Panthers sneak past Wolverines before the New Year

Your Wakeland Wolverines lost a close game this past Saturday afternoon to the Paschal Panthers 39-37 in a Holiday game that featured two teams that looked like they hadn't played in a week because of the Winter Break. The Wolverines struggled from the tip as they lacked control of the game during all four quarters of play. A cold draft definitely affected the shooting performance of both teams, but the Panthers out rebounded the Wolverines by double digits, which ultimately gave them more opportunies in the end for the close victory. Junior Varsity Coach Blake Reedy mentioned, "I've been coaching for 13 years now, and I can't begin to tell you how many games I've seen played like the one we did today during the Holidays!" Sam Schwietz led the Wolverines with 7 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals while Cameron Walker added 13 points. The loss brings Wakeland's overall record to 16-2, along with a 2-0 District 9-4A record. The Wolverines will look to re-focus with a weeks worth of practices as they look to continue their march through district play. The Wolverines will host the Cougars of The Colony in a very important first round match up. JV starts at 5pm, 9th at 6:30pm, and the Varsity will tip-off at 8pm. Go Orange and Blue!

Wolverines take down Titans for second District win

Your Wakeland Wolverines got their second District win in a row with a thrilling victory this past Friday night over the Titans of Centennial by a score of 52-45. The Titans showed no mercy on the Wolverines as they jumped out to 18-10 lead by the end of the first quarter. It didn't get any better for Wakeland as the Titans extended their lead to double digits by half. However, even though the Wolverines were struggling against Centennial's matchup zone, Zol Singleton hit a couple of "3's" that helped spark the Wakeland offense in the 3rd quarter. Wakeland's defensive pressure took over in the fourth, which helped the Wolverines pull away in the end. Head Coach Brent Benningfield stated after the game, "its a huge win for us on the road because nothing is guaranteed in this District..., looks like Santa brought us an early Christmas gift!" Cameron Walker led the Wolverines with 17 points and 13 rebounds, which is his sixth double-double of the season. Zol Singleton had 15 points, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. Sean Watkins handed out 5 assists while Noah Westerfield grabbed 9 boards. The wins puts Wakeland's overall record at 16-1 with a 2-0 start in District play. The Wolverines will be off the next few days for the Holiday break and then will be back in action on Saturday, Dec. 29th at Forth Worth Paschal. Varsity will tip-off at 12:30pm. Go orange and blue!

Don Sparks Photography (Varsity)

Wolverines soar past Eagles in District Opener

Your Wakeland Wolverines got back to their winning ways this past Tuesday night by defeating the Prosper Eagles by a score of 76-70 in the District 9-4A opener. However, it was a very rough start for Wakeland as they found themselves down 14-2 in the opening minutes of the first quarter. The Wolverines were able to close the gap by the end of the second and somehow found themselves up by two at the half. Landon Brack went crazy in the second quarter with four steals in a row that helped spark Wakeland offensively. Although, the Wolverines once again were down by the end of the third as Prosper continously dropped in three pointers into their nest. As the fourth quarter came to a close, Wakeland's full court defensive pressure and the shooting of Zol Singleton and Josh Harris proved too much for the Eagles. Freshmen Coach Joe Lewis shouted at the final buzzer, "this game had just as much madness as Montana Mondays!" The win brings Wakeland's overall record to 15-1 along with a 1-0 record in District play. The Wolverines will be back in action Friday night as they will look to take down the Titans of Centennial on their own home floor. Tip-off is at 8pm, so come out and support your orange and blue!

Don Sparks Photography (Varsity)

Wolverines streak ends at 14, lose to Boyd in OT

Your Wakeland Wolverines streak finally came to an end this past Friday night at the hands of the McKinney Boyd Broncos. The Wolverines tried to hold on for dear life in the last few quarters of play, but eventually were bucked off before the buzzer sounded in OT. Wakeland fell short 55 to 50. Even though the Wolverines found themselves up by 8 going into the final quarter of play, turnovers, and the inability to hit free-throws down the stretch led to their demise. Junior Varsity Coach Blake Reedy commented, "it felt we were just off all night, physically, and mentally; however, we are fortunate that our off night was tonight, and not the first game of District against Prosper on Tuesday, that's when we start playing for keeps!" Even though the "streak" is over, the bar has been set pretty high for Wolverine teams to follow. Noah Westerfield led the Wolverines with 10 points and 8 rebounds, while his counterpart in the lost post, Cameron Walker added 9 points and 8 boards. Josh Harris added 12 points while Sean Watkins grabbed 6 rebounds. The Wolverines will be back in action this Tuesday night at Prosper High School for the first game of District play. So come and support your orange and blue as they will look to start a new streak in hopes of clinching a District Title. JV starts at 5, 9th at 6:30, and Varsity will tip-off at 8pm. Go Wakeland!   

#22 ranked Wolverines take down #12 Denton Guyer

Your Wakeland Wolverines have finally cracked the Top 25 in the TABC poll this past Monday at the #22 spot. They took their newly earned ranking and put it up against the #12 ranked Wildcats of Denton Guyer at home on Tuesday night. The Wolverines were able to take care of business and defeat the Wildcats 56 to 42 and continue their 14-game winning streak. The Wildcats came out hot in the first half by hitting 6 of their 8 "3's" in just the first two quarters of play. However, the Wolverines still found themselves up by two at the half because of a 20 point second quarter. It was stingy defense and sturdy offensive execution in the second half that allowed Wakeland to pull away and secure a double-digit victory. Head Coach Brent Benningfield commented to the DMN about the elite match-up, "I wasn't sure what to expect, we were missing some players, they were missing some players, I'm just glad we continue to hurdle obstacles along the way!" Josh Harris led the Wolverines with 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals while Noah Westerfield was active with 9 points, 8 boards, and 3 assists. Cameron Walker added 10 points and 7 rebounds, while point guard Sean Watkins hit 3 "3's" for 11 points. The win brings Wakeland's overall record to 14-0. The Wolverines will take their show on the road and try to buck off the Broncos of McKinney Boyd one more time before they get into district play next week. Wakeland previously beat Boyd 57-48 in the semi-finals of the Grapevine Tournament just a few weeks ago. Go Wolverines!

Don Sparks Photography (Varsity)
Don Sparks Photography (JV)
Don Sparks Photography (9th)

Wakeland wins Forney Tournament

Game #1
Wakeland 50, Waco High 48
Overall Record: 11-0
Winning Streak: 11

Once again, your Wakeland Wolverines survived the Lions den as they defeated the Lions of Waco High, not McKinney, by a score of 50-48. It was a game that neither team wanted to take possession of throughout its entirety, it was back and forth all night. Even though the Wolverines found themselves up by ten points at half, that was erased with just a few minutes to go in the game. The Lions were up by two with only a minute to play until Zol Singleton laid one in from a Landon Brack to tie the game. After a Waco High miscue, Noah Westerfield became the hero once again as he caught a floors length pass from Zol Singleton to lay it in for the win. Head Coach Brent Benningfield stated to the Forney Gazette, "there was a lack of energy and it resembled the game we played against Northwest in the opening round last week at Grapevine..., we were very fortunate to win!" Sophomore Sam Schwietz led the Wolverines with 12 points and 8 rebounds while Cameron Walker added 12 and 6. Noah Westerfield also put in 12 along with grabbing 5 boards. The win brings Wakeland's overall record to 11-0, as they will look to tie the school record with 12 wins in a row against the Jackrabbits of Forney in the semifinals of their own tournament.
Go Wolverines!

Game #2
Wakeland 90, Forney 49
Overall Record: 12-0
Winning Streak: 12 *Ties school recorded previously set in '10-'11

Finally, the Wolverines felt secure that they had a victory well before the final sound of the buzzer. Wakeland ended any hopes that Forney had of playing in their own Championship game by jumping out on the Jackrabbits in the first quarter by a score of 21 to 8. The Wolverines did not look back as they saw their lead extend to as much as 40 by the closing seconds. Varsity Assistant Marty Tidwell remarked, "I was glad to see that we came out and took care of business early because if you let teams like that hang around, then you never know what might happen!" Cameron Walker led the Wolverines with his fifth double-double of the season with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Sam Schwietz added 14, and Jackson Lamb 10 along with both grabbing 7 boards. Sophmore Michael Sullivan came off the bench to dish out 7 assists along with cleaning the glass with 7 rebounds. Justin Nicholas added 10 points while Jordan Harris picked 5 pockets. The Wolverines shattered the school record in rebounds with 55. The win ties the school record with 12 wins in a row and Wakeland will look to break that against the Redhawks of Liberty in the Championship game of the Forney Tournament. Go orange and blue!

Game #3 (Championship)
Wakeland 63, Liberty 58 (OT)
Overall Record: 13-0
Winning Streak: 13 *Sets new school record
Tournament MVP: Noah Westerfield

Well, your Wakeland Wolverines were back to their old ways, winning and winning in dramatic fashion. It took another overtime period to ground the Liberty Redhawks by a score of 63-58. Just about everything that could go wrong in the first quarter went wrong, however a strong showing in the second found the Wolverines up by 7 somehow at half. Wakeland extended that lead to double digits by the end of the third, but that's when the Redhawks got red hot beyond the arc and tied the game with just a few seconds remaining in regulation. The Wolverines had been here before and calmly scored on their first two possessions and came up with a defensive stop when they needed it most. Freshmen Coach Joe Lewis jumped for joy and said "everything is more exciting when you're a Wolverine, and believe me I know, I'm from Montana!" Sean Watkins led the Wolverines with 21 points and 4 assists while Noah Westerfield added 16 points and 6 boards. Fellow Wolverines Josh Harris scored 12 and Cameron Walker had 10. Congratulations to Noah Westerfield for being named the tournament MVP. The win sets a new record for most wins in a row with 13. Wakeland will be back in action on Tuesday night against #15 ranked Denton Guyer on their own home floor, so come out and be proud to be a Wolverine!

2012 Forney Tournament Champions

Wolverines slay Dragons in OT thriller

Your Wakeland Wolverines survived another close one this past Tuesday night as they beat the Dragons of Southlake in their own lair by a score of 72-71 in OT. Wakeland jumped out on the Dragons in the first quarter by a score of 17 to 11, and saw that lead extend by double digits at the half. However, the Wolverines knew that Southlake would not go down without a fight, and that is exactly what they got. Wakeland saw their lead squander to a mere 8 points by the end of the third. In the last few minutes of regulation the Dragons rained 3 pointers of fire as they tied the game with a "3" with just 3 seconds remainig to send the contest into extra time. In overtime, with just seconds remaining and the Wolverines down one point, Noah Westerfield was fouled during a lay-up. He calmy sank both free throws putting Wakeland up one, and Southlake's last 3pt heave rimmed in and out, which gave the Wolverines their 10th win in a row. Junior Varsity Coach Blake Reedy commented to the Carroll Tribune-Herald, "it was fun to come back to Coach Tidwell's alma matter and take it to them!" Cameron Walker led the Wolverines with 14 points and 9 rebounds, just barely missing out on yet another double-double. Noah Westerfield was close behind Walker with 11 points and 7 boards while sophomore Sam Schwietz added 12 points. Sean Watkins and Jordan Harris both added 6 assists. This brings Wakeland's overall record to 10-0. They will put their winning streak on the line as they will travel to the Forney Tournament this Thursday and take on the Lions of Waco in the opening round. Go Wakeland!