Lehi Sports
Willowcreek girls cap undefeated season with district trophy
The Willowcreek girls freshman basketball team wrapped up a perfect season Thursday (Feb. 15) by winning the Alpine School District 6A championship with a 54-16 win over American Fork Junior High at Skyridge High School.
The Wolverines jumped out quickly and built an 11-1 lead by the end of the first quarter with a balanced scoring approach. The Cavemen did a better job of matching the effort in the second period, so the margin was only one bucket greater at the half at 20-7.
Willowcreek took control of the game for good in the third quarter as they netted 23 points to just five for American Fork and they went on to the overwhelming victory from there.
Nine players found the target during the contest, led by RemyMcAdams and Ellie Wright with 10 points apiece. Remy added three rebounds, two assists, six steals and a block, while Wright tallied nine boards and made three blocks as well.
Avie McAdams and Eva Christensen added eight points each.Avie hit two triples and also had three rebounds, three assists and four steals. Christensen collected six boards and four steals.
Other team members include Breckyn Hollindrake, Sophie Scoresby, Avri Johnson, Capri Spencer, Piper Emery, Lindsey Tedrow, Brynlee McAllister, Lindyn Allen and Claire Crutchfield and all made contributions in the game. The coaches are Dave Carlson, Andy Dutton and Travis Sorenson.
“Our focus all season has been on the defensive side of the ball,” said Carlson. “Going into the championship game that didn’t change.
“We wanted to focus on our defensive fundamentals which were, communicate by calling out screens and switch, be aggressive, have energy and don’t allow any fast-break points,” he continued. “We felt if we were successful on the defensive end the offense would take care of itself.
“As coaches, we felt the girls went out and executed exactly what we talked about,” Carlson said. “As a result, we only gave up one point in the first quarter against a very good AF Juniorteam. And, our defense led to many opportunities on the offensive end.
“We got some easy looks at the basket to begin the game and I think because of nerves the shots didn’t fall,” the coach went on. “We have always been a great third quarter team and our third quarter was phenomenal. The nerves were gone and we settled in offensively.
“At the beginning of the season, our girls set a goal to try and get back to the championship game,” Carlson said. “They worked every day in practice to reach that goal. Before the game we told them this is what you worked so hard for, now don’t stop here. Go get this game.
“Every player responded and played a magnificent game,” he said. “AF Junior is very well coached and deserves a lot of credit for having an outstanding season.”
The Wolverines finished with a 20-0 record and were not seriously challenged in any game they played this season.
“This group has worked so hard to get better every practice and every game,” Carlson said. “That has been our motto every time we show up in the gym. As a result, we were playing our best basketball of the season going into the tournament.
“We calculated we had about 40 early morning practices this year at 6 a.m. with rarely an absent player,” he said. “That says something about their work ethic and their commitment to each other and the team.
“These girls required very little coaching on our part. We just kept them organized and pointed in the right direction and just watched them go play,” Carlson added. “As we told the girls, after winning the championship, it has been an honor and a joy to coach them and watch them play so unselfishly and as a team.”
