With the fighting Wolverine spirit, the Lady Wolverines took on the Lady Kangaroos in Kress last Friday for their district opening game.  

“Going into this game was definitely a little more nerve-wracking than those before because it was the first district game of the season,” junior Bella Gonzales said.  

The game opened up with the Lady Wolverines receiving the tip and a Lady Wolverine score. 

“The whole first half of the game the girls did really well,” senior and manager Jenna Bridges said. “We had a 10-point lead for most of the game and were even up by 15 at one point.” 

The Lady Wolverines held that extensive lead until the beginning of the fourth quarter, where they started to slip. The Kangaroos got ahead of their opponents with 50 seconds left in the game. 

“On offense, we were doing really good at moving the ball around and getting the defense confused, so we could attack the basket,” junior Emma Samaron said. “Defensively, we were covering out to where they couldn’t pass to each other and would turnover.” 

The Lady Kangaroos had 25 turnovers throughout the entire game and the Lady Wolverines did an excellent job of pressuring errors out of the other team.  

“At the start of the game, our defense was extremely strong and the girls were doing a great job of working together to score,” Gonzales said. 

When the teams came back onto the court after halftime, Kress was ready to play. 

“Kress had a comeback because, in the second half, there were a few mistakes that the girls need to clean up, but the Lady Wolverines kept pushing and playing hard till the end,” spectator Joshua Samaron said.  

Springlake-Earth, however, took their lead for granted and had their heads in the wrong place. 

“We were up by ten at halftime, but I think we lost our focus in the game because we knew we were winning, so Kress took off,” E. Samaron said. 

Kress caught up to S.E. in the fourth quarter and took the lead. Junior Taytum Goodman scored a three to make a one-point game.

“Halee and Taytum definitely stood out in this game,” E. Samaron said. “They were putting 3-pointers in every time they had the chance and did great on defense.” 

Senior Halee Toscano scored 3 points; Juniors Taytum Goodman and Emma Samaron had 17 and 4 respectively; Juniors Sydney Furr and Jasmine Garcia, and Sophomore Aryca Ibarra each acquired 2 points for the team.  

“We could have improved on blocking out and getting the rebounds,” Gonzales said. 

Overall, the game was very intense, but the girls’ loss in focus resulted in a Lady Wolverine loss with a score of 33-34.  

“I was upset that we didn’t win knowing I could’ve done better on defense and offense,” E. Samaron said.  “However, this loss has made me more determined and so much more excited for the next time we play them.” 

Come out and show support for the fighting Lady Wolverines during the rest of their district season.

“Both teams played very well, and it was a very good game,” E. Samaron said. “Next time we will be more hungry and ready to take a win.”