Laramie High School Basketball Teams Get Off to a Good Start

Both Laramie High School basketball teams opened the 2021-22 season with two wins and a loss at last weekend’s Oil City Tip-off tournament in Casper.

LHS lost to Natrona County last Thursday, and then beat Green River on Friday, and Rock Springs last Saturday.

Laramie Lady Plainsmen

The Laramie girls lost a tough game to the fourth-ranked Fillies, in overtime, 44-37. After a slow start by both teams, Natrona got out to an eight-point lead in the third quarter, at 20-12. LHS fought back, as the Lady Plainsmen took a 27-24 lead in the fourth. Each team had a chance to win it at the end of regulation, but NC had their shot blocked, and Laramie didn’t get one off before the buzzer. It was tied at 33-33. In OT, the Fillies scored first on a three-point play, but a triple by Janey Adair in the right corner tied it up. From there, Natrona out-scored LHS 8-1 and won by seven. Morgann Jensen led Laramie with 16 points and eight rebounds.

Last Friday, Addie Forry had 16 points and six rebounds to lead the Lady Plainsmen over Green River, 52-45. Laramie went on a 14-3 run to end the first quarter and never trailed the rest of the game. They held the Wolves to 30 percent shooting for the game. Laramie shot 48 percent from the floor, and Jensen added 12 points and 12 rebounds. LHS led by as many as 14 in the third quarter.

Laramie rallied in the final minute and beat Rock Springs, 42-41 last Saturday in Casper. LHS led most of the game and was up by nine early in the fourth quarter. The Tigers made three key three-pointers and battled back. Rock Springs took a 40-37 lead, but Jensen tied it with a triple near the top of the key. After a defensive stop, Jensen gave the Lady Plainsmen the lead back at 42-41 on a free throw. Jensen missed her second free throw, but Ruby Dorrell got an offensive rebound and was fouled. She made one of two. Rock Springs’ Kamryn James was fouled driving to the basket. She made the first but missed the second. LHS secured the rebound and time ran out. Kylin Shipman paced LHS with 15 points, while Jensen added 13 points.

Head coach Terrance Reese said to be 2-1 after the first weekend was great.

“I’m truly blessed to have this opportunity. The girls are amazing to work with. I told them it’s so much fun, and I shouldn’t do this as a coach, but sometimes I get so excited I start watching the game as a fan because I like watching them play. They’re just fun, young women to work with, and they make my job so easy.”

The Lady Plainsmen will play in the Flaming Gorge Classic in Green River and Rock Springs this Thursday through Saturday. Laramie plays 3A No. 1 Lyman on Thursday at 2:40 p.m. at Rock Springs High School. They will face 3A Pinedale on Friday at 9:40 a.m. at Lincoln Middle School in Green River. Finally, on Saturday, the girls will play Star Valley at 2:40 p.m. at Rock Springs High School.

Laramie Plainsmen

At NC, against the Mustangs, the Plainsmen fell short in a 52-46 game. Natrona led by 15 in the first half, but Laramie rallied within three and four points but was never able to catch up. LHS missed 14 free throws and a few lay-ups in the six-point setback. Trey Enzi, Mahlon Morris, and Karson Busch led the Plainsmen with 11 points each.

Last Friday, in a back-and-forth game, Laramie survived Green River with three key defensive stops in the last 40 seconds for a 58-55 victory.

Diego Medina made a steal and lay-up with 28 seconds left that put LHS ahead 56-55. After a defensive stop, Morris found Jackson Devine for a transition lay-up and a 58-55 lead. After a Green River timeout, the Wolves had one last shot, but Medina jumped the passing lane which prevented Green River from getting their set play. The Wolves settled for a fade-away three-pointer from the corner that fell short at the buzzer. The game featured 15 lead changes and was tied 12 times. Enzi scored a career-high 23 points. Morris added 16 points and ten rebounds.

LHS concluded the weekend 2-1 after a 52-37 win over Rock Springs last Saturday. Jackson Devine and Karson Busch scored career-highs of 13 points apiece to lead Laramie in the victory. The Plainsmen took the lead in the first quarter and never trailed the rest of the game. A 14-3 run put them in control. Laramie built the lead to 20 on two occasions in the fourth quarter. LHS shot 40 percent from the field and held the Tigers to 27 percent shooting.

Head coach Jim Shaffer was pleased to be 2-1 after the first weekend.

“We didn’t know what to expect with the group we have. We knew we were going to be offensively challenged a little bit, but I’m really happy with where we’re at defensively. Again, the big picture we keep talking about is their effort and their energy and willingness to play together and play hard are so good. As long as we keep that, we can coach up the other things, and we’ve got a long time and a long season to get better.”

Next up, the Plainsmen are also at the Flaming Gorge Classic in Green River and Rock Springs. Their first game is against 3A Pinedale at Rock Springs High School on Thursday at 4:20 p.m. On Friday, they take on 3A Mountain View at 4:20 p.m. from Lincoln Middle School in Green River. Lastly, LHS will play Evanston at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Green River High School.

KOWB radio will provide live coverage of the doubleheader on Thursday, the split games on Friday, and the boys’ game on Saturday.