It was not an easy journey to Haines for the Feb. 20-21 away games. Petersburg High School’s girls’ and boys’ varsity basketball teams had a stormy ferry ride north, and high winds delayed the teams’ return home.
“We had some kids struggling to keep their lunch down on the ride there,” girls’ head coach Matt Pawuk said.
He said difficult travel can make it hard to bring your best to a game. But that didn’t stop the Lady Vikings from winning 39-9 on Friday and 38-14 on Saturday.
Pawuk said the games were a chance to give his five youngest players more time on the court, while the more experienced players continued to play well.
The second half of the season has been a big turnaround for the girls, who started with some big losses. Even when the team loses, like they did against Metlakatla two weeks ago, the margins have gotten increasingly tighter.
“We’re unrecognizable from the start of the season,” Pawuk said.
Pawuk has been coaching the high school team for three years. The girls’ five wins this season are the most during his tenure.
He said the team’s goal is to be strong enough that other schools don’t want to play them at regions.
“And I think we’re there now,” Pawuk said.
Petersburg’s boys lost to the Glacier Bears 49-41 on Friday, their second loss of the season. The team’s first loss was to Metlakatla the week before.
“I didn’t feel like we were doing the little things that we’ve been doing well all year: rebounding, getting back on defense, executing on the offensive end,” said head coach Rick Brock.
The boys turned it around on Saturday, with freshman Camden Johnson making a three-point shot that brought the tight game into overtime. The team won the game 52-51, on a free throw by Senior Noah Pawuk.
Brock said the regional tournament will be a challenging playing field at the end of the season.
“Every year, there’s at least three teams that could win the whole thing at the end,” he said. “And if you’re not improving every weekend, if you’re not playing your best basketball at the end, no matter what you’re seeded at, you’re not going to be successful.”
This weekend’s homecoming games against Wrangell are the last before the regional tournament in Juneau.
On Friday, Feb. 27, the JV boys play at 4:30, the varsity boys play at 6, and the varsity girls play at 7:30.
On Saturday, Feb. 28, the the JV boys play at 3, the varsity girls play at 4:30, and the varsity boys play at 6:30.
Homecoming festivities take place between Saturday’s varsity games, and senior recognition happens after the final varsity game ends.
KFSK will broadcast the varsity games live, and all games will be covered by the NFHS network.
This story has been updated to reflect the new basketball game times.
