Girls Varsity Basketball

Wynford Girls Advance to District Finals

By: Todd Enders, "Royal Times"

The Wynford Lady Royals and the Genoa Lady Comets played their hearts out in a very aggressive and exciting game on the hardwood. Wynford improves to 18-6 and Genoa falls to 18-7 on the year as the Royals advance to the district finals, 59-53 . It was very evident that tournament time has arrived with the aggressiveness of both teams and the officials allowing the girls to play.
The Comets and the Royals started off with hot hands. The Comets hit two quick three pointers, but Ellie Richmond had the hot hand for the Royals hitting two three-pointers; knotting it up at 6-6. Genoa used an aggressive half court trap that had an affect on Wynford early; forcing turnovers for the Royals. As Wynford settled down on the offensive end of the court, they used their size advantage in the paint with Brenna Quinn. The Comets held an early 14-12 lead on the Royals at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter started out just as the first with each team answering each others three-pointers. Beth Delong and Meghan Harrer used back to back threes to give the Royals a 24-21 lead. The Royals, Brenna Quinn, contributed 12 points in the first half as she controlled the paint. Coach Amy Taylor-Sheldon was very pleased with the teams effort on the offensive glass, "as a team we used our size to our advantage in the first half pulling down 12 offensive rebounds." The aggressiveness of the first half found the possession arrow flipping back and forth resulting in a total of 12 possession changes due to jump balls. As the excitement of the first half came to a close and each team's student body continued to support their team, the Royals managed to hold an early four point advantage at the half, 27-23.
The start of the third quarter saw the tempo and pressure increase by the Lady Comets, but the Royals managed to maintain control of the game. Meghan Harrer hits two 3's early in the third quarter, but Genoa seemed to answer on the other end of the court. Midway through the third with the Royals controlling the pace of the game, they increased their lead to a 13 point advantage, 42-29. "Controlling the pace of the game and getting big stops on the defensive end," was a major contribution to the Royals advantage according to Coach Taylor-Sheldon. 
As the fouls continued to add up for both teams, the Royals where put in the bonus late in the third quarter. Wynford used the foul line to their advantage where they connected on 18 of 24, shooting 75% down the stretch in the second half. Ellie Richmond was a perfect eight for eight from the line during this stretch. The third ended with the Royals maintaining a slight 8 point advantage, 45-37.
The Lady Comets would just not go away. They continued to claw their way back into the game during the fourth quarter cutting into the Royals lead. Genoa continued their great outside shooting cutting the Royals lead to four, 54-50, with 2:03 left in the fourth. After a Genoa foul with 1:12 remaining, Richmond went to the line where she remained perfect, draining two more foul shots; increasing the lead to six. The intensity within the gym continued to increase as Genoa hits another big three with :51 seconds left, cutting the lead to three, 56-53. The Royals defense dug in and held the Lady Comets scoreless in the remaining seconds as they continued to foul the Royals. Meghan Harrer hit three of four foul shots down the stretch sealing the victory for the Royals, 59-53. Brenna Quinn lead all scorers with 16 on the night. The Royals used a balanced scoring attack, getting 14 points each from Richmond and Harrer and 9 points from DeLong, to advance to the district finals on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. taking on the Oak Harbor Rockets at Seneca East High School.

Announcement: Wynford Athletic Department

Tickets will be on sale for the March 1st district final game at Seneca East High School until 12:00 PM on February 28th. Adult ticket prices for the game, $6.00 and students, $4.00. All tickets at the door will be $6.00. Thank you for your support and GO ROYALS!

Boys Varsity Basketball

Royals Advance to Sectional Finals

By: Todd Enders, "Royal Times"

The Wynford Royals (7-15) and the Ashland-Crestview Cougars (7-15) faced off in the first round of the Northwest District III Sectional Tournament. The Cougars came in with a sizable advantage in height but that did not affect the Royals and post player, Jake Glowaski. Wynford put together a great team effort on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court. Coach Steve Mohr was very pleased with the Royals defensive effort. "We played great on the defense, holding them to 37 points on the night." This was a great team effort."

The Royals came out from the opening tip using a fast paced attack pushing the ball up the court on the offensive end. Wynford took an early 7-0 lead forcing Ashland-Crestview to call an early timeout at the 5:53 mark and pushed their lead to 11-0 before the Cougars put any points on the scoreboard with 4:40 remaining in the first quarter. This lead could have been even bigger, but the Royals missed some easy shots in the paint leading after one quarter of play, 17-11.

The Cougars managed to stay within reach of the Royals during the second quarter. Although, Wynford continued to advance the ball up the court on the offensive end while playing very aggressively on defense. Alex Crall, sophomore, gave the Royals a big boost going in at halftime leading, 27-19, hitting a baseline jumper at the buzzer.

The third quarter got off to a slow start for both teams. The first score by either team did not occur until 5:34 when the Cougars hit a big three cutting the Royals lead to six. Another quick steal and dunk by Ashland-Cresview cut the lead to two forcing the Royals to take a timeout. The Royals had great looks at the basket, but could not get anything to fall. The Royals, Mason Davis, finally got Wynford on the board at the 3:00 mark in the third quarter. After all the difficulty with scoring during the third quarter, Wynford still managed to maintain their 29-25 lead during this struggling stretch. The third quarter came to an end with Alex Crall hitting another big shot, a three pointer, with seconds left giving the Royals a 37-30 lead. 

The fourth quarter sent the Royals on a 12-2 run taking a sizable lead. Jake Glowaski was a big part of this run where he added 11 of his game high 19 points. Coach Mohr was very pleased with Jake's performance. "Jake played very well offensively and finished when given the ball in the paint." This run put a dagger in the Cougars and gave Wynford the win finishing off the Ashland-Crestview, 50-37.

Also contributing to the Wynford scoring attack was Mason Davis with 9 and Alex Crall with 7. When asked, "How big this win was for the Royals?"  He replied, "I am very happy for the team. The kids get a chance to play for a sectional championship against, rival, Colonel Crawford." This win improves the Royals to 8-15 on the season and winning four of the last five games. 

The sectional championship game against the Eagles takes place Friday evening at 6:15 pm at Lexington High School.

Announcement: Wynford Athletic Department

The Wynford Athletic Department will be selling boy's sectional final basketball tickets. The Game will be played on Friday February 28th at Lexington High School and will start at 6:15 P.M. Tickets can be purchased during school hours beginning on Wednesday February 26th. Tickets will be sold until Friday February 28th at 12:00 P.M. Adult ticket prices for the basketball game will be $6.00. Student ticket prices for the basketball game will be $4.00. All tickets at the door will be $6.00. Thank you for your support and GO ROYALS!

Wynford Bowling

Bowling Teams Eliminated

By: Shae Duncan, “Royal Times”

 The Wynford bowling team competed in the Crawford County High School Bowling Tournament on February 10th and 11th. The Wynford boys team bowled against Bucyrus in the first round of the tournaments at Suburban Lanes. The boy’s team consisted of Zavon Mills, Quenten Stuckey, Nick Miller, Tony Roberts, Jacob Leonhardt, and their alternate Jacob Hord. Wynford’s top three bowlers were Stuckey with a total of 494, Leonhardt with a total of 444, and Roberts with a total of 404. Although their total scores beat three of their opponents scores, the team came up short in the end losing due to a handicap score figured into the three games that were played. The Wynford girls team also competed in the Crawford County High School Bowling Tournament against Crestline at Suburban Lanes. 

The girls team consisted of Kelsey Redden, Reegan Scott, Shae Duncan, Summer Schifer, Lexie Creel, and alternate Taylor Baumburger. Top bowlers for the girls team, three game total, were Duncan with a 379, Creel with a 36, and kelsey Redden with a 326. All the girls bowled great games; winning the first two games with scores of 622 and 547, but fell behind in the third game and lost due to handicap and total pins. The girls have lost the past four years due to handicap, but next year they hope to finally come out as the winner of the whole tournament. The girls and boys bowling teams complete their season with their losses and will be back next season for some fun and exciting bowling.

Girls Varsity Basketball

Royals, Sectional Champs

By: Todd Enders, "Royal Times"

Wynford girls basketball starts the tournament run off in impressive fashion with a 42-28 win over the New London Wildcats. The Royals used a great defensive effort to stop the 13-9 Wildcats. It appeared that New London was going to be a tough game for the Royals. It was obvious that tournament play had started from the onset of the game. The officials were letting the girls play with each team spending as much time on the floor as they were on their feet. The intensity of the game played right into the hands of the Royals. Wynford held a one point advantage at the end of quarter one, 11-10. This was the closest the Wildcats would be from this point forward. The Royals used their size forcing the ball into Brenna Quinn in the paint scoring 9 of her 10 points in the first half; giving the Royals a 21-16 lead at halftime. In the second half, the Royals used a different game plan on the offensive end of the court. They switched from looking into the paint to displaying their outside perimeter shooting skills. Wynford started out quickly in the third quarter with Ellie Richmond hitting a quick jumper and Meghan Harrer draining a three forcing New London to take a quick timeout with 5:51 remaining in the third. The timeout did not affect the Royals momentum with Alyssa

Harrer hitting a three putting the Royals up thirteen, 29-16. Wynford's defense had a major affect on the Wildcats the entire game. The Wildcats were held to just two points in the third quarter. Coach Taylor-Sheldon said, "The third quarter was a crucial point in the game, holding them to just two points. Our defense did a great job on the boards as well holding them to just two offensive rebounds through three quarters of play." Wynford outscored New London 14-2 in the third quarter taking a 35-16 lead. Wynford went into the fourth quarter with their 19 point lead and played a half court game; slowing the game down and being selective with shots. New London was forced to foul and Wynford went 5 for 10 from the foul line to seal the victory. The Royals were led in scoring by seniors Meghan Harrer with 15 and Brenna Quinn with 10.  The Lady Royals improve to 17-6 overall and advance to District Semi-final action to face Genoa on Thursday, February 27th at Seneca East High, 8:00 p.m.

Announcement: Wynford Athletic Department
The Wynford Athletic Department will be selling girl's district semi-final basketball tickets. The game will be played on Thursday February 27th at Seneca East High School and will start at 8:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased during school hours until Thursday at 12:00 p.m. Adult ticket prices for the basketball game will be $6.00 and student prices will be $4.00. All tickets at the door will be $6.00. 

Boys Baketball

Royals Split with Vikings

By: Kelsey Redden, “Royal Times”

On Tuesday, February 18, the Royals hosted the River Valley Vikings. The junior varsity Royals made an early 9-0 run to start the game and forced the Vikings to take a timeout. After the timeout, the the Vikings quickly added six points cutting into the Royals lead, but that is the closest the Vikings would be the entire game. The Royals maintained the six point advantage on the Vikings, 18-12, at the end of the first quarter. The Royals offensively and defensively stepped up their play in the second quarter increasing their lead on the Vikings. The Royals found a hot hand and began hitting shot after shot. Wynford’s defense only allowed the Vikings to score six points in the second quarter as the they struggled to keep up with the Royals. Going into the half, the Royals had a large 22 point advantage and the momentum leading the Vikings, 40-18. In the third quarter, the Royals struggled handling the ball, committing turnovers, but were still able to maintain a sizable lead on the Vikings. The third quarter score was 57-23 and saw the biggest gap between the two teams; a 24 point advantage for the Royals. The junior varsity ended the fourth quarter with a 21 point win over the Vikings, 71-50. The leading scorers for the Royals were Braxton Tea, 24, Alex Crall, 13, and Matt Hall, 8. The Royals were able to tack on a big win improving to 11-9 overall. 

Before the varsity game, senior winter sport athletes and pep band members were recognized. The senior basketball boys included: Mason Davis, Jake Glowaski, Zach Lear, Michael Miller, Mark Pfiefer, Gage Roe, and Kallan Stiles. The senior cheerleaders included: Joanee Church, Autumn Tea, and Maria Ulmer. The pep band included: Cody Barth, Cody Lester, Rachel Redolf, and Madison Graham. The senior swimmers included: Madison Graham and Sara Hoffman. Seniors were escorted down center court by their parents as their names were announced. After the game, coach Steve Mohr recognized the senior players and spoke about them individually. Coach Mohr said, “That he was very proud of his seniors on how they have kept the team together throughout the season and never gave up”. 

In the varsity game, the Royals were taking on a very talented 17-4 Viking team. The Vikings scored first, but the Royals were able to answer back; staying within seven with 1:50 remaining. The Vikings led the Royals 21-11 by the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Royals were able to slow down the Vikings offense but were unable to stop them from scoring. The Royals were able stay within nine of the Vikings as they went into halftime, 32-23. The Royals started the third quarter off well but the Vikings were able to match each run the Royals put together, leading the Royals 49-38 at the end of the third quarter. The Royals put together a run during the fourth quarter where the boys showed the most drive. The senior players really stepped up in the game and were vocal both on and off the court. They were major contributors cutting into the Vikings lead. During the first minute of the fourth quarter, Wynford cut into River Valley’s eleven point lead, scoring five quick, closing the gap, 49-43. The Royals defense was able to step up and keep the Vikings from scoring for just over two minutes. This brought the Royals even closer with 3:10 to go in the fourth; Keaton Teynor hit a big three bringing Wynford to within four, 55-51. After a River Valley foul, Mason Davis hit both foul shots bringing the Royals to within two points, 55-53. As the quarter drew to an end, the Royals ran out of gas and were unable to surpass the Vikings, 68-56. The Vikings improved to 18-4 overall while the Royals fall to 6-15 overall. Top scorers for the Royals were Austin Shutler with 13, Keaton Teynor, 12, and Jake Glowaski, 10. The boys next game is a tournament game at Lexington High School against Ashland-Crestview on Tuesday, February 24th at 6:15 p.m.

Swimming at Cleveland State University

Swim Team Goes to Districts

By: Melanie Garrett, “Royal Times”

The girls swim team swam their way into the states Northwest District Meet on February 14th at Cleveland State University. The girls team of Kalee Lohr, Sara Hoffman, Callie Ruffener, and Madison Graham first participated in the 200 Medley Relay. They placed 8th overall with a new school record of 2:00.28. The four girls were the first girls from Wynford to medal in district competition and set a new school record with this time. Kalee Lohr also placed 10th in the 200 IM with a new personal record of 2:20.56. Madison Graham placed 29th in the 50 Free with a time of 27.15. Callie Ruffener and Madison Graham swam the 100 Free. Callie finished 21st with a new personal record of 57.26 and Madison finished 28th with a time 59.39. Swimming the 100 Backstroke, Callie, placed 16th with a time 1:05.30. Kalee Lohr and Sara Hoffman swam the 100 Breast with Kalee placing 13th (1:14.12) and Sara placing 17th (1:15.87). Graham, Hoffman, Lohr, and Ruffener also participated in the 400 Free Relay and finished with a new record of 3:55.36. Overall, the girls finished 16th out of 40 teams in district competition.

Ethan Stuckey was the lone boy participating in the districts and placed 29th in the 100 Fly with a time of 1:03.11. This concluded the swim season for the boys and girls this season and both teams had a very successful year.

Future Farmers of America Week

Wynford Joins in National FFA Celebration

By: Emilee Hoover, “Royal Times” 

On Monday, February 17th, Wynford FFA (Future Farmers of America) students began to celebrate National FFA Week with an ice cream eating contest and by wearing an FFA t-shirt. National FFA Week is where everyone celebrates FFA throughout the country and starts February 15th and last until February 22nd. There are currently about seventy students in the Wynford FFA program. Unfortunately, Wynford could not do the Tuesday activities because school was canceled. On Wednesday the 19th, FFA members dressed in their official uniforms and held a ping pong activity. On Thursday, February 20th, students will wear officer polos, participate in corn hole games, and hold a FFA meeting after school which includes a leadership activity. Also, they will hold a teacher appreciation day on Thursday. The teachers of Wynford will get to enjoy some delicious ice cream and homemade pies after school. Friday, February 21st, is drive your tractor to school day and will have a balloon pop activity. Watch out for those “Aggies”. They can get pretty excited during FFA week especially on tractor day.

Boys and Girls Swimming

Swim Team Goes to Districts

By: Melanie Garrett, “Royal Times”

The girls swim team swam their way into the states Northwest District Meet on February 14th at Cleveland State University. The girls team of Kalee Lohr, Sara Hoffman, Callie Ruffener, and Madison Graham first participated in the 200 Medley Relay. They placed 8th overall with a new school record of 2:00.28. The four girls were the first girls from Wynford to medal in district competition and set a new school record with this time. Kalee Lohr also placed 10th in the 200 IM with a new personal record of 2:20.56. Madison Graham placed 29th in the 50 Free with a time of 27.15. Callie Ruffener finished 21st in the 100 Free with a new personal record of 57.26. Madison Graham also swam the 100 Free and finished 28th with a time 59.39. Swimming the 100 Backstroke, Callie, placed 16th with a time 1:05.30. Kalee Lohr and Sara Hoffman swam the 100 Breast with Kalee placing 13th (1:14.12) and Sara placing 17th (1:15.87). Graham, Hoffman, Lohr, and Ruffener also participated in the 400 Free Relay and finished with a new record of 3:55.36. Overall, the girls finished 16th out of 40 teams in district competition. Ethan Stuckey was the lone boy participating in the districts and placed 29th in the 100 Fly with a time of 1:03.11. This concluded the swim season for the girls and boys this season and both teams had a very successful year.

Pancake Breakfast

Interact Club Helps With Pancake Breakfast

By: Allie Crall, “Royal Times”

The Rotary Club of Bucyrus had their 41st Annual Pancake Day on Saturday, February 15, 2014, from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Bucyrus High School Commons. Tickets were for sale ahead of time: $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for children age 7-12, and children 6 and under were free. When a person bought a ticket they were entered into a drawing for three prizes. The prizes differed; one was a 55” Samsung Flat Screen 1080p HDTV, the second one was one large pizza a month for a year from Pisanello’s, the third was one medium pizza a month for a year from Pisanello’s, and the fourth was $100 cash. The purpose of this breakfast was to benefit many of the Rotary projects. The money will go to the projects as a donation, some of the projects include 4-Way Test Contest, YMCA Support, Bay Soccer Team Sponsorship, and our very own Interact Club. The Wynford Interact Club participated and helped at the breakfast. The Interact members were assigned to many different jobs some being dish washing, serving, passing out drinks, and just being a helping hand with anything. Interact President, Brooke Miller stated, “The Interact Club working together with the Rotary made the day flow smoothly and all help was appreciated.” The money raised will soon be announced after all the totals are complete.

Royals Host the Eagles

Royals Fall Short to the Eagles

Meghan Harrer, “Royal Times”

On Friday, February 14, the Wynford Royals hosted the Colonel Crawford Eagles in their final match up in the NCC. The Royals stuck with the Eagles throughout the entire game. The first half was a back and forth battle which the Eagles led at halftime 22-20. The second half was just as exciting and the Royals/Eagles battle continued. It was almost a given that the game was going down to the wire as the score continued to remain close throughout the third quarter with the Royals taking the lead at its end, 32-31. The fourth quarter brought the most excitement of the game with three minutes left to go in the fourth quarter junior, Mason Johnson, drains a three to bring the Royals with in one of the Eagles, 43-42. Each team continued to trade baskets at this point to add to the excitement. After Braxton Tea’s jump shot at the foul line made the score 50-49 in favor of the Eagles, the Royals were forced to foul and send Crawford to the line. The Eagles only connected on one foul shot giving the Royals a shot to tie. Alex Crall drives in the lane and makes a layup tying the game at 51 sending the game into overtime. Tucker Hall started overtime off by getting fouled and making a free throw giving the Royals a 52-51 advantage. The Eagles would take control after this and pull away from the Royals winning 58-52. The Royals were led in scoring by Alex Crall with 22 and James Ort with 14. The junior varsity falls to 9-9 overall and 6-6 in the NCC.

The varsity tipped off and the Royals got out to a fast start taking an early 2-0 lead, but that lead would be short lived. The Eagles drained back to back 3’s and never looked back taking an early twelve point lead with two minutes left in the first. Jake Glowaski finished the first quarter with a great post move for two of his 15 points; getting fouled and converting a three point play cutting the Eagles lead to eleven, 19-8. The Royals used this as a boost to start the second quarter. Coming out Mason Davis hit a big three continuing to cut into the Eagles lead. As the Royals gained momentum and got the Royal fans involved, Jake Glowaski makes a tip back bucket off a rebound to make it a nine point game. Later on in the second Austin Shutler makes two big three’s to make it a six point game. Although, the Eagles put a stop to the come back using great outside shooting; hitting three of their ten three’s on the night and pulled away at halftime, 41-29. During halftime, the Wynford varsity cheerleaders performed a routine that they have been practicing for weeks. Nicole Eckert, head coach, along with the Wynford fans were on their feet cheering for her squad. The name of the routine was called “Swagger Jagger”. Hoping to cut into the Eagles lead after intermission, the Royals tried to use a perimeter game to start the third. Mason Davis had the hot hand connecting on three of his six three’s on the night leading all scorers with 25 points on the night . The Eagles would not give in and also continued to shoot well from the floor. The Royals trailed 60-37 with two minutes left in the third, and Gage Roe tried to give the Royals another spark at the end of the third quarter by sinking a half-court buzzer beater making it 64-43. The Eagles were just too much for the Royals and continued on their winning ways to defeat Wynford, 74-61. The loss brings the Royals record to 4-14 overall and 2-10 in the conference. Austin Shutler also contributed 10 points for the Royals. Wynford will be back in action Saturday night for another NCC match-up against the Crestline Bulldogs.

Royals Swimmers Moving On

Next Stop, Cleveland State

By:Sara Hoffman, “Royal Times”

The Wynford swim team competed in the Northwest District Sectionals on February 8, 2014 at Mansfield Malabar with all swimmers looking to move on in state competition. The first event in the sectionals for the girls was the 200 medley relay of Kalee Lohr, Sara Hoffman, Callie Ruffener and Madison Graham, and the girls placed fourth with a time of 2:02.63. Kalee set a new school record in the 200 IM and placed first with a time of 2:21.72. Senior Madison Graham swam the 50 freestyle with a time of 26.84 and placed sixth. Ethan Stuckey the only boy’s swimmer still competing for the Royals came in 11th with a personal record of 1:02.45 in the 100 fly. Swimming the 100 free, Ruffener finished seventh with a 58.34 and Graham finished eighth with 59.28. This was the first time Madison broke a minute in the 100 free. Callie competed in the 100 back and came in 3rd with a time of 1:04.95. Hoffman and Lohr swam the breaststroke; Kalee came in fourth with a new school record of 1:13.62 and Sara came in seventh with 1:17.48. The last race for the girls was the 400 free relay of Graham, Hoffman, Lohr and Ruffener where they came in 2nd and broke four minutes with a 3:59.74. All these swimmers qualified for the district meet that will be held at Cleveland State on February 14, 2014 at 5 pm.

Wynford vs Willard

Royals Give Willard All They Can Handle

By: MacKenton Johnson, “Royal Times”
The Lady Royals, 16-5, looked to improve on their winning season hosting a talented and young Willard Crimson Lady Flashes, 16-3 in their last regular season game in W.R. Donnenwirth Gymnasium. The Royals were definitely at a size disadvantage to the Lady Crimson Flashes and knew that the game would be physical. Gretchen Harris was put into the starting lineup for the Lady Royals due to Alyssa Harrer being out for a temporary knee injury. The game was physical as anticipated and a very intense battle between two very talented teams. Sydney Alspach hit a buzzer beater at the end of the first quarter cutting the Flashes lead to three points, 11- 8. Willard used their size and strength and capitalized on the Royals mistakes to take 14 point lead at the half, 29-15. Senior, Meghan Harrer said, “We knew coming into the game Willard was going to be very physical, and they were the whole game. We didn’t play very well the first half, but we knew we had to play tougher and not make as many mistakes in the second half if we wanted to stay in the game and come out with a win!” The Royals came out ready to play in the second half. They increased their defensive pressure and cut the Flashes lead to 6 points by the end of the third quarter trailing, 39-33. Sadly, Wynfords strong second half surge came up on the short end and Willard ended up taking one from the Lady Royals on their home court, 53-48. Meghan Harrer was the leading scorer for the Royals with 13 points. The Lady Royals ended their regular season with a overall record of 16-6 and NCC record of 13-2, sharing the title with the Riverdale Falcons. The Lady Royals will continue their season in the tournaments next Saturday, February 22nd at 6:15 and will play the winner of New London and Western Reserve at Shelby High School. 


The Lady Royals junior varsity team, 19-2, prepared for the Crimson Flashes and their final game of season. As soon as the game started, you could feel the energy the team brought to the court. The Royals continued their aggressive defensive play and kept the Flashes on edge the entire game. Before the first half ended, Mallory Moore drained two three’s giving the Royals momentum and 15 point lead going into the third quarter. Wynford ended their season with a 46-26 victory giving junior varsity coach, Mark Kocher his 403rd victory as junior varsity coach for the Royals. Sarah Ogden was the leading scorer for the Lady Royals with 15 points. The junior varsity team ended their season with an outstanding overall record of 20-2 and 14-1 in the NCC.

NCC Freshmen Tournament

Tearless Tournament Victory 

By: Hunter Miller, “Royal Times”

On February 10, 2014 the Royal's, with a record of 8-8, hosted the Riverdale Falcons for the opening game of the freshmen tournament. The Royals jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with Jack Reed's short jumper. Zach Hoffman from the opening tip played tenacious defense which gave the Royal's an early 7-4 lead midway through the first quarter. After a few fast break lay ups, the Royal's end the first quarter with a 14-7 lead. The Falcons put together a little bit of a comeback at the beginning of the second, but it did not last long before Zach Hoffman and Thad Hensel had back to back scores in the paint. In the second quarter, with one minute remaining, the Royal's lead by nine. Jack Reed got a few open looks in the final minute but could not convert taking a 25-16 lead into half. The Falcons come out of the half with a quick three just before the Royals' Jack Reed and Tyler Glowaski score back to back in the lane. After these first two buckets, the Royal's started to play a bit sloppy with the next three possessions resulting in turnovers. After a timeout, the Royal's put the press back on and forced the Falcon's to back to back turnovers resulting in Royal's scores. This makes the score 36-30 with one minute in the third. The Royal's end the third quarter with a seven point lead. Both teams come out in the fourth rather slow with no scoring in the first three minutes. Jack Reed stopped this trend by getting three the hard way off of a fast break. As the clock continued to tick away, with three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Royal's held a slim 42-41 lead on the Falcons. Zach Hoffman increased the lead to three after he converted on an acrobatic shot from the left block. This was followed by a Royal foul which happened to be Thad Hensel’s fifth personal causing him to foul out. Zach Hoffman got to the lane once again on a backdoor cut and scored with ease. This brought the score to 48-45 in favor of Wynford. That was too much for the Falcons to overcome and resulted in a 50-45 win putting Wynford in the second round of the freshmen tournament. Jack Reed led the Royal's with 16 points and brought their record to 9-8. The Royals will play again on Thursday night at Buckeye Central, this is just the second step in the journey to win the NCC freshmen championship.

Girls Basketball Senior Night

Seniors Scour Bulldogs

By: Brooke Miller, “Royal Times” 

 On February 7, 2014, the Wynford Lady Royals hosted a Friday night basketball game against the Lady Bulldogs of Crestline High School. Wynford’s junior varsity team came into the game with an 18-1 overall record determined to chalk up an easy win against the 0-19 Lady Bulldogs. The game started off with a quick turnover from the Royals within the first ten seconds of the game, but the mistake was instantly recovered with a three point shot by junior Hannah Kocher. The Royals had a sizable lead and never looked back leading 16-5 at the end of the first quarter. The majority of the Wynford starters were substituted for by the end of the second quarter due to the Royal’s solid defense. Crestline only scored seven points during the second quarter giving the Royals a sizable lead at the half, 24-12. The girls had a powerful start to the second half scoring twelve points within the first two minutes of the third quarter developing a healthy 28 point lead, 43-15. Sydney Alspach, junior, helped the team out with two consecutive three point shots in the fourth quarter. Also, in the fourth quarter the team continued to constantly steal the ball and make several layups, putting them several points ahead of the Lady Bulldogs. The Lady Royals strong offense and relentless defense ended the night for the Bulldogs keeping them under twenty points with a final score of 59-19. Top scorers for the junior varsity squad included Mallory Moore with 15, Sarah Ogden with 12, and Sydney Alspach with 11 points. The Lady Royals now hold a record of 19-1 and hope to continue their winning run. 

Also within the game included the Lady Royal’s senior night. Each senior girl got the honor to be escorted down the court by her parents while all accomplishments and future plans were announced. One thing about Beth DeLong included her future plans of attending Miami University, a top-college in Ohio. Meghan Harrer, also known as “Meghan for three,” through her high school career has scored over 150 three point shots. Brenna Quinn became known by both girls and boys coaches to have the best drop step around. KarLee Schiefer, although her career was interrupted with a knee injury, was well respected on the team and a great leader on and off the court. Last senior to be announced was Sarah Stenson, who was always described as the nicest kid by all the coaches. The seniors received presents from their fellow teammates and all got the honor to start together for the varsity game, with an exception of KarLee. 

The girls varsity team started the night tied for the lead in the NCC and an overall record of 15-4, where they played the 2-17 Lady Bulldogs. Senior, Meghan Harrer, started off the game very strong giving the Royals their first seven points of the game. During the first two minutes of the first quarter, Wynford’s quick offense forced Crestline to instantly call a timeout. The seniors definitely stepped up their game on senior night by giving the Royals the first 13 points of the game. The seniors dominated the quarter scoring all but five points making the score 29-5 by the end of the quarter. Though the first quarter was strong, the start of the second quarter was slow with several missed shots by the Royals. Scoring was held to a minimum until Sydney Alspach hit a three and set a spark for the Royals. The third quarter started out with senior, Sarah Stenson, making back to back hustle plays while Maci Cooper shot her first bucket of the night, resulting in an one and-one for the Royals. Midway through the third, Wynford increased their lead on the scoreboard 52-14; then the seniors closed the quarter with a strong 56-14 lead. Starting the fourth, Meghan Harrer continued to lead the Lady Royals with several three and two point shots. The Royals ended the night with a final score of 70-17, improving to 16-4 and the Bulldogs falling to 2-18. Meghan Harrer was easily the leading scorer of the night with 19 points, followed by junior Ellie Richmond with 13 points. The Lady Royal’s will be traveling next to Riverdale on Tuesday, February 11th, to face the very difficult Lady Falcons.

Junior High NCC Tournament

Junior High Boys Basketball Season Comes to an End

By: Lainie Wright, “Royal Times”

On Saturday, February 8, 2014, the 7th grade boys basketball competed against Colonel Crawford in the NCC tournaments hosted at Wynford Elementary School. The Royals were not able to get a grip on Colonel Crawford’s strong offense from the beginning of the game. Colonel Crawford came ready to play and thats exactly what they did ending the game with a 37-16 win. The Royals fell behind in the first quarter and were unable to gather any confidence to put together a scoring run against the Eagles. Colonel Crawford was extremely aggressive fouling the Royals 18 times throughout the game. The Royals went to the foul line 21 times but only connected on eight free throws making up half their points for the game. The Royals defense was very aggressive but could not stop the Eagles as they move on in the tournaments. The Royals leading scorer was Blake Sparks with six points. The teams were split into a blue team and gray team this year and both teams had identical records of 1-5. The roster for the tournament game was made up of members from both teams. This lose for the Royals removes them from the tournament and ends the basketball season for the 7th graders. 

The 8th grade Royals boys basketball were also defeated in the first round of the NCC tournaments against Colonel Crawford. The game was intense from the beginning with both teams clearly wanting to win and advance in the tournament. Each team continually traded baskets throughout the game. The Royal’s and Eagle’s offenses and defenses were giving it their all going head to head the entire game. In the first and third quarters, the Royals held a small lead of just one point. Nearing the end of the fourth quarter, Colonel Crawford was able to sink a three point shot putting them ahead and they did not look back. Neither team showed any signs of giving up. The Royals crowd went wild in the fourth quarter with a few questionable calls by the referees as both teams were tied almost the entire game up to the last three minutes. After a long and hard battle, the Royals started to slow down as they struggled to make shots. They fell behind by five points ending the game and season with the score of 46-41. The leading scorers for the Royals were Wesley Purdue with 17 points followed by Cole Heinlen with 16. The 8th grade boys end the season with a 5-6 record and are eliminated from the 8th grade NCC tournament.

Girls Finish 3rd at NCC Swimming Championship Meet

By: Shae Duncan

Wednesday, January 29th, Colonel Crawford hosted the girls and boys swimming NCC championship meet. The teams that swam were Wynford, Galion, Bucyrus, Colonel Crawford, Upper, and Crestline. Starting with the girls, their first race was the 200 Yard Medley Relay where Kalee Lohr, Callie Ruffener, Sara Hoffman, and Madison Graham placed first with a 2:02 which was a drop of three seconds from their previous best time. Wynford’s Kalee Lohr swam the 200 Yard IM, the fifth event of the evening, and placed second with a time of 2:23. In the seventh event, the 50 Yard Free, Wynford’s Callie Ruffener, 26.85, placed second and Madison Graham, 27.32, placed third. Kaylee Lohr placed second again in the 100 Yard Fly with a time of 1:06. In the 100 Yard Free, Madison Graham placed second with a time of 1:00. Callie Ruffener then swam in the 100 Yard Back placing third with a 1:07. Sara Hoffman placed second in the 100 Yard Breast with a 1:17. Madison Graham, Kalee Lohr, Sara Hoffman, and Callie Ruffener then swam the 400 Yard Free Relay placing second with a group time of 4:04. That ended the day for the girls. The boys first swim was the 200 Yard Medley Relay where Trey Smith, Ethan Stuckey, Max hackman, and David Blank placed third with a time of 2:14. In the boys 200 Yard Free Ethan Stuckey placed fourth with a 2:15. Ethan then placed fifth with a 1:08 in the 100 Yard Fly. Trey Smith, David Blank, William Slagle, and Ethan Stuckey swam the 200 Yard Free Relay and ended up placing fifth with a team time of 1:53. Then Trey Smith was able to place fourth in the 100 Yard Back. That ended the day for the boys. The girls and guys will compete in a sectional match February 8th in Mansfield. This is where they have the opportunity to qualify for the districts, but if not this will be their last race for the swim season.

Pioneer Visit

Sophomores Visit Pioneer

By: Melanie Garrett, “Royal Times” 

The Sophomores went to Pioneer for a tour and got to spend 30 minutes in each class. Sophomores got to pick three classes that they wanted to visit. While in the classes, they learned about the classes and how their day at Pioneer would go. If you are a junior, you will be in an academic classes in the morning and a lab in the afternoon. If you are a senior, your academics classes will be in the morning and your lab will be in the afternoon. One of the classes you could take at Pioneer would be Performing Arts. Its basically described as a fun and entertaining class to show everyone your true personality. The students in the class danced, sang, acted and played instruments. Emilee Downing said, “Pioneer seems like a good way to express yourself and to meet new people, just act like your own self. Its easier to be set on a specific career you wish to do for the rest of your life. It was highly interesting to see other people’s talents.” If you wanted to go into the medical field, they have two great medical programs, Health Assistant and Medical Technologies. These two programs are the same your junior year, but your senior year they are different. During your junior year, you get your STNA (State Tested Nurses Aide). During your senior year in Medical Technologies, you get certified to read EKG’s which are responsible for monitoring your heart. If you choose to pursue the Health Assistant program, they will be adding something else in the future, but they can not reveal the details yet. Another program you can take is Culinary Arts. In this program, you get to create your own foods and serve it to your customers. You also get a better knowledge of how to be more alert of foods that are not healthy. Rhieannae Cory said, “Pioneer is a way to get your mind set on something you like to do. Its possible to not make up your mind but at least its better than failing.” Another program you could take is Early Childhood Education. In this program, you learn how to teach children from infants to toddlers. Another program is Criminal Justice along with many others, too many to list. In this program, you learn about a cops job, how they train, and what it takes to be a cop. You can also learn skill to become employed as a Homeland Security Agent. In every program you are getting college credits and certifications that will benefit your future employment. You also increase you chances of job placement after you graduate from Pioneer. If you are a sophomore or junior and interested in Pioneer, you should schedule a time to meet with Mrs. Heinlein to get details on how to sign up today.

Wynford Varsity/JV Girls Basketball

Just Another Day at the “House of Thrills”

By: Hunter Miller, “Royal Times” 

On February 1st at one o'clock the Lady Royals hosted the Lady Eagles of Colonel Crawford. The Royals came into the game on top of the league with a record of 14-3. Both teams got off to a slow start, but it was Beth DeLong of the Royals with the first bucket of the game. The Lady Royals quickly became the enforcer jumping out to a 9-3 lead after multiple eagle turnovers. The Royals were slowed for the remainder of the quarter and only managed to score on Sarah Stenson's free throws. The score after the first was 11-5, Wynford. The Lady Royals started the second on a 5-0 run ,and the Eagles did not waste time before they took their first time out. The Royals worked their way to the foul line to take a 23-10 lead before the eagles hit back to back three's to cut the lead to seven. The score at the half was the Royals 29, the Eagles 20. The first possessions of the second half resulted in two three's for the Royals to Crawfords one. Brenna Quinn was a mismatch for the Royals the whole game, the eagles had nobody that could stop her in the paint. Halfway through the third quarter the Royals had a 39-27 lead. The Lady Royals were stopped for the remainder of the third with the Eagles only scoring one bucket. The score after three is 39-29 with the Royals on top. Before the fourth quarter even began the Lady Eagle's bench received a technical foul which resulted in Meghan Harrer sinking both free throws. The Royals did not waste any time before stepping up to the foul line once again, this time Brenna Quinn hit the foul shots. The Lady Royals began to pull away after a couple minutes had past in the fourth. Brenna Quinn ran the paint both offensively and defensively for basically the whole fourth quarter. Once the fourth quarter had begun there was no looking back and Royals came out on top with a 51-34 victory behind Meghan Harrer's team high 14 points. This win gave the Lady Royal's an impressive record of 15-3. The Lady Royals will head to Madison to face the Rams in a non-conference matchup this upcoming Tuesday. 

Junior Varsity Girls Continue Winning Ways 

By: Mason Johnson, “Royal Times”
In junior varsity action, the Royals were in a stalemate in the first quarter with the score 3-2 for most of the quarter but managed a five point run with one minute left making the score 7-2 at the end of quarter one. The beginning of the second quarter Coach Kocher dialed up a play to set up a three pointer for the first play of the quarter. The Royals added seven unanswered points until the Lady Eagles managed to hit a free throw making the score 14-3. The Eagles were running a press that the Royals successfully broke and Hannah Kocher ran off five straight points. The score with a minute left in the half was 23-4. Coach Hurles said, “our tenacious defense in the first half holding them to only making 2 field goals and 2 free throws set the tone for the rest of the game.” The third quarter was a rather low scoring affair with a lot of long possessions and turnovers, but the Eagles made a small comeback with a 6-0 run. The Royals were still in control bringing the score at the end of third quarter to 34-13. The Lady Eagles clawed their way back to a 13 point deficit, 36-23, with their defensive pressure with three minutes left in the fourth period. It seemed like the ball was always on the Eagles half of the floor for about a minute during this time. The Lady Eagles did manage to cut the lead to 10 with a minute left in the fourth quarter and called a quick timeout. The Lady Eagles could not overcome the large lead and control the Royals for the rest of the game with the final score of 40-28 in favor of the Lady Royals. The junior varsity Lady Royals improve to 15-1 on the season, and also take on the Madison Rams Tuesday evening.

Junior High Boys Basketball

Junior High Boys Basketball Put in Crestline Doghouse

By: Allie Crall, “Royal Times”
On Thursday, January 30, 2014, the 7th grade boys basketball played the Crestline Bulldogs at home. The Bulldogs started strong and ended strong as the Royals failed to defeat the Bulldogs, 39-20. The Royals could not stop the Bulldog’s offense from the beginning of the game due to their height advantage in the post. The Royals fell short during the first quarter when the Bulldogs out-scored the Royals 16-7. The second quarter was even more difficult for the Royals where they only managed to score two points allowing the Bulldogs to maintain a healthy first half lead, 23-9. The 7th grade could not keep up with the Bulldogs, which was made clear in the third quarter when the Bulldogs outscored the Royals, 12-4. The Royals never gave up and still managed to fall short. The Royals were led by leading scorer, Logan Sand, with 7 points. The 7th graders will play their next game in the NCC tournament with a to be announced date and time. 

In 8th grade boys basketball action, the Royals were also defeated by the Bulldogs, 50-43. The Royals played an excellent first half doing a great job of controlling the games tempo taking 21-15 lead at the half . However, after the half, the Bulldogs out-scored the Royals 20-12 taking the lead and never looking back. In the second half, the Bulldogs took control on offense and the Royals defense could not find a way to stop the Bulldog’s. The 8th grade failed to control the Bulldogs post player, who scored 12 of the 20 points in the third quarter. Leading scorer for the Royals, Cole Heinlen, scored 12 points with 4 of them being foul shots. The Royals will not be making up any games that were missed do to cancellations. The 8th grade will also play in the NCC tournament with a date and time to be announced later.

Boys Freshman Basketball

Freshman Boys Come Away with Victory

By: Lexi Creel, “Royal Times”

On January 30, 2014, the freshman Royals hosted the Eagles. The Royals coming off a short losing streak, get a much needed victory against the Eagles, 38-28. The Royals used excellent shooting and team communication to take a halftime lead on the Eagles, 16-11. After intermission, the Eagles made some adjustments to gain some momentum during the second half. The Eagles stayed within reach of the Royals making the game close, but Wynford used the foul line during the fourth quarter to capitalize on the victory connecting on 9 of 14 attempts to help seal the victory. The top two scorers were Zach Hoffman with 18 points and Jack Reed with 10 points. The Royals will host Crestline on February 4th, looking for another victory.

Wynford Girls Basketball

Three’s Lead Wynford Lady Royals to Win

By: Lexi Creel, “Royal Times”

On January 22, 2014, the Wynford Lady Royals hosted the Ridgedale Lady Rockets. The Royals who are (12-3) finished the game with 11 3-pointers from four different players and defeated the Falcons in impressive fashion, 69-37. Ellie Richmond led the Royals in scoring with a career high of 26 points, which included five 3’s. Meghan Harrer had two 3’s with a combined total of 11 points for the night. Beth Delong made three 3’s with a combined total of 10 points. Sydney Alspach drained a three pointer at the buzzer to conclude the first half. The Royals had the lead 43-21 at half. Brenna Quinn ended the game with 17 points and seven rebounds. The Royals controlled the paint, crashing the boards, finishing the game with 30 rebounds, which 17 were offensive. The Royals will be back in action ready to knock down more 3’s on Friday the 24th with a 6:00 p.m. game time against Upper Sandusky.