WOODWARD — The happiest people in the Woodward-Granger school district this weekend are likely the varsity basketball players from both Hawk teams.
W-G played boys/girls sets Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and will, no doubt, be enjoying a chance to rest tired legs before having to return to action Tuesday with a visit from AC/GC. The Hawk girls will then host Grand View Christian in a junior varsity/varsity set Friday while the Hawk boys JV/varsity plays in the W-G middle school gym Friday against host Woodward Academy.
Van Meter had come to Woodward Thursday and handed both W-G teams a pair of rare home losses, but on Friday the second consecutive visit from Bulldog teams — this time from Ogden — went decidedly in favor of the hosts.
W-G (13-3, 9-2) rallied from a two-point halftime deficit to pull away in the third quarter en route to defeating Ogden (3-12, 2-9) in the girls game, with the boys outing not decided for certain until the fourth quarter, when the Hawks (13-2, 9-2) surged for a 52-34 win over the Bulldogs (6-9, 4-8).
The Hawk girls faced an early 11-6 hole, and trailed, 13-12, after one quarter. The hosts opened an 18-14 lead, but the Bulldogs rallied to take a 22-20 lead into the intermission.
A suffocating man-to-man defense began to take its toll on the visitors in the third quarter, with repeated turnovers and well-defended shots resulting in a 17-5 scoring bulge that put W-G in front, 37-27, with eight minutes to play. The hosts were not seriously threatened down the stretch in collecting their 13th win of the season, the first time in several years the team has reached as many victories in a campaign.
Freshman Finley Fitzgerald had a strong game, pouring in 17 points to lead the hosts. Darby Nixon had 10 points and joined Fitzgerald in making two 3-pointers, with Mae Anderson adding seven points and Natalie Helbling and Emma Anderson six points apiece while Katelyn Scharlau and Quin Kaufman each scored two points. Mae Anderson also hit a 3-pointer for W-G.
Gabby Ross led Ogden with 10 points. Meredith Adreon had eight points, Denali Loecker and Reagan Church six each, Kaleigh Badker three points and Joelle Consier two. Badker and Adreon each had a single trey for Ogden.
The win completed a season sweep for W-G, who had best host Ogden, 45-34, Dec. 20. W-G was a 58-20 winner over Ogden in the Dec. 20 boys game but had to work harder for Friday’s win.
Ogden had played just once in the prior four days and were clearly the fresher team in the first half. W-G had a 12-11 lead after one period, but the teams entered the locker room tied at 20-all.
W-G began to force turnovers and finally began hitting shots they were missing in the first half, leading to a 30-23 advantage after three frames. The Hawks then began to turn turnovers into fast break points and ran away in the final eight minutes, outscoring the Bulldogs 22-11 over that span to create the final margin.
Senior guard Bryce Achenbach was honored before the game for surpassing the 1,000 career points plateau. He achieved the milestone in Thursday’s game against Van Meter, and was presented with a poster honoring his achievement prior to to Friday’s contest.
He went on to lead all scorers with 18 points, with Keith Braunschweig recording a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Alex Bice added 11 points, Kaya Bowlsby four and Pacey Moats, Reese Jamison and Nick Buch two each. Bice sank three 3-pointers and Braunschweig one.
Sam Christensen, Griffin Diggs, and Ethan Snedden had nine points apiece to pace Ogden. Five points from Kaleb Badker and two from Kolby Moorman capped the Bulldog scoring. Diggs led the guests with seven rebounds and five steals.
