Hays near Triple-Double in Home Opener
The Cody Fillies could run away with the 3A Class, moving to 7-0 after a dominant performance over #3 Lander Valley. Cody has clearly found a level of on-court chemistry that would likely top any Wyoming power ranking, led by junior-guard Grace Hays.
Hays: 31 pts, 10 steals, 7 rebounds, 4 assists
On January 6th, the Tigers of Lander Valley ventured north to Cody for a double-header, kicking off 3A West play in 2026. Behind a full-court press, the Fillies jumped out early and never looked back. Grace Hays capitalized on the first of many Tiger turnovers, scoring six straight points in transition to open the game.
Lander Valley didn’t have an answer for the length of Cody, committing 34 turnovers in the contest. Lander Valley was without point-guard Hayden Goggles. It was 10 turnovers in the first quarter, 11 in the second, nine in the third quarter, and four in the fourth.
The Fillies didn’t pull back their press until midway through the second quarter, during the first sign of foul trouble. It didn’t matter, as the Fillies are extremely deep this season. Guards like Sydney Simone — who finished with second-highest 10 points — and Ellie Talich kept the scoring pressure on when the game settled into half-court tempo.
Hays, a premier talent in Wyoming girls basketball, surpassed her 25ppg average with 90 seconds remaining in the third quarter, en-route to a 31-point performance. To open the second half, Hays stole Lander’s inbounds pass to continue her scoring affair. Hays plays like a free safety, hawking long passes and collecting deflections for pick-six-styled interceptions.
It’s quite impressive that Hays’ 31-point game isn’t even her season high — that was against Natrona on December 13th, in which Hays scored 39. To be frank, Hays plays on another level than any player in 3A, and probably in Wyoming. She’s a class-leader in scoring (25.2) and steals (7.0).
She jumps passing lanes, can score with her back to the basket, hounds opposing guards for 90+ feet, rebounds on offense, dumps the ball down in motion offense. Athletically, it’s not much a conversation. If the jump shooting comes together over the next two years, we could be seeing 30+ every single night — it might not matter.
To beat a ranked opponent in your classification is always impressive, but by 27 points is another level. The Fillies played three 4A teams to begin the season in Casper — Jackson, Natrona, and Laramie. With an expectation to ascend to the 4A West next season, Cody is peaking at the right time. With one season left in 3A, it feels like Cody has unfinished business in the classification.
The Cody defense seems one step ahead to begin with, prompting a breakout-scoring effort from any of the Fillies players. They average a whopping 28 turnovers per game — Tuesday evening, with 34, the Fillies unofficially scored 34 points on turnovers. The lead all Wyoming classes in points/game, and points-allowed (64.3/24.7)
When the fourth quarter rolled around, Cody was leading 53-25 and officially called off the full-court press. Lander Valley fell into a 2-3 Zone, which gave the Fillies an opportunity to show their half-court offensive strengths. This team is so connected, giving an impression that they know when to slow things down. With 6:30 remaining, the Fillies pulled it out for 75 seconds, passing and working the ball without threatening the basket.
With 1:34 on the clock, the starters came out to a curtain-call finish in front of the Cody faithful. Head Coach Robert Tedlund emptied the bench, which in Cody’s case, isn’t a huge drop off. You can expect Cody to be right there at the end of 3A ball in March.
Final Score: 64-37, Cody (7-0).
