High school basketball: Mothers knows best at Woods Cross

WOODS CROSS — Most teenagers don't brag about their mom's court skills.

But most teens don't have the mothers that four Woods Cross players boast.

In 1986, Becky Trimble Stahle, then a senior, and Marci Heaps Howey, then a sophomore, led the Woods Cross girls basketball team to its only state title in girls basketball. Trimble Stahle not only had her number retired, but on April 17, 1986, the governor declared it "Becky Trimble Day" at an assembly in the same gymnasium where two of her children now play for the Wildcats.

The former teammates each have a son and a daughter playing on the Woods Cross varsity squads and each of them wear their mother's number. Tyler Stahle is the leading scorer for Woods Cross, while Kristin Stahle is a talented junior. Peter Howey is a junior on the boys' team, while Emily Howey is a promising freshman.

And while it may seem their mothers' legacy is a lot to live up to, the teens choose to bask in the accomplishments of the matriarchs.

"I point it out all the time," said Tyler Stahle of the now-retired jersey that his mother wore in 1986. It is framed and in a trophy case, which also lists her points per game average that season — 27 points. "I'm proud of it."

The women each got their children involved in basketball, as well as other sports, at a young age.

"My mom had me playing in third grade," said Peter. "She was my first coach. I think for the first little while she kind of babied me. Then she was harder on me. She's quiet but effective. She is not a yeller. She and I are really, really close. I'm pretty happy I get to spend so much of my time with her."

Tyler and Kristin Stahle, who both wear their mom's No. 15, have grown up in a gym.

"I have played ever since I can remember," Tyler said. "My mom taught me to shoot — a real ball the right way — when I was 2-years-old. She coached at UVU when I was a baby, so I've always been around the game."

Neither boy felt conspicuous about having moms coaching their teams, teaching them the game. They were just grateful to have such skilled instructors.

"She knows what she's doing," said Peter Howey, whose mom Marci is currently an assistant coach for the Woods Cross girls program.

Both boys knew they had athletic mothers, but they didn't really understand just what these women had accomplished until they began playing high school basketball themselves.