"Surprise! There's a JV Game!" - Bulldogs Take Three Against Norwood
On a night where Coach Byrd and his staff anticipated two home games against Norwood - they ended up with three! The Norwood coaches thought there was a Boys JV game and arrived ready to roll. When Byrd sent out the Bat Signal - the undefeated JV boys were all too ready to show up and get a few extra precious minutes. They started the night off with their third straight win with an impressive 43-11 victory. This JV team is deep with talent.
Next up was the Girls Varsity. The girls are coming off a hard fought road victory against a tough Sunbright team. Would they be able to continue their hot streak? Yes - they sure did. The girls smothered an inexperienced Norwood team in a lopsided game that ended with plenty of playing time for the younger players. In limited minutes, Ellie Ritter re-took the team scoring title with her season-best 11 points - and it's shaping up to be back-and-forth between her and the surging Braylee Dagley all season long. It should be fun to watch them compete. The girls cruised to a victory in this one - 43-5 - to improve to 3-1.
Last up was the Boys Varsity. Many of the JV stars are also bench players on varsity - and there was blood in the water after the JV game. The boys came into this one like sharks to a feeding frenzy. On the season, the boys have been ultra consistent by scoring between 33-37 points in all 4 contests... but in this one - they put up a staggering 59 points! Led by huge efforts from Isaac "The Window" Sills and Haden Green - this one was out of hand from the tip-off.
Below are a few thoughts meant to encourage some of our young athletes that went above and beyond against Norwood:
Next up was the Girls Varsity. The girls are coming off a hard fought road victory against a tough Sunbright team. Would they be able to continue their hot streak? Yes - they sure did. The girls smothered an inexperienced Norwood team in a lopsided game that ended with plenty of playing time for the younger players. In limited minutes, Ellie Ritter re-took the team scoring title with her season-best 11 points - and it's shaping up to be back-and-forth between her and the surging Braylee Dagley all season long. It should be fun to watch them compete. The girls cruised to a victory in this one - 43-5 - to improve to 3-1.
Last up was the Boys Varsity. Many of the JV stars are also bench players on varsity - and there was blood in the water after the JV game. The boys came into this one like sharks to a feeding frenzy. On the season, the boys have been ultra consistent by scoring between 33-37 points in all 4 contests... but in this one - they put up a staggering 59 points! Led by huge efforts from Isaac "The Window" Sills and Haden Green - this one was out of hand from the tip-off.
Below are a few thoughts meant to encourage some of our young athletes that went above and beyond against Norwood:
GOAT Status
One thing the Wartburg coaching staff does to motivate the players and reward hustle and grind is to give out a GOAT award. It's a weekly award that is hand selected for players that don't take plays off, play with energy, hustle, show bench energy, and generally are good teammates. I know that the boys GOAT is currently Haden Green. Haden is a 7th grader that looks like a big-bodied brute... "Mean" Haden Green almost writes itself... but if you know him - it just doesn't fit his personality. Haden was second on the team in scoring tonight against Norwood with 11 (his season high)... so for the current GOAT - We shall call him the JOLLY GREEN GIANT!
***UPDATE*** I just received word from one of the coaches that there is indeed a Girls Team GOAT as well. And the first one was Jentri Jones. Jentri is a gritty player that has plenty of effort when she gets minutes on the court. With quick feet and a long wingspan, she is tough to get the ball past. And she apparently has gotten the coaches attention for being tuned in as a good teammate and team player. Great work Jentri!
***UPDATE*** I just received word from one of the coaches that there is indeed a Girls Team GOAT as well. And the first one was Jentri Jones. Jentri is a gritty player that has plenty of effort when she gets minutes on the court. With quick feet and a long wingspan, she is tough to get the ball past. And she apparently has gotten the coaches attention for being tuned in as a good teammate and team player. Great work Jentri!
The Results Are In!
In the few years I've done write-ups for my kids' games, I've done several polls... and this one had the most responses I've ever gotten. Apparently, there is a big fanbase out there for Marshall Blalock that has concern for his nickname... I'll let Deputy U.S. Marshall Raylan Givens let you know - the overwhelming majority want the slippery Blalock to be known simply as "Marshall Law". The Lawman had a season-high 6 points - and had one coast-to-coast run slipping through coverage, behind the back dribbling... it ended without points - but we caught a glimpse of what is to come... Let's Go Marshall Law! Show us what you're made of!
Quick Hits for JV
There were quite a few insights from the JV game. I'll be brief on the JV insights:
1. The year was 2019... Current sixth grader Silas Ward joined his first ever basketball team playing at the Wartburg Boys & Girls Club. The top scorer on the team - oftentimes the only one able to score - was Hunter Francis. Reunited on a team for the first time since 2019, Ward has gotten several assists this year in JV games by feeding Francis in the paint. Ward also broke the seal on scoring for himself and got his first points of the season in this JV game. Reunited and it feels so good!
2. Ethan Shannon sports the lone mullet on the Wartburg team. He knocked down around 6 points in the paint tonight - and the nickname (for now) that seems to fit is the Wartburg Waterfall in honor of those flowing locks.
3. Known as "Big Dog Isaac" at his homeschool co-op - Isaac Vespie dropped 6 points on the Norwood JV tonight with some smooth shots with soft touch. Let's go Big Dog!
4. When Ty Kidd dropped his second basket in the JV game - I heard someone say, "Is that Cornbread?"... I don't know the connection, but I like it. Cornbread Kidd for 4!
5. Jace "In Yo' Face" McGill has an unorthodox shooting style - but the ball didn't seem to mind tonight as McGill hit several timely shots with at least 1 three-pointer!
1. The year was 2019... Current sixth grader Silas Ward joined his first ever basketball team playing at the Wartburg Boys & Girls Club. The top scorer on the team - oftentimes the only one able to score - was Hunter Francis. Reunited on a team for the first time since 2019, Ward has gotten several assists this year in JV games by feeding Francis in the paint. Ward also broke the seal on scoring for himself and got his first points of the season in this JV game. Reunited and it feels so good!
2. Ethan Shannon sports the lone mullet on the Wartburg team. He knocked down around 6 points in the paint tonight - and the nickname (for now) that seems to fit is the Wartburg Waterfall in honor of those flowing locks.
3. Known as "Big Dog Isaac" at his homeschool co-op - Isaac Vespie dropped 6 points on the Norwood JV tonight with some smooth shots with soft touch. Let's go Big Dog!
4. When Ty Kidd dropped his second basket in the JV game - I heard someone say, "Is that Cornbread?"... I don't know the connection, but I like it. Cornbread Kidd for 4!
5. Jace "In Yo' Face" McGill has an unorthodox shooting style - but the ball didn't seem to mind tonight as McGill hit several timely shots with at least 1 three-pointer!
Sneaky Scoring
I've already commented on the consistent presence of Ellie Ritter... and Braylee Dagley got a big shout out in my last write up for her performance in the Sunbright game. Those two were not surprisingly the top scorers for the Lady Dogs again tonight with 11 and 7 points respectively. What might surprise you is that there is a sneaky scorer on the team... A player that tied for third in points in this game... and actually tied for the most points in game 1 with The Dagger and Ritter. This player is one of 6 that have double digit points on the season... That player you ask? Ellie Frasier! When she's on the court, she finds a way to the ball - and when she gets an opening, she shoots with great accuracy. She added 4 points tonight to her 8 points from game 1... so even with limited minutes - she is making the most of them. Nice work!
Some Points Hit Different
In a game like the Norwood game, you might be tempted to tune out a little bit once the game is well in hand. But then you see the end of the bench players get to come in. The rookies - the youngsters... There are some moments where they are nervous or timid for their big moment... and the moment feels heavy. Those are the moments to tune in. One really great mental snapshot I took was when #11 Avaleigh Harvey went into the game. As a sixth grader, she has not had many minutes or opportunities on the court this year. She went in and took her spot in the post. She got an open shot, turned, pulled the trigger, and BOOM! - points on the board! But it was her reaction that was great. It's the picture of sheer excitement and joy. She jumped in the air, pumped her fist, as her whole bench worth of teammates were standing and cheering for their young sister! Those were the first Miss Harvey... but they won't be the last!
Confession Time
I have a confession to make... Many of the kids on the Middle School teams are new to me - I am learning their names and faces for the first time this season. For the life of me - I can not tell AJ Snell and Levi Poole apart. If you see me sitting in the stands - don't sit near me unless you want to hear the question, "Was that AJ or Levi Poole?" a few times per game. But tonight - I came away impressed with who I think was AJ Snell. He has a knack for knowing where the ball is going to be before it gets there - and then he has enough moxie to know what to do with it after a steal. I noticed him at the Sunbright JV game and I thought, "That kid just keeps scoring! That's a kid that needs to be getting varsity minutes..." and then tonight, he stood out again. He played lights out for the JV, and he put up his first varsity points of the season tonight with 6... When you do good things with the opportunities you get - you tend to get more opportunities. I suspect Mr. Snell is going to work himself into more and more of a role as the season rolls on if he keeps progressing like he has in this early season. Great work!
That's it for this time! I hope you've enjoyed the DogBlitz... Now, Let's get ready for the first day game of the season! Burchfield on Monday!
Go Dogs!
