GHS girls swish two wins at Herder Classic

Coach Fenster pleased with early efforts, says there is plenty of work to be done

By RJ Morgan

Glenrock High School girls basketball coach Peter Fenster embraced the unknown last weekend when his team hit the court for the first time. With just one senior back and most of his points graduated from last season, there was plenty to learn at the Herder Classic Dec.8-9.

It was a lesson indeed for all and the Herders passed the early test. They were aggressive, pushed the ball in transition, played good defense and won two of their four games.

For the first action of the season, Fenster saw the kind of potential that could have the team playing at state next March. The road is long to get there but the girls took the first step in the reloading season.

“We did a great job of pushing the pace and making good decisions when on the break,” the coach praised. “I would like to go a little bit faster but it was a great start to the year.”

The tournament could not had started any better for Glenrock. They were impressive at both ends of the court en route to thumping St. Stephens 54-20.

Led by guards Gracie Sixbey and Megann Farley, the team unleashed a transition game that the Eagles couldn’t show down. The Herders also got some early buckets by Sheridan Sarvey to take a double-digit lead after just one period and never trailed.

The opening win was also sparked by stingy defense. Caitilyn Williams, Kyrie Tiensvold, Zhane Johnson, Kiley Smith, Sixbey, Farley and Sarvey did a lot of damage in setting the tone by smothering St. Stephens shooters.

“Our defense was good for the beginning of the year but the girls know we can do better and we will,” Fenster said. “This is going to be an exciting bunch to watch. Gracie Sixbey and Kiley Smith played very well on defense this week. They where the top contributors to our tough stats which includes rebounding, deflections and steals.”

Along with working on new roles and schemes during the first four games, Glenrock also had to adjust to a new rule. The 1-and-1 freethrow has been eliminated and now it’s a double bonus only after five fouls, which resets every period.

“The new rule is going to take some time to get use to. It definitely makes the end of the game different and it also makes close games last longer but it was also nice not having any confusion on being in the bonus or not,” the coach said.

After the opening win, things got a little tougher the next three games. The Herders followed with a 65-28 loss to third-ranked Wyoming Indian before bearing Greybull 57-41 and nipped by Rocky Mountain 49-44.

One area that Glenrock struggle in, including at times during the victories, was consistency under the basket.

“Our rebounding wasn’t good this weekend. We will be focusing on that. Rebounding is a core thing for us this year and we need to do a better job next week and the rest of the season,” Fenster said.

There was plenty of positives after one weekend. The Herders in all four games didn’t hesitate pushing the tempo and using their quickness as an advantage as well as splitting press defenses on many occasions.

“The biggest thing I was surprised by was our pace and pressure on defense,” Fenster said.

Glenrock will travel to Thermopolis Dec. 15 for a nonconformance contest.

Tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m.