Shooting Hoops

Back-to-back very, very late nights of shooting hoops – last night Nekoosa boys senior night and tonight Lady Royals round 2 of regionals.

Tonight was the sad one. Girls basketball regionals at Wild Rose. We were the underdogs but slightly ahead at halftime, so we could have played the role of the spoiler, upsetting No. 2 in our bracket. But we just couldn't hold on to our slim lead. It was honestly only a margin of 5 points or less the rest of the game, and we ended up falling short by 3, losing 53-50.

It's always so sad when the game is so close the players know a successful basketball attempt here and there could have made the difference. And of course it's sad because, well, girls.

Their raw emotion – especially illustrated on the faces of the seniors – is a tough, big lump in my throat to swallow. They're crying so I'm crying.

Congrats on a good season though, girl.s Only two seniors leaving us and a slew of talented 8th-graders entering high school next season. Keep working hard and you'll get there.

In the meantime, I now have about 6 weeks off from shooting before spring sports season begins. Unlike the Lady Royals, I will not be working hard at anything.