Freshman Ashlynn Wolff on the defensive against TCU's Jill Houn. Wolff was third in scoring in her varsity debut with 13 points and three rebounds in JWP's 79-44 victory over the Titans.
The Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton girls’ basketball team is looking to build on its success from last season. However, the team’s first test of the season is starting 2025-26 early on a seven-game road trip; their first home game won’t take place for nearly a month. They seemed up to the task, though, as they took a 79-44 victory over the Tri-City United Titans in Montgomery on Friday, November 20.
It was a great game all around by everyone, but it was a fantastic one for freshman Ashlynn Wolff, who had made her varsity debut and contributed 13 points and a trio of rebounds. If anyone had told you she was on the team last season, no one would have blamed you for believing it. At one point in the game, she was tied for the team lead in scoring.
“She’s going to be really good for us,” Goebel said. “She has to continue to work, but she’s a talented player. She’s already done a great job stepping in with all the players we lost last year. I think she’ll continue doing that for us.”
To spoil a bit of the Journal’s season preview on the girls’ basketball team, Goebel had TCU penned as a section contender. Despite the result, he still felt they were a “very solid team.” It will be interesting to see how the Titans do from here; they were the third seed in Section 2AA last season.
On the surface, the game was an excellent start for the team, especially considering the finish. However, to split hairs, it could have been a larger blowout if it hadn’t been for the start the girls had in the first half. While the 38-25 halftime score certainly was a positive against a potential section contender, Coach Goebel felt they could have had a better start. It did not meet the standards the team has set for itself over the past couple of seasons.
“I honestly felt we didn’t start off that great at all,” Goebel explained. “And I think it’s more about the fact that it’s the first game of the season. But I thought we settled in well.”
That was the perfect way to describe the flow of the game. TCU scored the first basket to take a quick 2-0 lead, but senior captain Nevaeh Weimert responded with a three-pointer from the top of the key. From there, it seemed like the Bulldogs had control. They continued showing tidbits of their talent, as senior Katie Olson broke up a play to eventually set up an easy layup by Weimert to extend the lead. However, several penalties kept the Titans in the contest with free throw opportunities left and right. At about five minutes left in the half, the team had already hit ten fouls.
Goebel didn’t pinpoint a specific time in the game when the Bulldogs took over and gained full momentum. But an educated guess would be when Mikayla Wheelock, JWP’s record-breaking three-point merchant, hit her first three of the night at 2:12 in the first half, and the team rallied around her after she took a late bump from a TCU player for it. Throughout the half, she struggled to find the basket. But once she got that three-pointer, she was nearly automatic the rest of the night.
After the 38-25 half, the Lady Dawgs didn’t look back. Wolff continued putting on a show in her debut, going 2/2 on free throws to start the half and hitting double digits after hitting a layup off a rebound from Kwynn Krause’s initial shot. Olson also showed her juking ability as she shimmied between two TCU defenders in the paint for a hard-fought two points. JWP went on runs of 9-3 and 17-7 before junior Ray Blasing hit a three-pointer to force mercy rule.
Blasing was sneakily one of the better players for the Bulldogs. She didn’t score many points, but she was a defensive force on the court, recording six steals. And for Goebel, that’s all she needs to do.
“I don’t think she ever gets tired,” he joked. More seriously, he said, “She’s talented defensively. She doesn’t necessarily need to score for us. If she gets six points, awesome. If she has zero points but defends well without fouling and bothers the other team’s top point guard, then she had a good game for us.”
Stats-wise, Weimert led the team in scoring with 24 points while getting a trio of steals and a pair of rebounds. Olson had 18 points, led the team in rebounds with seven on the night, and contributed four steals. Wheelock had 12 points and six rebounds. Wolff had 13 points and a trio of rebounds. Krause had four rebounds.
JWP will have another road game before Thanksgiving break. By the time this paper comes out, they will have played New Ulm Cathedral on Tuesday, November 25.
