Prep girls' basketball: WHS running toward sixth-straight region title

WASILLA - When Wasilla senior Hillarie Putnam was asked if her team thinks about the Warriors' Northern Lights Conference winning streak - which now stands at 79 games - she paused.

Putnam probably wanted to say she and her teammates do not pay much attention to the streak that stretches over more than five years.

But she was honest.

&#8220Ya,” Putnam said. &#8220We always think about it. But we try to take each game as it comes.”

Joining forward Anne Wesser, Putnam is one of two Wasilla seniors who have spent their entire careers on the varsity squad.

And in four years, Putnam and Wesser have never been on the losing end of a NLC regular season or tournament game.

&#8220Hopefully it stays that way,” Putnam said.

But with all of their success against NLC competition - Wasilla has one five-straight region titles - the Warriors are still looking for their first state championship in 25 years.

This season Wasilla is hoping to follow consecutive fifth-place finishes in the state tournament with a trip to the large-schools title game.

&#8220We need to translate how badly we don't want to lose in regions into how badly we don't want to lose in state,” Putnam said.

The quality of the NLC this season actually may benefit the Warriors in their state title hunt.

&#8220We've got a really strong region, which is good,” Putnam said. &#8220I think in our region we (sometimes) come into state not quite prepared for that type of play. But I think this year we're going to be sending some really good teams to state.”

Wasilla returns virtually every member of a squad that finished 18-5 overall last year and 10-0 in region play.

The big loss is guard Ashley Semler, Wasilla's primary threat from the three-point line.

But the Warriors still have senior Ayla Brown and junior Shelby Fulton. Both are capable of doing damage on the outside.

Fulton hit a pair of key three-pointers in an early-season win over state power Juneau-Douglas. Warrior head coach Jeannie Hebert-Truax said a key for the Wasilla shooters, is simply having the confidence to take the shots.

Leading the way for the Warriors on both sides of the court are Putnam, Wesser and sophomore Jenna Johnson.

Like Putnam and Wesser, Johnson started her career on the varsity squad. Johnson established herself as one of the better players in the region last year, finishing the season as a member of the all-tournament squad at the state tournament.

Also returning to the squad are senior forwards Jessica Carter and Makiah Podbielski, and senior guards Ashley Cronk and Courtnie Husmann.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.