WS Chronicle

Photo by Timothy Ramsey

BY TIMOTHY RAMSEY 

THE CHRONICLE

The seventh grade Wiley Wolverines came into the Meadowlark middle gym and defeated the Mustangs in a game that went down to the final minutes.  In a game full of runs, the Wolverines made enough plays down the stretch to squeak out a 41-36 win.

To open up the first quarter of play, Meadowlark seemed to have the upper hand as they quickly jumped out to a 10-2 lead behind two quick three point bombs from Trip Brown.  Even though Wiley was off the mark to begin the game, they made a late run in final minutes of the quarter to close the deficit to 5 at 15-10.

The second quarter, low-scoring and turnover filled, was a forgettable one for both sides.  Meadowlark did not score its first basket until there were less than two minutes left on the clock.  Wiley did not fair much better even though they were able to take the lead because of their commitment to defense.  Going into the half Wiley held a slim 22-17 lead.

Wolverine head coach, Thomas Dempsey, said he told his team that they were just as good as their opponents.  He says once they switched up defenses late in the first half the game started going their way.

“We were in the 2-3 and we switched up to man and tried to play hard deny,” said Wiley assistant coach, Alex Bell.  “What we usually try to do starting the game is press them but they were beating us and hitting three’s.  I told them they had to talk and play with intensity or I was going to pull them out.”

Early in the second half, Wiley was able to open up an 8 point lead and looked to put the game out of reach.  Meadowlark thought otherwise.  Late in the fourth quarter the Mustangs tied the game up at 32. With the outcome of the game up in the air the Wolverines buckled down and closed out the game on the defensive end and hitting free throws to seal the win.

“I thought we played incredible and I can’t begin to explain how much pride they showed today,” Dempsey said.  “They worked and played as a team.  Everyone, including the players on our bench that couldn’t dress out showed great support for the guys on the floor.”

Patrick Blume, Meadowlark head coach, says he felt as though his team played very well.  He said they showed a lot of heart and never gave up.

“We did our best and we tried hard,” Blume said.  “I think our guys pushed the ball a lot but we just came up against a good team today.  The combination of intensity and pressure man to man defense just caught us off guard.  I told my guys to just stay engaged and match their intensity, just wanted them to play with heart.”

Blume said his team can learn a lot from a game if this magnitude. He says they just need to continue to fight and never give up which will give them a chance in most games.

Dempsey said a win against a quality team such as Meadowlark will bode well for his squad going forward.  He says his guys love the game and he loves to coach a quality team like he has at his disposal.