Manton's Wilder headed to Lake State for hoops

MANTON — The chance to play with her older sister was part of the attraction.

But it’s not the whole story for Lauren Wilder.

Instead, the Manton High School senior chose to continue her education and basketball career at Lake Superior State University for other reasons.

Playing with Jaden for the first time is an added bonus.

Lauren Wilder signed her National Letter of Intent for the NCAA Division II school in Sault Ste. Marie on Thursday.

Jaden has one more year of eligibility past this season, meaning if all goes to plan, Lauren will get a year with her.

“(Lake Superior State) was the first one to reach out to me,” Lauren Wilder said. “They believed in me as a player and I loved it there.

“I got to see things more in-depth with my sister there but that’s like an added bonus. When I tore my ACL last year, the coach reached out to me and said he still believes in me. That made me want to play for him even more.”

Besides, Lauren Wilder is already getting in on the sister act this year, too. Her younger sister, Rylan, is a member of the Manton varsity girls basketball team, too, as a freshman.

“I will be lucky enough to get to play with both of my sisters and I haven’t been able to do that,” Lauren Wilder said. “This will be definitely be a good year for us and we’ve got a lot of big goals.”

As a sophomore, Wilder averaged 21 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 4.1 steals per game for Manton. She also was an Associated Press Division 3 All-State Honorable Mention selection.

Seeing Jaden work to become a college basketball player had a big on Lauren.

“That’s honestly been my goal, to play in college, for like forever,” Lauren Wilder said.

“I think it helped seeing Jaden play. We always both wanted to keep playing for literally as long as I can remember.”

All three Wilder sisters know what it’s like to not be able to play, too, as all three have had serious knee injuries. Lauren tore an ACL last year in Manton’s fourth game and returned just in time for volleyball this fall.

“That was really, really, really tough because I had goals for our team and some personal goals I wanted to reach, too,” she said. “I didn’t get to play with my best friend in her senior year either.

“It was just so mentally and physically challenging.”

Brandon Lokken is in his seventh season at Lake Superior State as the Lakers try to rebuild their program. The Lakers are 31-117 under Lokken.

“I am looking forward to just being a part of the team up there and being able to play at a college level,” Wilder said. “College is kind of scary but it really felt like a home to me there.”

Wilder is undecided on a major but is potentially interested in nursing.

Manton opens its 2023-24 season Monday, Dec. 4 at home against Kingsley before hosting McBain in a girls/boys doubleheader Friday, Dec. 8.