University girls basketball hoping experience leads Bulldogs back to title game in new classification
By Alissa Noe/BoCoPreps.com
Photo: PaulDiSalvoPhotography.com
University girls basketball came tantalizingly close to earning its first Class 3A state crown last season when it fell to No. 1 Platte Valley in the state championship game.
This year, the Bulldogs are hoping to pave their way back to that final contest with the leadership of seven seniors and senior point guard Taryn Kravig, who led her ladies with 14.7 points per game, 3.3 assists per game and 2.8 steals per game.
“We have a really good group coming back. We lost one senior, our point guard,” head coach Matt Baumgartner said. “We’ve got a number of other key contributors that are going to be kind of filling in all the pieces of it.”
It certainly doesn’t hurt their chances that they play in one of the toughest leagues in the classification, the Patriot League, that sent six teams to the state playoffs last year alone. The Bulldogs finished third in league play behind Platte Valley and Eaton, meaning they’ll know how they size up with some of 4A’s best competition from the very beginning of league play.
“It’s definitely challenging,” Kravig said. “You have to be ready to play every single time. You have to be prepared. You have to know who you have to guard, what their strengths are, what their weaknesses are, the whole nine yards. But I think it’s definitely a challenge and I like stepping up to it. I like how our teammates and everybody accept that challenge and want to do just as well as I do.”
Senior forward/center Miranda Wiedeman believes the team’s greatest strength lies in its versatility, namely its ability to shoot, score and defend against whatever opponents may throw at them. She believes the biggest hurdle they’ll have to overcome early is instilling belief and a common goal in some of the younger girls.
“I definitely think it’s important to play as if it could be your last game just because a couple of years ago, we had the COVID season and everything,” Wiedeman said. “So I think it’s good to try to not take anything for granted and make the most of everything as far as games and just making the most of the time you have with your team.”
