Woodward-Granger falls in season debut games
Woodward-Granger ran into two teams it more than handled last year to start the season. This year sings a different tune as the Hawks start 0-2 after road losses to Martensdale-St Marys (3-0) and Panorama (2-0) on consecutive nights.
Blue Devils 79 - Hawks 43
Like Woodward, Martensdale comes off a state tournament appearance but had the district advantage of a largely unchanged roster. That proved to reverse the script as it was the Blue Devils defense that posted up and held the Hawks to what would have been their lowest point total last regular season; a stark contrast to the Woodward's 59-41 win over Martensdale last year.
The Blue Devils were ready to roll right after winning the tipoff and pulled together a 22-9 lead after just one quarter. They'd score more than 20 points in each of the first three quarters while it took time for the Hawks to ramp up, finally hitting stride in the third period.
Senior Coby Peters led the team with 13 points with sophomore Carter Moran (10 pts) right by his side shooting 2-of-4 from deep. Fellow sophomore Brody Nardini had top marks with six rebounds off the bench.
Panthers 74 - Hawks 56
The Hawks offense woke up against Panorama, pacing last year's production that averaged 55 points in two meetings. Unfortunately, that was also a product of giving the Panthers more opportunities as well as they took advantage of 21 W-G turnovers en route to their highest score against the Hawks since 2018.
This time around, Woodward incorporated more looks to Walker Deputy (15 pts) and Dylan Backe (12 pts). Their production helped boost the team's shooting efficiency from 30 percent against Martensdale to 41 percent, but with the Panthers making more than half their shots, the game tilted in their favor as they also won rebounding 33-20.
Next Up
Woodward plays its first home game of the season Tuesday hosting Earlham (0-1). The Cardinals hope to make a bigger mark this season as they lose only two starters but out of the gate lost 66-41 to Des Moines Christian.
