The Lodge Grass boys racked up 12 consecutive wins this season before suffering their first and only loss on Jan. 30 at Huntley Project.
The Indians. ranked No. 4 in the latest MTN Sports rankings, can’t wait for the opportunity to see the Red Devils again, this time at the District 3B tournament in Worden in two weeks.
“We won't take it too personal, but we'll take it personal enough. We're looking for a state title, not a little game that means nothing right now," junior JJ Bends said.
Lodge Grass comes off a third-place finish at last year’s Class B state tournament. The Indians lost their opening game before battling back to win four straight, showing their championship chops.
“We knew we had what it takes to beat every team. We just had to come together and love each othe, know what our strengths and weaknesses are," Bends said.
This current crop got to grow up idolizing the Lodge Grass teams that won a pair of state titles just a handful of years back. In fact, they can look to the bench for inspiration where the school’s all-time leading scorer Damon Gros Ventre is an assistant.
“It means a lot to have Damon there. He's lost (in Worden) and bounced back and won a state championship. Having him talk to us about (the loss to Huntley Project) just reassured us," senior James Dust Jr. said. "We want to get one of those, what they had. Watching them winning that state championship influenced me to want to have the same thing."
“It's good to have Damon on the bench. They looked up to Damon, D.C. (Stewart) and Ty (Moccasin) and the rest of that 2021-22 team, and they still do," head coach Tyson Gros Ventre said. "Now we're the ones playing and we're having a lot of fun."
Lodge Grass has certainly proven this — the Indians will battle until that final buzzer sounds.
