryn Macy scoring seven, Sarah Wilson scoring six and Gabrielle Heiser and Ella Stanton both scoring five.
After their loss to Thunder Basin, Green River had to face Campbell County the next morning. This time the Lady Wolves started the game well, but couldn’t finish strong in the fourth quarter, resulting in a close 38-33 loss. After the first and second quarter Green River was only one point down, and the Lady Wolves actually took the lead in the third quarter, but couldn’t maintain it, Carroll explained.
“We didn’t score well,” he said. “In that game our shooting percentage was a pretty big issue for us, so that hurt us.”
When the Lady Wolves did score during the game, they were once again led by Counts and Macy, who had 10 and nine points respectively. Counts also helped with eight rebounds and Heiser contributed another six.
While the Lady Wolves would have liked to do better at the state competition, Carroll was still happy with how the team played and how close the games ended up being.
“I think we showed that we were definitely able to compete with the teams who were there,” he said.
While there is still room for growth and things to work on next season, particularly when it comes to offense and staying strong through all four quarters, Carroll could see how much the team learned and grew.
“I think our biggest improvement was in how well we learned to play team defense,” he said.
Carroll is especially proud of the seniors on the team this year, including Wilson, Heiser, Counts and Alyssa Cudney.
“I think they are exemplary leaders,” Carroll said of the seniors. “I think they’re great students here at school and they really were good leaders for our team and for our program to show how you should do things and how you should be as far as a Green River Wolf is concerned. So, great examples for our community, great examples for the younger girls. Very proud of them and what they accomplished throughout their careers at Green River High School, and we’ll miss them a great deal.”
Several of the seniors on the team were among those who received extra honors for all-state or being named to all-conference teams. Counts was the only girls from Green River to receive 4A all-state honors. Counts and Macy were named to the all-conference team, Wilson was named to the second all-conference team and Heiser was an honorable mention. Carroll was happy these girls received extra recognition for their hard work, and is happy with how well the entire team did.
“As we finish the season, I’m very proud of the team and how hard they worked throughout the season,” Carroll said.
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