Lady Tigers earn state berth

The Encampment Lady Tigers notched a couple of wins at the regional tournament in Lander, last week, earning them a spot at the state tournament in Casper this week.

Dubois

The ladies tipped off their regional play against Dubois where they served up a 74-38 win. According to head coach Clint Bromley, the girls played an excellent team game.

“Played probably our best team game of the season with five girls in double figures and everyone contributing to the win,” the coach said.

Noelle Peterson led the scoring effort with 28 points. Peterson also recorded 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Paige Powell followed in scoring with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists to register a triple-double. Kenzie Powell scored 11 points with three assists. Hailey Barkhurst had 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Micaiah Pantle rounded the scoring with 10 points and three steals.

On the team's scoring effort, Bromley said, “We shot 16 of 18 from the line and that was something that we have been trying to improve on all season.”

Farson

Coming off the win against Dubois, the Lady Tigers came up against a solid team from Farson, on Friday, Feb. 24. The Lady Tigers dropped the game, 39-45.

Bromley knew going into the game they would be in for a fight.

“Farson is a great team and we would have to play our best basketball to win,” Bromley said.

Bromley said the scoring they had in the game against Dubois just wasn’t there against Farson.

“We played a little tighter and shots didn’t fall as well as in the first game (Dubois),” Bromley said.

Peterson was once again the top scorer with 12 and eight rebounds, Paige Powell also scored in double-digits with 11. She had 12 rebounds to notch the double-double.

Bromley said the game was, “A very exciting game that could have gone either way that was decided in the last few minutes.”

Cokeville

Knowing they chances at making the state tournament were on the line, the Encampment Lady Tigers came back to regional play Saturday morning to face Cokeville. The Lady Tigers have played Cokeville twice this season, both times walking away with a win. But, this is regionals and everyone is playing to go to state.

Bromley said they got out to a 14-point lead but saw it drift away in the fourth.

“Because of some poor decisions in the 4th quarter and good play on Cokeville’s part, we let them back into the game,” Bromley said.

The game came down to the final seconds with everyone on the Encampment bench holding their collective breath.

“They had the last shot and we are very fortunate to get the win and the opportunity to advance to the State Tournament,” the coach said.

Encampment notched the close 53-52 win.

It was Paige Powell leading the scoring effort with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. She was followed by Peterson who tallied a double-double with 17 points, 13 rebounds. Hailey Barkhurst added 12 points and seven rebounds to the effort.

St. Stephens

The win against Cokeville meant the girls would be playing again on Saturday this time against St. Stephens. This being their fourth game of the tournament, fatigue was starting to set in as they lost their last game of regional play, 59-70.

“We were playing tired with it being our 4th game in three days and a very small bench,” Bromley said.  

Bromley said this wasn’t a situation where they had to win or they were done though. Instead, this game was for seeding at the state tournament.

“We weren’t able to match their intensity on the boards and that cost us the game. Plus, we turned the ball over too much and were only able to get 59 shots to their 91. That usually doesn’t end well.” Bromley said.

Peterson led in scoring with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Barkhurst followed with 14 points. Macaiah Pantle totaled 11 points and 5 rebounds.

The Lady Tigers will get a couple days of rest before hitting the road for the State tournament in Casper. Their first game will be against Lingle-Fort Laramie on March 2. The last time the ladies played Lingle-Fort Laramie was on Dec. 17. They lost that encounter 50-40.