This week’s game against Montgomery Blair High School was another learning experience for WJ handball. Blair won the game 22-8, yet WJ still proves their work ethic is all there.

Head coach Kimberly Reif selected sophomore Gretchen Roa and senior Sam Philip to be team captains because they are hardworking and capable of leading the team. These are students that she knows have great leadership skill on and off the court.

The first half started off fierce, with the Wildcats playing a strategic zonal defense. The Cats scored four points in the first half.

The first point was scored by Philip, who scored two goals in the duration of the game. Roa scored her own goal as well as sophomores Aidan Hihn and Joey Barke. With such a range of talent, many students were able to score. Another leader in the second half, sophomore Judith Altneu, comments that while the team played very well, they can still make some improvements.

“We pressured them well, everyone got a few steals, the one improvement we can do is to play better defense, we need to spread out more and be quicker,” Altneu said.

In the second half, things moved a bit slower, but the Wildcats didn’t go down without a fight. They scored three goals in the second half. Junior Kyle Bryant was the highest scoring player for the second week in a row, with three goals.

However, Roa feels that the team’s record isn’t reflecting their skill level.

“I fully believe that we can win, we just need to work on better strategies. I think if we work really hard we could have a really good chance at winning,” Roa said.

Reif weighed in with her positive observations throughout the season.

“I have seen a lot of growth throughout the season and I am optimistic about our last two games,” Reif said.

Handball’s next game is on October 21 at Whitman at 5:30 pm.