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Sibley East’s winter sports season is underway. Preseason conditioning for the Wolverine girls’ basketball team last week in Arlington.

The Lady Wolverines will tip off their 2007-2008 campaign Monday at Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop. That non-conference tilt will be played at Winthrop. Varsity action will start at approximately 7:30.

The first home game for Sibley East is set for December 7th against highly-touted Jordan.

Al Ihrke’s Wolverines will have to overcome some inexperience this season. Three letterwinners and one starter return from a squad which posted a 4-19 record a year ago.

Sibley East will also field a young team with only one senior. Seven juniors and three sophomores round out the list of players currently on the varsity roster.

“We will be young and a bit inexperienced but we do have some talented girls on the team,” coach Irhke said. “Team speed will be one of our strengths. Hopefully we can create some positive things both offensively and defensively with our quickness.”

The lone returning starter for Sibley East this season is junior guard Ashley Martens. She joins senior Brittany Trocke and junior Renae Rose as the returning letterwinners for the Lady Wolverines.

Other junior players on the varsity squad include Megan Meyer, Laura Schuneman, Lindsay Thomes, Jessica Barlage and Sammy Trebesch. Sophomores Erin Evans, Marie Rose and Courtney Nienaber round out Sibley East’s varsity squad.

The Lady Wolverines got their first taste of competition Saturday in the annual Minnesota Valley Lutheran scrimmage at New Ulm.

Irhke said his team improved throughout the day and it was good experience for his younger players. “We got better as the day went on,” Ihrke said.

Among the teams competing in the scrimmage included MVL, Blue Earth, New Ulm Cathedral, Le Sueur-Henderson, Belle Plaine and Maple River.

“I am looking forward to a fun year of girls basketball,” Ihrke said. “Although we graduated four starters, we have some players more than capable of filling those positions. This group has the ability and the drive to succeed.”

Sibley East finished 3-11 in Minnesota River Conference (MRC) play a year ago. The Lady Wolverines will begin ‘07-’08 league play Tuesday, December 4th at Mayer Lutheran.

Jordan will again be the team to beat in the MRC. The defending league champs return several starters from a team which finished third in the state tournament last season.

Jordan is currently ranked #2 in the state in Class AA. Le Sueur-Henderson and Holy Family, also members of the MRC, are ranked #6 and #10 respectively in Class AA.

Sibley East’s “B” squad will again be coached by Chip Wolverton this season. That team will consist of Mackenzie Bade, Brielle Giesen, Melinda Haupt, Teresa Ihrke, Angie Johnson, Lauren Keithahn, Megan Mahon, Ashley Thomes and Kayla Trocke.

The Sibley East “C” squad, under the direction of Stephanie Schultz, consists of ninth-graders Val Kloeckl, Tara Quast, Katie Bauer, Megan Heibel, Katie Glisczinski, Kelsey Sunvold, Leslie Morado and Stephanie Schuneman.

Managers for the Sibley East girls’ basketball this season will be Erin Farber and Kelli Martens. Katie Klimmek, Tory Day and Abby Muehlenhardt will serve as team statisticians.

Girls Basketball Schedule

Nov. 26 at GFW

Nov. 30 at Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s

Dec. 4 at Mayer Lutheran

Dec. 7 Jordan

Dec. 11 at Glencoe-Silver Lake

Dec. 13 Le Sueur-Henderson

Dec. 18 Norwood YA

Dec. 20 Belle Plaine

Dec. 28-29 at Redwood Falls Tny.

Jan. 3 at Holy Family

Jan. 8 at Monty-Lonsdale

Jan. 11 at Le Sueur-Hend.

Jan. 17 Holy Family

Jan. 22 Mayer Lutheran

Jan. 25 Monty-Lonsdale

Jan. 29 St. Peter

Jan. 31 at Jordan

Feb. 5 at Belle Plaine

Feb. 8 at Norwood YA

Feb. 9 at Watertown-May. (11 a.m.)

Feb. 12 New Ulm

Feb. 21 at Maple River

BOLD = Home Game All home games at Arlington

“B” squad = 6:00 p.m. Varsity game = 7:30 p.m.