Sophia Wiard is still chasing and achieving lofty goals as a fifth-year starting point guard for the highly successful University of Toledo women’s basketball team.
That surprises nobody who knows the all-time Oakridge great.
Friday night, Oakridge Public Schools and its community celebrated Wiard. During halftime of Oakridge’s 45-21 girls basketball victory over neighboring rival Orchard View, the Eagles’ all-time leading scorer for girls or boys enjoyed another moment in the spotlight on the floor where she accomplished so much.
Wiard, a 2019 Oakridge alumna, racked up 1,889 points in an Eagles uniform to go along with 450 assists that also rank No. 1 in the school’s record books. She was a four-year captain for Oakridge basketball teams and multiple all-state honoree in the sport.
Wiard was also first-team all-state in softball and finished with a 4.064 GPA. She was selected as the Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame Scholar-Athlete Award winner in 2019.
Wiard’s No. 2 jersey will be encased at her alma mater, where so many people showed up Friday to celebrate her.
At Toledo, Wiard is studying finance. The 5-foot-7 court general helped lead the Rockets to a 29-5 overall record last season, including Mid-American Conference regular-season and tournament titles plus a first-round NCAA Tournament win over fifth-seeded Iowa State.
This season, Wiard is averaging 13.3 points (second-best on the team) along with 4.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.4 steals. Toledo is off to a 5-2 start, including a recent home blowout win of Michigan (69-46) in front of a whopping 7,082 fans at Savage Arena.
Photos courtesy of Oakridge Public Schools
