The Panthers have always competed during the winter athletic seasons. Ranging from an undefeated State Championship in men’s basketball in 2024 to a State Champion wrestling team in 2025, the Panthers look to carry their past success into the upcoming season.
Panther’s basketball returns five seniors to the varsity lineup from the 2025 season, including Taeson Schultz, Landon Hyde, Nathan Preator, Caden Nelson, and Abel Teten.
“I’m looking forward to this season,” Schultz said. “We have a lot of potential to win if we stay committed.”
Despite being knocked out in the second round of the 2025 3A State Tournament, the Panthers are confident that they can compete and find success with their new roster core.
“We have the depth, and we have the talent,” Preator said. “We just need to work on the little things, and we’ll be contenders [at State].”
The Panthers kicked off their 2025-2026 season at a tournament in Lander held Dec. 13-14. They exited the tournament 3-0, having beaten 3A conference opponents Pinedale, as well as Rawlins and Newcastle.
“There is competition all over the state this year,” Schultz said. “But we have depth and team chemistry.”
The Panthers returned to Lander Dec. 19-20, where they defeated Douglas, Burns, and Wheatland. They now stand 6-0.
“We face some tough teams in and out of our conference,” Preator said. “I just hope we can stay healthy and keep competing how we have been.”
The Lady Panthers basketball team began their season in Lander as well, where they exited 1-2, having beaten Newcastle and lost to Lander and Pinedale.
“We are a super young team this year, so I’m definitely looking forward to our growth,” senior Coy Erickson said. “We have different patches that we need to work on, but we also have many positives.”
The team lost a handful of players this season, while returning some key players like Erickson and junior Emery Hernandez.
“We don’t have a lot of experience,” Hernandez said. “So I would like to try and help guide the younger kids on our team that are having to step into a bigger role this season.”
The Lady Panthers were eliminated in the second round of the 3A State Tournament after a loss to Douglas and a close loss to Wheatland. This year, they aim to make it deeper into the playoffs.
“As a team, I am hoping we can just improve,” Erickson said. “From every game and different areas of them, I hope we can just get better.”
Meanwhile on the mats, the Powell wrestling team kicked off their season as the defending champions in 3A Wrestling with an invite at home.
“We were super successful last year, I mean, we won state,” senior Tyler Wenzel said. “We’re all just hoping to carry it into this season and do what we can to be a winning team and winning individuals.”
Wenzel is the only senior on the team, leading the way for a very young roster.
“I personally hope to win state this year, and I think I have a good shot,” Wenzel said. “I know that there are strong teams and wrestlers that we will go up against, but I’m confident in myself and in our group.”
Wenzel finished the Powell invite taking third place in the 144B division. Many Panthers placed top three in their respective classes, including freshman Russell Goolsbey, junior Broc Frank, sophomore Sean Lowe, and freshman Trevin Morton,
“My mindset is just to enjoy myself while performing at my best,” Wenzel said. “I know what I have to do, it’s just a matter of executing.”
