The Torrington High School Lady Blazers rebounded from a setback at the 3A State Tournament to secure the consolation trophy, defeating both Lyman and Wheatland.
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CASPER – The Torrington High School Lady Blazers fought their way back from a loss to Mountain View, 46-31, in the quarterfinals at the 3A State Tournament in Casper to snag the consolation trophy.
Digging deep, the Lady Blazers returned to the court early on Friday morning following the Mountain View game to overwhelm the Lyman Lady Eagles, 50-33.
Advancing to the consolation finals on Saturday, Torrington defeated Wheatland in a decisive game, 35-30.
“I was extremely proud of the way our team battled through some adversity and finished the weekend strong at state,” coach Chris Strampe said. “Winning our final game against our rivals and finishing fifth was a great culmination to our season and speaks volumes to the hard work and dedication the girls put into this program.”
Torrington’s relatively young team of sophomores and juniors return next year as juniors and seniors possessing significant varsity experience. The Lady Blazers finished the 2023-2024 season tallying four conference victories and 12 overall wins.
“We don’t have any seniors on the team, which means we get to bring back the same squad next year and pick up right where we left off,” Strampe added. “I look forward to big things from the Lady Blazers in 2024-2025.”
Mountain View
The Mountain View Lady Buffalos hit the court running in the first quarter, netting 13 points while holding Torrington to two.
Rallying in the second quarter, Torrington outscored Mountain View, 7-5. Sophomore Kennedy Reinhardt drained an outside shot and junior Olive Osmera scored on a fastbreak.
Torrington posted eight points in a physical third quarter to Mountain View’s 10. The Lady Buffalos widened their lead in the fourth quarter, tallying 18 points while holding Torrington to 14.
Stokes led the Lady Blazers both in both scoring, with 10 points, and on the boards with nine rebounds. Junior Jaycee Hurley netted seven points with fellow junior Madix McIntosh contributing five.
“We started off the tournament against a big, tall, experienced Mountain View team,” Strampe said. “They were able to pack into a zone all game long, which made it difficult for us to get quality shots early in the game. Despite getting ourselves into a big hole heading into halftime, we fought back and got it to a two-possession game in the fourth quarter.”
Lyman
The first quarter between Torrington and Lyman found the Lady Eagles up by a single possession, 8-6. Turning the tables in the second quarter, the Lady Blazers topped Lyman in scoring, 12-8, to establish an 18-16 lead at halftime.
Torrington left it all on the court in the third quarter, netting 19 points while holding Lyman to six. The Lady Blazers outscored Lyman, 13-11, in the fourth quarter.
Stokes went double-double against Lyman with 12 points and 10 assists. Hurley tossed in nine points and delivered three assists. Osmera drained three outside shots against Lyman.
“It is always tough to get motivated after dropping the first game at state, but the girls responded well and dominated a Lyman team that we have had trouble beating in the past,” Strampe said. “Our defensive pressure was excellent after halftime, which led to us breaking open the game and cruising to a comfortable win.”
Wheatland
A fast and furious Lady Blazer offense tallied 10 points in the first quarter against Wheatland while a gritty Torrington defense held the Lady Bulldogs to four points.
Torrington maintained its momentum into the second quarter, outscoring Wheatland, 12-4, to post a considerable 22-8 advantage as the teams headed for the locker room.
Wheatland attempted to close the gap in a point-for-point second half, with the Lady Blazers prevailing by two possessions.
“It’s extremely difficult to beat a quality team like Wheatland three times in a season, let alone four, so I knew we would have our hands full,” Strampe said. “We were able to get aggressive early in the game, but got a little timid closing out the third and fourth quarters. We were able to make good enough shots and take care of the ball well enough to close out the game with a five-point win.”
Stokes netted 12 points and pulled down seven rebounds, “really stepping up her game in the posteason,” Strampe noted.
“Olive Osmera made some quality shots and demonstrated some extreme toughness after taking a hard foul, finishing with nine points, six rebounds and three steals,” Strampe added. “Kennedy Reinhardt made timely shots as well, racking up seven points, four rebounds and two assists.”
