Experiencing the joy of victory

Victories have been scarce for the Whitehall High School girls basketball team.

Let's count 'em. Two when this season's seniors were freshmen, zero when they were sophomores and one when they were juniors.

That's right, three seasons, three wins. So when the Lady Trojans won their sixth game of the 2016-17 season on Saturday night against Gardiner, that made it three more than the entire previous three seasons.

Yet the joy of competing and developing -- they hope -- lifetime friendships were utmost in the minds of the likes of diminutive seniors Bryn Welker and Kaya Welch. Both are four-year letter winners, so they know both the agony of defeat and, now, the joy of victory.

You don't have to be a physicist to know which they prefer.

"I didn't get to play much as a freshman and I remember it was a little intimidating," said Welker, who has a 3.96 GPA and hopes to get her undergraduate degree in physics at Montana State before getting her Masters in astrophysics and eventually working for NASA. "But I thought if we stuck together and learned to play as a team, we'd be successful in the future."

The winless sophomore season was tough to stomach. "I'd gotten a taste (of playing on the varsity) and I was a little more determined to win games," Welker said. "But that didn't work out.

"Sophomore year was tough, but I was still young and we wanted to do well for the seniors. I think (losing) was helpful. It taught the team learned that no matter how many times you're knocked down you always get up again."

The next victory -- the only one of the season -- didn't come until her junior year.

"I felt like we were starting to improve," she said, "and our program had a future. Coach (Herman Gerving) was great. He stuck with us and cared for us as a group."

It took awhile for Welch to feel the enjoyment of her basketball career, which began by starting three games as a ninth-grader.

"It wasn't fun at the time," said Welch, "but now that I look back on it, it was fun. It taught us a lot of lessons ... being able to get up after being knocked down so many times."

Although a 6-10 record won't impress the average onlooker, you can bet it feels pretty good for the varsity roster of Welker, Welch and fellow seniors Mesquite Melton, Rachel Smith, Monica Sepulveda and Ann Russell; sophomores Allee Scafani and Dorothy Mastel, and freshmen Asha Noyes and Isabel Evans.

Down the road maybe there will be better days, especially if the junior varsity of sophomores Danielle Hays and Maggie Whitehurst and freshmen Britney Welker, Ashlynn Ellison and Kendra Brunett keep improving.

For the coach, it isn't all about winning. Thus, he tries to keep things on an even keel, keeping it fun for his players.

"For me it is frustrating," Gerving said. "But winning isn't everything."

Still, this season's total of victories is gratifying.

"Obviously, it makes me feel good," he said of the current season with its limited success. "I'm happy for the kids.. It's good that the kids get that winning feeling."

He likes the leadership the seniors have provided this season and points to Welch, whose dream is to get a degree in physical therapy at Montana Western, as a prime example as she battles back from a concussion suffered about four weeks ago.

"It's a struggle," said Welch, grimacing when reminded of the hard smack of her head hitting the court. "My shot has been off; my whole gamer has been off."

Gerving added, "She's still struggling. It just takes time."

And if you think the victories are memorable for this team, just ask Welker if she remembers the teams that fell to the Lady Trojans. She quickly smiled and said, "Sure can: Manhattan Christian, Cut Bank, Deer Lodge and Manhattan twice." That was prior to last Saturday's victory over overmatched Gardiner.

Perhaps the girls can add to their victory total with two games remaining in the regular season and a minimum of two in the postseason. And the seniors know their basketball careers soon will end.

"It's gone by so fast," Welker said.

As for Welch, wonderful days may be ahead, not on the basketball court.

"I'm ready to move on to bigger and better things," Welch said. ""I've never been out of Montana. I want to see the ocean."

Which one?

"Any one," she said, then laughed.

And so it goes.