WAUSA — The Wausa girls basketball team fell to 1-6 for the 2023-24 season with three tough losses during the past week.
The Lady Vikings lost 74-31 at home to the Niobrara/Verdigre Lady Cougars (5-3) on Dec. 18, 61-28 on the road to the Wynot Lady Blue Devils (5-0) on Dec. 15 and 61-35 in Wausa to the Gayville-Volin (S.D.) Lady Raiders (2-1) on Dec. 12.
Sophomore Taylor Dawson (13 points), senior Sienna West (11 points, four rebounds) and junior Olivia Barta (nine points, four rebounds) led Wausa against Gayville-Volin, which led 33-18 at the intermission.
“Gayville is a tough team to prepare for: They start a week later than us and we were their second game,” Wausa head coach Shane Anderson said. “They typically have some new faces on their roster every year and have a few really nice young players back from last year. We knew it would be a tough test and they ended up shooting the ball really well and we continued our shooting slump we’ve been in.
“Our offensive funk has kind of been twofold: We have been struggling with some turnovers, but then we go through a stretch where we are getting some really good shots, just not converting. I know the girls are super frustrated because many of these shots are inside the paint. We are not tall, so they are tough, contested shots, but we just have to find a way to get them to go in or get fouled.”
Wynot led 29-13 at halftime and crept away as Dawson (15 points, five rebounds) and Barta (five points, nine assists) highlighted the Lady Vikings’ efforts.
“This was a game that the score wasn’t indicative of three-quarters of the game,” Anderson said. “Wynot is a powerhouse with seven seniors on their roster. They are a very good team, but I thought our girls really went out and competed and executed very well. Wynot is a very aggressive, full-court press team, and we had our best game in regards to turnovers, and again found a lot of shots, just couldn’t get them to fall. In the first half, we played them even statistically except for offensive rebounds, which led them to having 10 more shots than us at half.
“We were a little shorthanded as we were without Hadley Vanness because of illness and Wynot did a great job of trying to take Sienna away. With all that, though, our defense was solid most of the night. We battled all game long and were down by 11 with 5:40 left in the fourth quarter.”
Anderson was pleased with the efforts, though Wausa succumbed to a late barrage of outside successes by Wynot.
“Taylor did all she could do to keep us in the game and really gave a gritty performance,” Anderson said. “I was really happy with some of our young girls. Freshmen Reagan Gillilan and Elle Brazel gave us some really solid minutes and continue to improve every night.”
Wausa junior Mackenzie Vanness said the week was full of challenges as both teams had a reputation for being able to lock in defensively.
“We were up against two really tough teams and their programs are definitely built defensively, and we had a little bit of trouble getting around them,” Vanness said. “I still think we performed a little better than we thought we were going to. “You have to stay strong against those really tough defenses and keep pushing against them and not getting tired or letting down.” Vanness said the Lady Vikings still find a way to stay the course despite the recent run of negative results. The other key will be to reward good defensive stands by closing possessions out with defensive rebounds. “It’s really hard when they do get those offensive rebounds,” Vanness said. “If you are pinned, it is hard to get around, but that doesn’t mean we can’t fight for more of those defensive rebounds.”
The Lady Vikings are scheduled to return to action at 2 p.m. Dec. 29, when they will take on the rival Bloomfield Queen Bees in the 2023 Creighton Holiday Tournament.
“Taylor and Sienna have done a bulk of our scoring and it will probably have to be that way this season,” Anderson said. “I feel like they have given All-Conference-caliber performances this season. Mackenzie Vanness is our glue and the player that keeps us organized, especially on defense. Those three girls, I would say, have been the most vital pieces so far just based on performance and leadership.”
