The crowd would have never known junior Brodey Meier was feeling some aches and pains as he drained four treys in Warrenton’s 66-40 conference win over Winfield on Feb. 7. 

“With my ankle and hurting it, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to drive like normal, so I was like, I’m going to have to try to fall in love with the three balls, and it just went my way tonight,” Meier said. 

Meier sank one three-pointer each quarter and ended the game with 17 points total. Deadrick Forrest reached double digits with 17 points, while Taylor Anderson recorded 13. 

“To see him go out there and be able to move as well as he did, that’s huge for us,” Head Coach Mark Thomas said about Meier. “It’s nice to see the ball going home, no matter who’s going for us.” 

While the stats do show it, Meier noted it was important that they came into the game wanting to play a well-rounded playing style. 

“[We said] we need to not worry about how many points each other has but worry about playing as a team and making sure your teammates are before you,” Meier said. “I feel like that really helped us and helped us get this big win. Hopefully, we’re on a roll from here.” 

Thomas shared similar sentiments, noting the team is starting to really dive into the process they are trying to instill. Simple things such as staying in the locker room a little longer, arriving earlier before a game and sitting together while on the road is showing Thomas they are becoming more of a cohesive unit. 

“I think this win tonight showed that they’re sharing the ball a little better and that when you do that, it makes guys wide open and the ball goes in a little easier,” Thomas said. “They shared the ball tonight, they played together, they were talking on defense a little bit. So, we were able to work on things that we’ve been missing in this game.” 

Thomas went on to say the win boosted the team’s spirits, especially after suffering a close 49-43 loss to St. Charles West the day prior. 

“We needed a lift, and I told them [after the St. Charles West game] they played hard and that’s what we’ve been looking for,” Thomas said. “I think after last night, it was kind of a letdown and this one helps bring their spirits back up.” 

The Warriors went back and forth with Winfield for the majority of the second half, but after keying in on defensive intensity and taking advantage of their size, Warrenton was able to separate themselves on the scoreboard. 

At the end of each quarter, Warrenton led (12-8, 25-24, 43-30). 

“We were able to drive and get [Anderson] nice looks,” Thomas said. “We started running more of our man offenses against their zone to get more movement so it worked out.” 

Anderson started the third quarter by dominating the post and collecting nine points for the Warriors. 

After Friday’s win, Warrenton has an 8-10 season record, and picked up their first GAC North conference win. 

“I think if we play like this [team basketball], we can make a far district run,” Meier said.