Wyoming basketball star Allyson Fertig, Douglas HS lose chance for third straight 3A state title
DOUGLAS, Wyo. (BVM) — Allyson Fertig has already accomplished what most athletes can only dream of in three years of high school, yet she’ll still always wonder what could’ve been.
The two-time defending 3A state champion Douglas girls basketball team has only lost two games since Fertig entered the starting lineup as a freshman. She’s also an all-sate volleyball player, holds the school record for shot put and captured gold in that event at the state track and field meet as a sophomore.
This past winter, the 6-foot-4 junior forward was having her best season yet and was named the Gatorade Wyoming Girls Basketball Player of the Year. But the Bearcats lost the chance to win a third straight state championship when the COVID-19 outbreak forced the cancellation of the state tournament after Fertig and her teammates had warmed up for their state quarterfinal game.
“Our first reaction was shock,” Fertig said. “After my coaches talked to us and cleared up what was going on, my teammates and I burst into tears. It felt horrible to work hard all season long to be robbed at the end of it. This year our goal was to make school history by getting a third straight girls basketball championship.”
Four straight championships was the dream for Fertig’s class, which will now have to settle for an opportunity to come back next season and make a run at their third.
“It helps knowing I have a good group coming back next year,” Fertig said. “We have lots of talent and this year’s situation will only fuel our desire to win another state championship.”
Fertig upped her scoring average from 14 points as a sophomore to 23 points as a junior while also averaging 13.9 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Bearcats. Douglas head coach Cody Helenbolt believes the improvement in Fertig’s game can be attributed to her intelligence.
“We can do so many different things and she’s never looking at us like ‘what are we trying to do?,’” Helenbolt said. “When you teach her something, she’s on it. She’s smart so that’s a really valuable part of what’s made her such a great player.”
It’s made her a great student as well. Fertig maintains a weighted 4.14 GPA, and her skills go beyond the classroom. She has a passion for arts and crafts as well as math, and she’s won competitions in both.
“I enjoy competition and creativity,” Fertig said. “Overall, I take pride in doing my best in everything I do and that is why I find success in a variety of things.”
With her skills on the basketball court, Fertig would’ve likely had plenty of suitors around the nation at the Division I college level. But Fertig likes it in her home state, so she chose to stay close to home by committing to the University of Wyoming, which was the first school to show interest.
“I love the idea of representing Wyoming because I was someone who grew up in Wyoming,” Fertig said. “The university is also close to home so my family members can come watch most of my games. I did consider waiting for other offers to see who was interested in me and weighing the options with the ones I already had. In the end, I was already set on UW from the beginning and scholarship offers cannot be available forever.”
With her college plans already made, Fertig will be able to focus on making the most of her final year of high school. And she hopes to have a better finish than that of her junior season which ended too soon.
“I will forget many things as I get older,” Fertig said, “but this will be a memory stuck in my head forever. There will always be the question of ‘what if?’”
