PHS freshmen go undefeated

Posted 3/9/21

The classic saying goes “you can’t win ‘em all.” Powell High School’s freshman boys’ basketball team begs to differ.

PHS recently capped off an undefeated …

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PHS freshmen go undefeated

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The classic saying goes “you can’t win ‘em all.” Powell High School’s freshman boys’ basketball team begs to differ.

PHS recently capped off an undefeated campaign at the ninth-grade level, finishing the 2020-21 season 17-0. The Panthers achieved this despite several players floating between the freshman, JV and varsity levels throughout the year. 

They won their last three games — against Worland, Meeteetse JV and Cody — by a combined 88 points. 

While there was never a losing stretch for the team, the development from beginning of the season to end was noticeable on both ends.

“Where I saw the most progress team wise was in their help defense,” coach Greg Stenlund said. “That is a concept that makes it so much harder on other teams if we do it well. The next was in their willingness to share the ball on offense.”

Brock Johnson, Gunnar Erickson, Jhett Schwahn and Cade Queen were four players who played significant time for the Panthers’ upper-level squads. Those four were the main standouts on the freshman team this year and “kept getting better down the stretch in our freshman games because they got used to the faster pace and more physical style of the JV and varsity games,” the coach said. 

Isaiah Woyak and Adam Williams were two of the key improvers, Stenlund said.

“They both progressed so much in their understanding of the game on both ends of the court,” he said. “Adam [Williams] progressed in utilizing the pick and roll, and Isaiah [Woyak] progressed in sharing the ball and defense.”

Trey Stenerson was Powell’s “top player” before suffering a broken tibia. “He started the season so well and it was unfortunately cut short,” Stenlund said. 

Every player on Powell’s roster saw individual growth over the course of the season, which gives Stenlund confidence as they make the leap from the freshman team to varsity or JV. 

“This group is so deep it is going to be interesting to see how JV and varsity shake out next year. I know we will have sophomores competing hard for varsity time,” Stenlund said. “I hope they use the offseason to improve their individual skills so our teams’ ball can go to higher heights next year at both the JV and varsity levels.”

Powell High School, Panther Basketball

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