Editor’s note: The following information was put together by “Stat Rat” Jim Craig, a longtime follower of Wyoming high school sports, as part of his ongoing research into Wyoming high school basketball. Mr. Craig has spent numerous hours researching Wyoming high school basketball, and I’m proud to share his research here. Thanks to the “Stat Rat” for putting in the time to expand the knowledge base of Wyoming high school basketball!
1969-1970 Girls Basketball Results
The Wyoming High School Activities Association officially sanctioned girls basketball for the 1969-70 school year, and about a quarter of the schools around the state jumped at the chance to schedule other schools, albeit on a limited basis. An article in the Casper Star-Tribune mentioned that the brand of hoops the girls were playing was akin to NBA basketball, with 30 seconds to shoot at the basket after gaining possession. Girls were allowed to play full court, five to a side – quite the departure from the six-on-six, half court only version of the sport, last contested in Wyoming in the mid-1930s.
Schedules were limited. For example, the two Casper high schools each had a four-game slate. Most of the games were scheduled in February and Saturday morning was often the time of day that saw the majority of the games contested. There was no culminating event—the first state tourney was held in 1976—although the schools of Northeast Wyoming ended their season with a two-day tournament in Moorcroft. It was sandwiched during the weekend between the end of the boys’ district/regional play and the start of the boys’ state tourney in Laramie.
Coverage of the games was hit and miss. The incomplete data that follows is mostly gleaned from newspapers and a few yearbooks. Part of the coverage problem was the media’s perception that the games were Girls Athletic Association events. The GAA had existed in many Wyoming schools from WWII on, and was generally an intramural program, the girls’ only chance to participate in athletics. Schools sometimes scheduled one another for a GAA activity day—I’ve run into a few during my hoops research—but such events rarely received press coverage. The bulk of GAA team events were school intramurals, e.g. seniors vs sophomores. Because of this perception, the sports editors failed to take notice—or just ignored the events—for far too many of the state’s newspapers.
By officially sanctioning girls basketball games, the status of the games contested were moved up a notch, so to speak. Actual certified officials were used, hosts schools provided scorekeepers and clock operators, and the first tentative steps—pre-Title IX—were taken. What few articles written about the changes to the sport were somewhat tongue-in-cheek—the use of the -ettes suffix was way overdone—yet were generally positive. The Riverton Ranger correctly reported, “If enthusiasm is any criteria, girls high school basketball has a bright future.”
Folks having any information to add or correct on this can email this writer, Jim Craig, at statrat@q.com
Southeast Wyoming
Casper Kelly Walsh Lady Trojans***Patricia Pratt
2/7 41 at Riverton 27 W CST C Lewis 21
2/14 at Buffalo
2/21 27 Casper Natrona 49 L CST
2/28 36 Douglas 30 W DB
Record: 2-1 Pct: .667
Casper Natrona Fillies***Yvonne Rippon
2/7 67 Buffalo 16 W CST
2/14 51 at Douglas 19 W CST
2/21 49 at Kelly Walsh 27 W CST J Keim 22
2/28 45 Rawlins 16 W CSTRecord: 4-0 Pct: 1.000
Northeast Wyoming
Buffalo Lady Bison***Ina Hubbell?
2/7 16 at Casper Natrona 67 L CST
2/14 Kelly Walsh
Record: 0-1 Pct: .000
Campbell County Lady Camels***
1/24 11 at Douglas 53 L DB
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 Clearmont L SP
3/14 25 Upton 33 L WCG
Record: 0-3 Pct: .000
Douglas Lady Bearcats***
1/24 53 Gillette 11 W DB L Leavengood 23
2/14 19 Natrona 51 L CST
2/28 30 at Kelly Walsh 36 L DB
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Big Horn Lady Rams***Sharon and George Schamber
?/? 29 ?Kaycee 22 W BB
?/? 14 ?Clearmont 29 L BB
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 37 Upton 30 W WCG
3/14 37 Clearmont 29 W SP
3/14 25 Sundance 16 W ST
Record: 6-1 Pct: .857
Rat Droppings: The Big Horn yearbook listed their record at 6-1.
Clearmont Lady Panthers***
?/? 29 ?Big Horn 14 W BB
2/12 Upton
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 Gillette W SP
3/14 29 Big Horn 37 L SP
3/14 38 Kaycee 27 W BB
Record: 3-1 Pct: .750
Hulett Lady Red Devils***
2/3 15 at Upton 40 L WCG
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 14 Sundance 41 L ST
3/14 at Moorcroft L ML
Record : 0-3 Pct: .000
Kaycee Lady Buckaroos***Mrs. Delbert Brown
?/? 22 ?Big Horn 29 L BB
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 at Moorcroft W ML
3/14 23 Sundance 39 L ST
3/14 27 Clearmont 38 L BB
Record: 0-4 Pct: .000
Moorcroft Lady Wolves***
1/22 28 Upton 33 L WCG
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 Kaycee L ML
3/14 Hulett W ML
3/14 21 Upton 41 L WCG
Record: 1-3 Pct: .250
Sundance Lady Bulldogs***Jean Lakner
3/3 Upton
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 41 Hulett 14 W ST
3/14 39 Kaycee 23 W ST
3/14 16 Big Horn 25 L ST
Record: 2-1 Pct: .667
Upton Lady Bobcats***
1/22 33 at Moorcroft 28 W WCG
2/3 40 Hulett 15 W WCG
2/12 at Clearmont
3/3 at Sundance
Season-End Tourney in Moorcroft
3/13 30 Big Horn 37 L WCG
3/14 33 Gillette 25 W WCG
3/14 41 at Moorcroft 21 W WCG
Record:
Northwest Wyoming
Riverton Lady Wolverines***Leora Kennedy
2/7 27 Kelly Walsh 41 L CST
2/21 30 at Rawlins 38 L RR
2/28 55 Wind River 13 W RR
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Shoshoni Lady Blue***
?/? 35 ?Wind River 28 W RR
Record: 1-0 Pct: 1.000
Wind River Lady Cougars***
?/? 28 ?Shoshoni 35 L RR
2/28 13 at Riverton 55 L RR
Record: 0-2 Pct: .000
Southwest Wyoming
Encampment Lady Tigers***
2/26 22 Saratoga 47 L SS
3/3 33 at Saratoga B 18 W SS
Record: 1-1 Pct: .500
Rawlins Lady Outlaws***Eileen Widdison
2/? 26 Saratoga 28 ot L RDT
2/21 38 Riverton 30 W RR
2/28 16 at Casper Natrona 45 L CST
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Saratoga Lady Panthers***Louise Nixon
2/? 28 at Rawlins 26 ot W SS
2/26 47 at Encampment 22 W SS
Record: 2-0 Pct: 1.000