Woodward’s Saxton claims 100th win ahead of district wrestling tournament
Postseason action is on the horizon for the Hawks. (Note: Events covered Jan. 30-Feb. 5.)
Girls Basketball (6-14)
The Hawks were the guests for two rival senior nights this week and lost both appearances. On Jan. 31, the Hawks fell 62-39 to Panorama (18-1) and on Friday, lost 38-37 to Van Meter (6-14.)
From the jump in the first game, the Panthers had control and led 40-21 at the break. They allowed 17 points to Grace Deputy but only five rebounds. It’s a rare opportunity that an opposing player grabs more rebounds than her, let alone three.
Friday’s visit to Van Meter yielded some more competitive results in a game that was almost always a possession lead in either direction but the homecourt advantage paid off in the end. Addie Lego went up for 16 while making four of her seven three-point tries.
After capping the regular season against West Central Valley (7-12) for senior night, the Hawks will host the Wildcats once again on Saturday for the opening regional round.
Boys Basketball (8-11)
After hitting a peak win over Pleasantville to end last week, this week’s games went south with two double-digit losses to Panorama (9-10) and Van Meter (14-4).
Panorama let the Hawks fly in step for most of the game but went on a 23-9 run at the end of the game to win 72-56. Until the Panthers took control, Dane Polich was keeping the Hawks alive with 17 points and seven rebounds to lead the team for the night.
Battling the should-be conference champion three nights later on Friday, the Hawks were also giving the Bulldogs plenty of fits for a portion of the game. They left the first quarter with a 21-20 lead. But it was all blue-and-white the rest of the way, winning 64-55. Overall, the game’s difference may have come down to foul trouble.
Van Meter made 18-of-23 free throws compared to 3-of-12 made by the Hawks. Woodward’s 21 turnovers compared to nine takeaways also shoved the needle in the Bulldogs’ direction, but that nine point difference from the penalty stripe was the exact margin of loss.
The Hawks now stare down Greene County (7-11) for the first round of regionals on Monday.
Boys Wrestling
The Hawks’ next appearance is Saturday at the district meet at ADM, but before that, they capped their regular season with a team win at the Grinnell Duals on Saturday among the six teams attending. They won all five of their duals: Newton (66-0 final score), Grinnell (48-36), BGM-Brooklyn (60-12), Osceola/Murray (54-27) and AP-GC (42-33.)
Contributing to the team’s perfect slate, Alex Saxton (120 pounds) went 3-0 and earned his 100th career win. Cory Saxton (113) also went undefeated with a 4-0 record, as did Peyton Nixon (138) not counting forfeits. Jayden Flugge-Smith (132) won his three bouts while Terrin Lawerenson defeated his two opponents.
This article originally appeared on Perry Chief: Woodward’s Saxton claims 100th win ahead of district wrestling tournament
