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!
1970-1971 Girls Basketball Results
According to a Powell Tribune article, the WHSAA limited girls to one competitive event per week. Most schools had schedules that followed that directive, although there are a few exceptions out there that scheduled events closer than seven days apart. Maybe the wording was such that it directed only one per week and that playing a Saturday game followed by a Monday or Tuesday game was kosher, as long as the weekday game was the week’s only event. Schedules were expanded for most schools; for example, Casper high schools doubled their games from four to eight. My research has found evidence of 29 schools playing at least one game, up 11 schools from the previous year but well short of the 75 high school boys teams/schools that competed in the 1970-71 season.
Sports pages still mostly ignored girls’ hoops, the girls getting less than 2%–I’m being generous with my guesstimate—of the coverage compared to the established boys’ 98%+ copy. Walt Harris, the Sheridan Press sports editor, increased the number of articles on girls’ hoops from zero in 1969-70 to one in 1970-71. That was a four-paragraph blurb on the fortunes of the Clearmont girls, whose A and B squads combined for a 7-1 mark. Sheridan fielded no girls basketball team that winter.
A hint about athletic budgets for girls’ sports came from a short caption to a picture in the Casper Star-Tribune about the Kelly Walsh girls getting new uniforms. Apparently, the Industrial Electric Company bought and donated new uniforms for the “Trojanettes.” Baby steps…
Some things never change – for example, the competitiveness between two enemy schools. In a spirited game between Fremont County foes Lander and Riverton, the Wyoming State Journal reporter’s few words on the contest compared the game to football. “There was only a total of one sprained ankle, and a few broken teeth. That’s right, one poor girl fell right square on her face and broke all her bottom teeth. It seems rougher than the boys.” The Tigers prevailed over the Wolverines 29-25, a typical tough battle between the two schools. “Actually, the girls basketball game is not to be taken too lightly. It really was something to see,” concluded the article.
There was no state tourney—that’s still five years away—nor were there any season-ending tourneys like NE Wyoming schools held the year before. Casper Natrona finished the season 8-0 as did small-school Sundance. Powell was 6-0 versus Big Horn Basin competition. Folks with information/data about this particular season can contact me at statrat@q.com. Check old yearbooks and scrapbooks to help fill in the blanks of a database that’s been incomplete for over 50 years.
Southeast Wyoming
Casper Kelly Walsh Lady Trojans***Pat Pratt
12/5 27 at Rawlins 28 L RDT
12/12 31 at Casper Natrona 42 L CST
1/9 55 Buffalo 15 W CST
1/16 26 Rawlins 21 W CST
1/23 54 at Douglas 26 W CST N Davis 25
1/30 31 Casper Natrona 34 L CST
2/6 62 at Gillette 21 W CST K Davis 22; N Davis 22
2/20 Riverton–cancelled
Record: 4-3 Pct: .571
Casper Natrona Fillies***Deanna D’Abbriaccio
12/12 42 Kelly Walsh 31 W CST
12/19 38 Rawlins 31 W CST
1/9 46 Rawlins 27 W CST
1/16 63 Gillette 19 W CST
1/30 34 at Kelly Walsh 31 W CST
2/6 59 at Buffalo 19 W CST
2/13 47 Douglas 28 W CST
2/27 46 at Riverton 31 W CST
Record: 8-0 Pct: 1.000
Albin Lady Widcats***
?/ Burns L PBP
2/27 13 at Burns 48 L PBP
3/4 18 ?Pine Bluffs 22 L PBP
Record: 0-3 Pct: .000
Burns Lady Broncs***
?/ Pine Bluffs W PBP
?/ at Albin W PBP
2/6 25 at Douglas 26 L PBP
2/11 44 at Pine Bluffs 10 W PBP
2/27 48 Albin 13 W PBP
Record: 4-1 Pct: .800
Pine Bluffs Lady Hornets***
?/ at Burns L PBP
2/11 10 Burns 44 L PBP
3/4 22 ?Albin 18 W PBP
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Northeast Wyoming
Campbell County Lady Camels***Judy Leggett
1/16 19 at Casper Natrona 63 L CST
2/6 21 Kelly Walsh 62 L CST
2/11 Clearmont—cancelled, no evidence the schools played
2/15 at Kaycee
2/20 at Douglas
2/23 at Big Horn
Record: 0-2 Pct: .000
Buffalo Lady Bison***Ina Hubbell
1/9 15 at Kelly Walsh 55 L CST
2/6 19 Casper Natrona 59 L CST
2/11 25 ?Clearmont 36 L ClrmntYbk
2/15 at Kaycee
2/23 at Big Horn
?/ 25 ?Clearmont 43 L ClrmntYbk
Record: 0-4 Pct: .000
Douglas Lady Bearcats***
1/23 26 Kelly Walsh 54 L CST
2/6 26 Burns 25 W PBP
2/13 28 at Casper Natrona 47 L CST
2/20 Gillette
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Newcastle Lady Dogies***Joanne Owens
1/7 8 at Sundance 66 L ST
1/19? 11 Moorcroft 37 L ML
1/19 22 at Upton 42 L WCG
1/28 23 Upton 29 L WCG
2/9 Hot Springs, SD W? Yearbook states Newcastle won two games
2/11 26 at Moorcroft 31 L ML
2/16 45 at Custer, SD 20 W NLJ
Record: 2-5 Pct: .286
Big Horn Lady Rams***Sharon Schamber
2/23? Gillette
2/23? Buffalo
2/25 20 at Clearmont 28 L ClrmntYbk
2/25? Kaycee
3/2 18 Clearmont 28 L ClrmntYbk
3/2? at Kaycee L BB
Record: 0-3 Pct: .000
Clearmont Lady Panthers***Herb Arndt
1/5 49 Moorcroft 31 W SP B Foster 40
1/16 32 at Kaycee 14 W SP
2/6 30 at Sundance 39 L SP
2/11 36 ?Buffalo 25 W SP B Foster 24
2/20 46 Kaycee 23 W SP
2/25 28 Big Horn 20 W SP
?/ 43 ?Buffalo 25 W ClrmntYbk
3/2 28 at Big Horn 18 W SP
Record: 7-1 Pct: .875
Hulett Lady Red Devils***
1/14 3 at Moorcroft 30 L ML
1/19 8 at Sundance 61 L ST
2/4 17 at Upton 60 L WCG
2/18 19 Upton 56 L
Record: 0-4 Pct: .000
Kaycee Lady Buckaroos***Mrs. Delbert Brown
1/16 14 Clearmont 32 L BB
2/11 at Buffalo B
2/15 Gillette
2/20 23 at Clearmont 46 L BB
2/25 at Big Horn
3/2 Big Horn L BB
Record: 0-3 Pct: .000
Moorcroft Lady Wolves***Sharon Shuck
1/5 30 Clearmont 42 L ML
1/14 30 Hulett 3 W ML
1/19 37 at Newcastle 11 W ML B Jones 20
1/26 40 at Hulett 19 W ML
2/11 31 Newcastle 26 W ML
2/16 34 Sundance 39 L ML
2/23 50 Upton 35 W ML
3/2 45 at Upton 23 W ML
Record: 6-2 Pct: .750
Sundance Lady Bulldogs***Jean Lakner/Carolyn Fiscus (from 1/19 on)
12/17 Upton W ST
1/7 66 Newcastle 8 W ST
1/19 61 Hulett 8 W ST
1/26 50 Newell, SD 23 W ST C Hughes 23
2/6 39 Clearmont 30 W ST
2/11 42 at Upton 24 W ST
2/16 39 at Moorcroft 36 W ST
2/22 41 St. Mrtn’s RCity, SD 30 W ST
Record: 8-0 Pct: 1.000
Upton Lady Bobcats***Norma Pollat/Harold Koch
12/17 at Sundance L ST
1/19 42 Newcastle 22 W WCG R Peterson 29
1/28 29 at Newcastle 23 W WCG
2/4 60 Hulett 17 W WCG
2/11 24 Sundance 42 L WCG
2/18 56 at Hulett 19 W WCG R Peterson 21
2/23 35 at Moorcroft 50 L WCG
3/2 23 Moorcroft 45 L WCG
Record: 4-4 Pct: .500
Northwest Wyoming
Greybull Lady Buffs***Sheryl Rohwer/Neal Miller
1/16 16 Meeteetse 56 L MttsYbk
2/6 47 at Powell 56 L PT
3/9 30 Basin 27 W GS
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Lander Lady Tigers***Joanne Harvey
1/ 29 Riverton 25 W WSJ
2/6 at Riverton L WSJ
Record: 1-1 Pct: .500
Lovell Lady Bulldogs***
1/16 14 at Ten Sleep 37 L LC
1/23 31 Meeteetse 36 L LC
1/28 35 at Powell 45 L PT
2/13? 31 Powell 47 L PT
Record: 0-4 Pct: .000
Powell Lady Panthers***Jean Mills
?/ 29 ?Riverton 25 W RR
1/28 45 Lovell 35 W PT
2/6 38 Meeteetse 29 W MttsYbk
2/6 56 Greybull 47 W PT
2/13? 47 at Lovell 31 W PT
2/20 31 at Meeteetse 27 W MttsYbk
Record: 6-0 Pct: 1.000
Riverton Lady Wolverines***Leora Kennedy
1/ 25 at Lander 29 L WSJ
?/ 25 ?Powell 29 L RR
?/ 40 at Wind River 26 W RR
1/23 35 Rawlins 30 W RR
2/6 Lander W WSJ
2/20 at Kelly Walsh–cancelled
2/27 31 at Casper Natrona 46 L CST
Record: 3-3 Pct: .500
Basin Lady Bobcats***Patricia Brown
3/9 27 at Greybull 30 L GS
Record: 0-1 Pct: .000
Meeteetse Lady Longhorns***Mrs. Hudson
1/16 56 at Greybull 16 W CE
1/23 36 at Lovell 31 W CE
1/30 at Ten Sleep W MttsYbk
2/6 29 at Powell 38 L CE
2/13 59 Ten Sleep 5 W CE
2/20 27 Powell 31 L CE
Record: 4-2 Pct: .667
Shoshoni Wranglers***Shirley Anderson
1/23 42 at Wind River 16 W RR
2/20 20 Wind River 12 W RR
Record: 2-0 Pct: 1.000
Ten Sleep Pioneers***
1/16 37 Lovell 14 W LC
1/30 Meeteetse L MttsYbk
2/13 5 at Meeteetse 59 L MttsYbk
Record: 1-2 Pct: .333
Wind River Cougars***Jenny Jacobs
?/ 26 ?Riverton 40 L RR
1/23 16 Shoshoni 42 L RR
2/20 12 at Shoshoni 20 L RR
Record: 0-3 Pct: .000
Southwest Wyoming
Rawlins Lady Outlaws***Eileen Widdison
12/5 28 Kelly Walsh 27 W RDT
12/19 31 Casper Natrona 38 L CST
1/9 27 at Casper Natrona 46 L CST
1/16 21 at Kelly Walsh 26 L CST
1/23? 30 at Riverton 35 L RR
1/23 34 Saratoga 33 W CST
Record: 2-4 Pct: .333
Saratoga Lady Panthers***Louise Nixon
1/26 33 at Rawlins 34 L RDT
2/2 42 Encampment 31 W SS L Kunesh 20
2/13 30 at Rawlins 26 W SS
2/18 53 at Encampment 21 W SS
Record: 3-1 Pct: .750
Encampment Lady Tigers***
2/2 31 at Saratoga 42 L SS
2/18 21 Saratoga 53 L SS
Record: 0-2 Pct: .000