Bulldogs Fly High With 2 Boys Wins - Girls Come Up Short
It's December 6, 2024 and the Wartburg Bulldogs drove the curvy roads to neighboring Oakdale for a night of basketball. For all of the Bulldog and Eagle faithful, the elephant in the room is Coach Nelson returning to his old stomping grounds for the first time since trading in his Oakdale red for Wartburg blue in the offseason. But the Bulldogs started off hot with a boys JV win 54-36 with many new faces getting some much-needed minutes. The Lady Bulldogs were up next. The Lady Eagles had powerful play and rebounding in the post, and the Bulldogs didn't have an answer for it. Although it was only a 1-point game at the half, the Lady Eagles took a much more commanding lead in the 2nd half, finishing with a 61-44 win over the Ladies of Wartburg. The night ended with the Varsity Boys taking the floor and Coach Nelson stepping to the familiar position of Head Coach in the Oakdale gym. The boys were hot out of the gate, and were on pace for a 100 point effort after 1 quarter... While they would cool down some, they had solid efforts across the board, and several JV players were able to garner their first Varsity minutes in the end -end result: Bulldogs on top 79-51.
Junior Varsity Powers to a Win Behind Bunch and Wentzel
Without really knowing what kind of team the Oakdale JV was, you go in looking for clues. To start out the game - Oakdale struck first with a three pointer - which foreshadowed their biggest strength as they hit several during the JV contest. However, after the first three pointer - "Rampage" Reid Quinney came down the floor for his own three pointer - and then tacked on additional 2-point basket. "No Nonsense" Noah Ward also kicked in 5 in the contest with a nice three pointer and 2/2 shooting from the free throw line. But the biggest story in this one is about the big boys down low.
Daniel Bunch does a lot of things well. He has a zoned-in demeanor and has an insatiable desire to perform well. Tonight, Bunch was the high scorer in the JV game with 12 points - with nine of his twelve coming from three-pointers! Without advanced stats to lean on - I'll just say that he had a LOT of blocks and rebounds as well... Or should I say he had a BUNCH of blocks and rebounds... Either way -those long arms are hard to get a shot past! Great work Mr. Bunch!
Daniel Bunch does a lot of things well. He has a zoned-in demeanor and has an insatiable desire to perform well. Tonight, Bunch was the high scorer in the JV game with 12 points - with nine of his twelve coming from three-pointers! Without advanced stats to lean on - I'll just say that he had a LOT of blocks and rebounds as well... Or should I say he had a BUNCH of blocks and rebounds... Either way -those long arms are hard to get a shot past! Great work Mr. Bunch!
Another player that played exceptionally well in the JV game was Jackson "Wolfie" Wentzel. If you've ever heard a basketball player yell, "WOLF!" in a game - it's the international sign that someone is sneaking up behind you to steal the ball. Tonight Wentzel Wolfed-Out and scored 8 points and grabbed a number of steals and rebounds. He's raw as a semi-new basketball player - but there is a beast in the post in the making!
In the 2nd half of the Junior Varsity game - several new faces were able to grab some minutes. We've seen Levi "Wombat" Wilks grab some minutes in the post - and he was able to continue that trend tonight. A player that we've not seen much of - yet - has been Logan Justice. Not long after entering the game - Justice threw up a three-pointer - and he looked like he was made for this. When I think Logan - I think of the Wolverine... who is in the X-Men... so our Logan is gonna be "The Ax Man"... Keep Choppin' Wood Big Dog!
Lady Bulldogs Come up Short
The Oakdale Lady Eagles showed up ready to play tonight. They had some big, powerful girls in the paint, and we had a hard time rebounding and getting the second-chance shots. Myrah "All Good" Hood continues to impress with hot shooting - leading the night with 17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal. "Speedy" Ann Williams played a phenomenal game (as usual) with 8 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. What doesn't show up on the stat sheet for Williams is her solid, steady presence. The offense clearly runs through her. She has a hot hand when she shoots - but she also knows when to dish it to a teammate. Kayla "Splints" Ledford always makes Coach Kyle and his advanced stats use up a lot of ink. She fills up the space next to her name - and tonight that was with 11 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals after a very solid performance!
Tonight's Freshman spotlight goes to Jordyn "tHE jOKER" Pemberton. With only a handful of JV games for the ladies, the younger players have to stay ready with their head on a swivel for any opportunity for minutes. Pemberton entered the game in a reserve role, and served admirably, scoring her first varsity points of the season - and chipping in with a savvy assist as well. Jordyn will wear the nickname of "tHE jOKER" - because when she's not all business on the court - she is a walking prankster - so WATCH... YOUR... BACK!
Tonight's Freshman spotlight goes to Jordyn "tHE jOKER" Pemberton. With only a handful of JV games for the ladies, the younger players have to stay ready with their head on a swivel for any opportunity for minutes. Pemberton entered the game in a reserve role, and served admirably, scoring her first varsity points of the season - and chipping in with a savvy assist as well. Jordyn will wear the nickname of "tHE jOKER" - because when she's not all business on the court - she is a walking prankster - so WATCH... YOUR... BACK!
Varsity Boys Win Big! Lots of Contributors!
The boys were in rare form tonight - coming together as a team even to sing the National Anthem before the girls game. Wait... what??? Yes - for whatever reason, the National Anthem wasn't played prior to the girls game - so the boys stood in the bleachers, faced the flag, and sang the National Anthem while the girls game commenced. It was a little strange - but kinda beautiful. But out of the bleachers and into the game 1 hour later - and the boys were still working together like a well-oiled machine!
Tonight's leading scorers were Evan "Clutch" Crouch and Johnny "Green Bean" Bingham. They each had 12 points - and there were 6 three-pointers between the two of them. That tells you how the game went. Crouch is the steady Point Guard presence that every team needs. That doesn't always turn into scoring opportunities - and in 4 games this season, Crouch has scored 4 or less. But in the two where he opened it up and shot - he has scored 17 and tonight's 12. Crouch's hot-scoring was a welcome help tonight to get the Bulldogs out to a big lead. Bingham also looked more comfortable in tonight's game - settling into his role with smooth outside shooting, 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals.
Ian Robinson showed off his skillset tonight with a 10-point effort, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals in 3 quarters of play. Landon Quinney also played well with a 7-point effort, to go with 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals.
The Freshman Spotlight tonight is a double-whammy. The first non-Parker Rogers freshman off the bench tonight was Reid Quinney. He has shown growth and maturity this season - staying composed and playing with a level head. Quinney's 2 points are the 2nd time he's scored varsity points this season - a nice feather in his cap on such a deep roster - and Quinney also chipped in for 2 steals and 1 rebound (all in the 4th quarter). The 2nd freshman that deserves a shout out is Noah Ward. Ward came into the game during the 4th quarter and proceeded to score his first varsity points of his high school career, knocking down 5 points to go with 2 rebounds. Keep grinding, hustling, and working hard boys!
Tonight's leading scorers were Evan "Clutch" Crouch and Johnny "Green Bean" Bingham. They each had 12 points - and there were 6 three-pointers between the two of them. That tells you how the game went. Crouch is the steady Point Guard presence that every team needs. That doesn't always turn into scoring opportunities - and in 4 games this season, Crouch has scored 4 or less. But in the two where he opened it up and shot - he has scored 17 and tonight's 12. Crouch's hot-scoring was a welcome help tonight to get the Bulldogs out to a big lead. Bingham also looked more comfortable in tonight's game - settling into his role with smooth outside shooting, 12 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals.
Ian Robinson showed off his skillset tonight with a 10-point effort, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals in 3 quarters of play. Landon Quinney also played well with a 7-point effort, to go with 5 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals.
The Freshman Spotlight tonight is a double-whammy. The first non-Parker Rogers freshman off the bench tonight was Reid Quinney. He has shown growth and maturity this season - staying composed and playing with a level head. Quinney's 2 points are the 2nd time he's scored varsity points this season - a nice feather in his cap on such a deep roster - and Quinney also chipped in for 2 steals and 1 rebound (all in the 4th quarter). The 2nd freshman that deserves a shout out is Noah Ward. Ward came into the game during the 4th quarter and proceeded to score his first varsity points of his high school career, knocking down 5 points to go with 2 rebounds. Keep grinding, hustling, and working hard boys!
POLL RESULTS: How do we say Quinney?
The results are in for how to pronounce Quinney... With 20 votes coming in... The people have spoken:
11 - Quinn-E (55%) [winner]
6 - Queen-E (30%)
2 - Keen-Wa (10%)
1 - Swinn-E (5%)
11 - Quinn-E (55%) [winner]
6 - Queen-E (30%)
2 - Keen-Wa (10%)
1 - Swinn-E (5%)
Sneaker Showcase
Both the boys and the girls teams have freedom in footwear choice this year. The boys' shoes had to be some combination of black and white... while the girls appear to be "anything goes". So, in order to shine a light on some of the cool shoes that our players are sporting - tonight's Sneaker Showcase goes to Natalie Sherrill. Sherrill sports the Nike Kyrie 5 SpongeBob Patrick which is a highly collectable, highly sought after sneaker by sneakerheads everywhere! Very nice!
The Sneaker Showcase is brought to you by:
The Sneaker Showcase is brought to you by:
SneakerBurg: Making Wartburg, TN the Sneaker Capital of the World... One Pair at a Time!"
If you'd like to enter a draw to win a free SneakerBurg t-shirt - simply comment on the post below... the 4th and 14th responders will win a free shirt (limited sizing available) - AND if we make it to 20 entries - #20 will get a special Christmas surprise! All just for fun! We'll mail them first thing Monday morning!
We get the weekend to rest up, recover, and worship... But we are back at it this coming Monday with an away game at Monterey! Enjoy your weekend!