2016 winter sport web

Winter Sports Preview The Iola Register | Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Pointing in the Right Direction Point guards Ben Cooper and Sydney Wade look to guide Iola to new heights.

Stories inside

2 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Mustangs poised for break-out

HEAD COACH: Jay Applegate (2nd year) LAST SEASON: 6-15 Lost in first round of substate ROSTER: Chase Regehr, 12; Ben Cooper, 12; Francisco Barria, 12; Isaiah Fawson, 12; Joey Zimmerman, 12; Braden Plumlee, 12; Zachary Cokely, 11; Isaac Vink, 11; Ethan Holloway, 11; Cale Barnhart, 11; Evan Sigg, 11; Bryce Andres, 11; Matt Miller, 11; Trey Bruner, 11; Derek Bycroft, 10; Cole Regehr, 10; Alex Holding, 10; Tavon Bass, 10; Blake Ashmore, 10; Hunter Preston, 10; Blake Haar, 10; Kane Rogers, 10; Elijah Fawson, 9; Cal Leonard, 9; Noah Ashmore, 9; Karson McGraw, 9; Brady Wiggin, 9; Calvin Delich, 9; Casen Barker, 9; Brody Nemecek, 9; Keian Zimmerman, 9 SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Girard 5-10 - Central Heights Tourn.

13 - Burlington 16 - at Prairie View January 3 - Anderson County 6 - at Osawatomie 13 - Wellsville 17, 20, 21 - Burlington Tourn.

27 - Chanute 31 - at Santa Fe Trail February 3 - at Burlington 7 - Prairie View 10 - at Anderson County 14 - Osawatomie 21 - at Wellsville 23 - Santa Fe Trail

T

he Iola Mustangs boys basketball team certainly has plenty to be excited about as they enter the new season.

The enthusiasm starts with the backcourt, which returns all three of its starters from a season ago and all three will be seniors this season.

“I’m very excited for the season,” senior Ben Cooper said. “We know what we can do this year and we know we can play a lot better than we have in the past and win a lot more games than we have in the past.”

Cooper is the team’s engine from the point guard position and really began to take ownership of his team late in the season.

“I want to be a great leader for our team,” Cooper said. “That doesn’t necessarily mean leading the team in scoring, but I want to help the people that are struggling with confidence and put them in position to score.”

Cooper will be flanked by wings Isaiah Fawson and Joey Zimmerman again this season.

“We have had all of us together for four years,” Fawson said. “It is really nice because I’ve played with these guys and have confidence that we can all perform well together.”

Fawson is coming off of a second-team All-Pioneer League season and gives the Mustangs some scoring punch in the backcourt.

The senior is a capable shooter from the outside and has been working to improve his driving ability.

Zimmerman gives the squad a bulldog in the back-

Iola junior forward Ethan Holloway goes up for a shot against Santa Fe Trail last season in Carbondale. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA

court. He does a lot of the dirty work on the defensive end for Cooper and Fawson.

While Zimmerman is the most unlikely person in the starting lineup to lead the team in scoring this season, he is often a tone-setter for the team.

The Mustangs are even overflowing with senior talent among the reserves in the guard rotation. Chase Regehr and Braden Plumlee each demonstrated last year

that they can make a big impact on the game when they get the opportunity.

“We have all been playing together since we were sophomores and we know what we can do and we know how to handle the pressure and how to take care of the ball,” Cooper said.

Where the backcourt is filled with talented seniors, the frontcourt finds its leaders in the junior class.

Ethan Holloway is a

unique talent for Iola coach Jay Applegate to work with.

The 6-7 junior is not only blessed with tremendous height, but he has put in the time to develop his skill set and has a variety of post moves to go along with a smooth mid-range jumper.

Holloway has kept working to add to his repertoire of moves and played for a club team out of the Wichita area this summer.

“Sometimes summer-ball can breed bad habits,” Applegate said. “So we may have to battle that.”

Another junior Evan Sigg will join Holloway in the starting lineup this season and he gives the team another pure post player next to Holloway, where last year they went smaller with Brett Taylor at the other forward spot.

Sigg has shown that he is a very effective weapon on the block and with Holloway’s ever-improving ability to play away from the basket and demand the team’s best interior defender guard him, Sigg should be able to thrive against one-on-one matchups with team’s lesser post defenders.

The Mustangs are focused on winning championships this season and with five chances to do that, they are ready to get started.

“We have five opportunities to win championships this year and we want to win them all,” Cooper said.

“We’ve got two regular season tournaments, substate, league and state.”

Fawson agrees.

“I want our team to win everything,” Fawson said. “I want to win really bad. That is my personal goal, just to win.“

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

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4 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Talented guards power Fillies

G HEAD COACH: Becky Carlson (11th year) LAST SEASON: 9-13 Lost in sub-state finals ROSTER: Della Lohman, 12; Toni Macha, 12; Riley Murry, 12; Sydney Wade, 12; Katie Bauer, 11; Macayla Bycroft, 11; Carley Cescon, 11; Chloe Gardner, 11; Colbi Riley, 11; Madisyn Holloway, 10; Piper Moore, 10; Kassy Shelby, 10; Shaylee Sutterby, 10; Jennifer Tidd, 10; Rachel Bycroft, 9; Nissa Fountain, 9; Allie Fager, 9; Chrissy Helman, 9; Elysia Kunkler, 9; Gabby Lampe, 9; Kelsey Morrison, 9; M.J. Neises, 9; Sadrie Overall, 9; Gabby Richards, 9; Jillian Stokes, 9; Ella Taylor, 9 SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Girard 5-10 - Central Heights Tourn.

13 - Burlington 16 - at Prairie View January 3 - Anderson County 6 - at Osawatomie 13 - Wellsville 17, 20, 21 - Burlington Tourn.

27 - Chanute 31 - at Santa Fe Trail February 3 - at Burlington 7 - Prairie View 10 - at Anderson County 14 - Osawatomie 21 - at Wellsville 23 - Santa Fe Trail

oing into the 201617 season, the Iola Fillies were going to have a talented group of guards to lean on no matter what, but as the season draws closer, that group appears to be only growing stronger.

Senior Toni Macha was a versatile player for the Fillies last season but primarily was a force for opposing teams to try to stop in the post. Her post-play earned her a spot on the first-team All-Pioneer League team after leading the Fillies in points and rebounds.

This season, Macha is shifting positions and taking her skill-set to the Fillies backcourt to help compensate for the graduation of starting wings Ashlie Shields and Mikaela Platt.

“I started to transition to wing a little bit last year and I played wing for my summer league team,” Macha said. “I’ve been trying to add a little bit more range to my outside shot.”

Defense was a key consideration in the switch for Iola coach Becky Carlson.

“Toni guards so hard,” Carlson said. “I don’t worry about having her out there guarding a guard.”

Macha will join a guard group that has two very experienced players to help her transition.

“It is really exciting,” guard Sydney Wade said of Macha’s switch. “She knows two positions now so she can play either one and it helps us to have another shooter out there and a very good driver.”

Wade, a second-team allleague selection last season, returns to her spot as the Fillies point guard and the senior will be counted on to

Iola junior guard Colbi Riley drives to the basket during a game in Burlington last season. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA help an experienced group of Fillies go to the next level this season.

“I feel like I know our offense really well and that is good, because I am supposed to, I am supposed to know everyone’s position,” Wade said. “Me and coach (Carlson) are really comfortable together and I can talk to her about anything and any problems that I see.”

Carlson is looking forward to having a three-year starter running the show.

“The thing about Sydney is that she knows the game so well,” Carlson said. “She

knows how to set plays up and get us going.”

Alongside Wade and Macha will be junior Colbi Riley. Riley will likely be the only non-senior in the Iola starting lineup this season, but offers the Fillies plenty of experience after playing as the team’s first guard off the bench last season and joining the starting lineup for a late season stretch last year when Wade injured her ankle and was forced to sit out several games.

“When Sydney got hurt, Colbi came in and really didn’t miss a step,” Carlson

said.

Riley’s experience at the point guard spot helps open up the Iola offense which lost its two most prolific shooters last season with Shields and Platt. She will allow Wade to spend more time playing off the ball and that should allow Wade — the Fillies’ most proven outside shooter — to find more space to get her shot off.

“I trust Colbi completely to take the ball up the floor,” Wade said. “It helps me a lot, too, because we can switch on and off.”

Even with the position change of Macha, the Fillies’ frontcourt is very experienced with a pair of seniors likely to be the starters to begin the year.

Riley Murry did a lot of the dirty work for the Fillies last season. She started at a forward spot and while the team often looked to Macha or one of the guards to take a lot of the shots, Murry took care of a lot of the heavy lifting in the paint and provided the team with a strong rebounder and inside defender.

Joining Murry on the block this season will be a player cut from the same cloth. Della Lohmann is a hard-nosed scrapper for the Fillies and demonstrated what she could do last season while playing crunch-time minutes in Iola’s substate semifinal victory over Anderson County.

“I’m excited about our post-play and the physicality they bring to the game,” Carlson said.

The combination of Lohman and Murry isn’t likely to lead the Fillies in scoring very often this season, but their presence should allow the Fillies’ guards to shine all the brighter.

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Hoepker guides inexperienced Cubs

HEAD COACH: David Taylor (11th year) LAST SEASON: 18-5 Lost in sub-state finals ROSTER: Rayce Hoepker, 12; Daylon Splane,12; Joe Kline, 12; Lance Daniels, 11; Wyatt Seufert, 11; Hesston Murrow, 11; Zach Korte 11; Edward O'Neil, 11; Colin Gillespie, 11; Kyle O'Neil, 10; Tucker Hurst, 10; Caleb Klauman, 10; Kyler Allen, 10; Caleb Coronado, 10; Ryan Sellman, 10; Teryn Johnson, 10; Bo Bigelow, 10; Calvin Schoendaller, 10; Dylan Doolittle, 10; Xavier Bauer, 10; Reid Smith, 9; Isaiah Coronado, 9; Titan Michael, 9; Briar Orth, 9; Taylor Lassman, 9; Luke Yocham, 9; Cooper Jaro, 9; Conor Haviland, 9; Josh Hull, 9

SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Eureka 6-9 - Home Tournament 16 - at Neodesha January 3 - at Marmaton Valley 10 - Fredonia 13 - Cherryvale 17-20 - at Pleasanton Tourn.

24 - at Leon Bluestem 27 - Erie 31 - Eureka February 3 - at Caney Valley 7 - at Neodesha 10 - at Fredonia 14 - Leon Bluestem 17 - at Central Heights 21- at Cherryvale

R

ebuilding becomes much easier when you have a 19 point per game scorer returning to the fold and that is exactly what the Humboldt Cubs have in senior Rayce Hoepker.

Hoepker averaged 18.7 points per game last season, but will face a new set of challenges this season as the only returning starter for Humboldt.

With Tyler Korte, Rhett Smith, Jake Haviland, Anthony Doran, Bryce Isaac and Cory Whitcomb having graduated, the Cubs are replacing nearly all their production from last season.

Hoepker began last season as a relative unknown player for the Cubs, but by the end of the season he became the focal point of the offense and was a first-team All-TriValley and second-team AllState player.

“It helps having him back, but last year he was a little bit of a secret. This year, he is no secret so he’ll have to work even harder,” Humboldt coach David Taylor said. “He is going to have to learn to get his teammates involved and his teammates are going to have to take advantage when they have the opportunity.

“The other guys he played with last year were very unselfish and it was all about winning instead of who got the accolades and I think Rayce understands that.”

In addition to his scoring abilities, Hoepker finished with 2.8 rebounds and two assists per game.

“The other team’s best defender is going to be on him all the time and he is going to be double-teamed occasionally,” Taylor said. “He is going to have to learn to move

Humboldt senior guard Rayce Hoepker finishes off a Cub fastbreak with a lay-up during a game last season in Humboldt. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA without the ball and learn to come off of screens better. I think if everything falls in place he will have a very good year again this year.”

Hoepker understands that.

“I worked hard to get my shot quicker and getting space from the defender,” Hoepker said.

Around Hoepker, Taylor is counting on several veteran players to step into larger roles this season. Two of those players will be seniors Daylon Splane and Joe Kline.

“Daylon had a lot of good minutes in junior varsity,” Taylor said. “Hopefully those

two are a little more mature. We only played seven in varsity last year because I thought that they were the ones who were up to speed, so I think we are going to be a work in progress, but once everyone gets up to speed on the varsity level, I think we are going to be very successful.”

Splane will join Hoepker in the starting backcourt and likely be slotted in as the team’s starting point guard.

“I think Rayce is better without the ball, so I am hoping that Daylon and some of our younger kids can take some of the point

guard duties for us,” Taylor said. “Rayce moves really well without the ball and it is easier to run a guy off of a bunch of screens when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands.”

Kline gives the Cubs a physical presence for their front line where they will be trying to replace a pair of allleague frontline players with Haviland and Smith.

“We don’t have a real dominate big-man type kid, but last year we weren’t very big either,” Taylor said. “Joe has improved quite a bit so I am hoping he can fill that role for us.”

Smith was a first-team selection after averaging 13 points per game and Haviland was an honorable mention pick with 14 points per game.

Tucker Hurst is another player who Taylor is hoping can give some toughness to the forwards.

“Tucker is a fairly goodsized kid,” Taylor said. “He did some good things for us in football.”

Sophomore Bo Bigelow will be expected to provide the team with some outside shooting, but his defensive ability still needs to come around.

“Bo has a fairly high basketball skill-set,” Taylor said. “But around here if you don’t play ‘D’, it seems like you don’t get to play a lot.”

The Cubs are focused on developing the players around their star early in the season and preparing themselves for the tough league slate.

“It might take the younger guys a little while to get used to varsity play,” Hoepker said. “But once we get going, we are going to be ready for league once league comes around.“

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Cubs return loaded roster L

HEAD COACH: Aubrey Jones (3rd year) LAST SEASON: 14-7 Lost in first round of substate ROSTER: Aricah McCall Morgan Mauk Bailey Goodell Tilar Wells Lizzie Myers Emma Johnson Makayla McCall Ashlynn Booth Melanie Hallacy Cara Bartlett Rylan Wilhite Kaylie Johnson Savanna Puckett Annalise Whitcomb Kirsten Roush Maggie Johnson Alayna Johnson Winter Snyder Madison Gean

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SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Eureka 6-9 - Home Tournament 16 - at Neodesha January 3 - at Marmaton Valley 10 - Fredonia 13 - Cherryvale 17-20 - at Pleasanton Tourn.

24 - at Leon Bluestem 27 - Erie 31 - Eureka February 3 - at Caney Valley 7 - at Neodesha 10 - at Fredonia 14 - Leon Bluestem 17 - at Central Heights 21- at Cherryvale

ast year was supposed to be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Humboldt Cubs, but instead they finished the season with a 14-7 record.

The Cubs were able to accomplish that without a single senior on the team and with the entire team back this season, the Cubs have the opportunity to accomplish even more this season.

“It is extremely exciting going into the season because a lot of what we lacked last year was experience with the younger kids having to step up into roles that they weren’t used to and weren’t comfortable with yet,” Humboldt coach Aubrey Jones said. “Now, they are comfortable with it and they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

“They have a great bond together. They are really excited to all be back.”

Makaylah McCall returns off of an honorable mention all-state season last year. She averaged 12.2 points per game last season.

“I definitely want to try and get all-league and allstate again,” McCall said.

The senior averaged a double-double last season with 10.3 rebounds. She is a very well-rounded player and also had 6.3 assists per contest.

Annalise Whitcomb also returns for her third season in the Cubs starting lineup.

The senior just missed out on also averaging a doubledouble.

Whitcomb averaged nine points, 12.7 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game.

The final senior for the Cubs is Tilar Wells. She was a disruptive force on the defensive end of the court for the court and averaged over five

Humboldt senior forward Makaylah McCall passes the ball over opposing defenders during a game last season in Humboldt. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA steals per game.

“Bringing back everyone from last year gives us high expectations because we should be even better than we were last year,” Wells said.

Wells is also a capable outside shooter who provides a floor spacing for McCall and Whitcomb to do their work inside.

Jones is excited to see what some of last season’s role players can accomplish with another year of maturity and growth. Maggie Johnson and Aricah McCall each contributed as freshmen, but Jones

is looking forward to a jump in productivity as sophomores.

“Maggie and Aricah had quick backup minutes and gave us quick breather minutes when we needed it,” Jones said. “This summer they really worked hard and proved that they are ready to step into bigger roles and help out more.”

Wells certainly has high hopes for herself and her teammates this year.

“My first goal is to go to state,” Wells said.

McCall echoes her class-

mate’s sentiments.

“I expect that we should be on the same level as last year, if not better, because we have nothing but returners and newcomers,” McCall said. “I expect to go to state.”

The continuity is already paying off during the preseason practice schedule with how comfortable the team is with each other.

“It helps us a lot,” McCall said. “We know each other so well and they know that I like to joke around. We communicate a lot better on the court and it just looks a lot better when we play on the court.”

The advantage of having experience is already trickling down to the team’s next generation of players as well with the team’s veterans making sure the newcomers are ready to contribute right away.

“You always have to take into account the freshmen and newcomers, because eventually they will be my upperclassmen,” Jones said.

“What is nice having all of those returners and kids that have been in this program for a couple of years is that they are extremely helpful and encouraging of the younger kids. That way it isn’t just them hearing the broken record of me over and over again, they can get it from their peers and teammates, who they want to learn to play like anyway.”

Seniors Cara Bartlett, Whitcomb, McCall and Wells lead the way in the leadership department.

“All four of my seniors are great about talking to our younger ones. They have been here since I stepped on campus and they know what I want,” Jones said. “I can’t say enough good things about the four of them.“

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Bauer takes over Wildcat program J

HEAD COACH: Jason Bauer (1st year) LAST SEASON: Lost in first round of substate ROSTER: Caiden Elliott Justice Pugh Gage Griffith Josh Wise Brock Hall Korbin Smith Ty Scharff Collin Dudley Isaac Heskett Bo Knavel Dmitri Lamping Keaton Noland Anthony Bottini Nate McAloon Alec Cochran

10 11 10 11 11 11 9 9 10 10 12 10 9 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Uniontown 6, 8, 9 - MV Tournament January 3 - Humboldt 6 - Crest 10 - at St. Paul 13 - Pleasanton 16-20 - Pleasanton Tourn.

24 - at Oswego 27 - at Yates Center 31 - at Altoona-Midway February 3 - Uniontown 7 - Northeast Arma 10 - Southern Coffey Co. 14 - at Chetopa 17 - at Pleasanton 21 - Jayhawk-Linn

ason Bauer’s Marmaton Valley Wildcats certainly aren’t going to be out worked this season.

Bauer inherits a Wildcat team squad that doesn’t have a senior on the team after the graduations of stalwarts Keagan Boyd, Brady Newman and Gage Adams.

“We have a lot of young kids this team,” junior guard Justice Pugh said. “It is hard to go from having those three seniors last year, who were pretty good, to having a lot of kids who have barely even played basketball before.”

Not having a senior would be a negative for most coaches in most situations, but for Bauer, it represents an opportunity. The first-year coach has a clean slate to work with.

“We have made a lot of strides since the first day of practice,” Bauer said. “It is new to me and it is new to them. They are starting to understand what I want to see.”

With the three departed seniors also representing the three tallest players on last year’s team, the Wildcats will be relying on their speed more than ever to drive the team this season.

“We are going to have to play defense,” Bauer said.

“We are going to be in your face and we are going to win games because of our defense. We need to be smart.

They know that we play defense with our feet and not our hands and they better not be reaching or they will end up sitting by me.”

In order to implement that style the Wildcats have spent a lot of their practice time focused on get into the best shape they can be in so that when the season begins they

Marmaton Valley junior guard Justice Pugh dribbles the ball down the court during a preseason Wildcat practice in Moran. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA are prepared to run and execute Bauer’s vision.

“We are going to be trying to get easy baskets from the press and they know that so we need to be in great shape,” Bauer said.

The most important player in making sure the Wildcats can set the pace they want is Pugh, a returning starter at point guard from last season’s team.

“He has done well in practice and has looked like he worked on his game since football ended,” Bauer said.

Pugh is enjoying playing Bauer’s system during the

team’s preseason practice slate.

“I don’t like to slow it down at all,” Pugh said. “I really like that we are going to be an up-tempo team.”

Korbin Smith is the tallest Wildcat returning from last year’s squad at only 5-11, but he will be counted on to provided some leadership to a frontcourt that is basically starting from scratch this season.

“We have to step up and show the young kids how to go through drills and be big down low,” Smith said. “We have most of our guards

back, but as far as post players, we are starting all over completely.”

Smith is excited to take the lessons he learned from the seniors in front of him in the lineup last season and implement them into his game this year and teach some skills to the younger players behind him in the lineup.

“These next two years are our chance as juniors and we are going to have to be leaders,” Smith said.

Bauer has been very happy with the way Smith and Pugh have conducted themselves in preseason practice.

Although they have different styles, both players have begun to take ownership role in the young team.

“Justice leads with his play and is definitely a leadby-example type of guy,” Bauer said. “Korbin is our vocal leader. He will take time out and make sure that the kids are doing things correctly and he won’t accept it any other way.”

When the season tips off in Uniontown, the Wildcats will be hoping to get off to a good start to develop some confidence among their less experienced players.

“It is really important to start strong,” Pugh said. “Especially with the younger guys, because if they get down on themselves, it will be harder to pull them out of that.”

No matter how the season turns out, Bauer realizes that it is a process to turn around a program that has struggled as much as Marmaton Valley has in recent years, but with a hungry team, Bauer hopes to be able to fast track the learning curve and begin seeing results in the win column sooner rather than later.

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

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12 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Cole’s ’babies’ set to lead Wildcats T

HEAD COACH: Gavin Cole (4th year) LAST SEASON: 8-13 Lost in first round of substate ROSTER: Kyla Drake Misty Storrer Magie Stevenson Brooklynn Newman Taryn Covey Isabelle Bigelow Kaitlyn Knavel Trinitee Gutierrez Shailee Woods Sarah Spillman Paige Becker Karma Knavel Kaitlin Johnson Bailey Griffith Isabella Duke Kennedee Redburn Kirsten Adams

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

12 12 12 12 12 11 11 11 10 10 10 10 10 9 9 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 2 - at Uniontown 6, 8, 9 - MV Tournament January 3 - Humboldt 6 - Crest 10 - at St. Paul 13 - Pleasanton 16-20 - Pleasanton Tourn.

24 - at Oswego 27 - at Yates Center 31 - at Altoona-Midway February 3 - Uniontown 7 - Northeast Arma 10 - Southern Coffey Co. 14 - at Chetopa 17 - at Pleasanton 21 - Jayhawk-Linn

he Marmaton Valley girls basketball seniors and coach Gavin Cole have a close bond. Four years ago when Cole took the Wildcat job his freshman class included Kyla Drake, Misty Storrer, Brooklyn Newman and Magie Stevenson.

“We have played together for a long time, some of us since Bitty Ball, so we really understand each other and having (Cole) all of these years, we really understand him well as a coach and get along great,” Drake said.

“We are Gavin’s babies. We are the first group that he had and now we are about to graduate so we want to end on a good note.”

The feeling is mutual.

“I’d be lying if I said they weren’t a special group for me,” Cole said. “They have grown with me. They got thrown into the fire pretty quick and with me as a young coach, I had to learn as we went. They are definitely a special group in my eyes.”

Now with Taryn Covey added to the mix, the Wildcats are a senior-laden team with five seniors who have started significant games last season.

“Our group of five seniors have all played a lot of basketball,” Cole said.

“Taryn moved in last year after transferring from Crest. Misty and Kyla have each started since they were freshmen... They all have a lot of experience as upperclassmen.”

There will be a void in the middle this season for the Wildcats after the graduation of star center Mackenzie Tynon.

With Tynon’s departure, it will turn the Wildcats into

Marmaton Valley senior guard Kyla Drake dribbles the ball during last season’s sub-state game in Moran against Southern Coffey County. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA more of a running team with a much smaller lineup.

“We have to adjust our style of play because we don’t have a post-up player that is able to give us 15 points a night,” Cole said. “We will be wired a little bit differently.

We are going to have to get up and down the floor a little bit more and run. We have to use our speed to our advantage.”

One of the keys to being a more up-tempo team is the transition of Storrer from the backcourt to the frontcourt.

With Storrer and Stevenson — both 5-8 — slated to start at the post spots for Cole, the Wildcats are very aware that they will be undersized nearly every time they take the floor, but they hope their toughness will make up for their lack of height.

“I’ll probably be the shortest post in the league so that will be a pretty big task to take on, but I am looking forward to it,” Storrer said.

“I’m trying to get beefier, but I’m pretty scrawny so that is going to suck.”

Despite being “scrawny,” Storrer was able to play physical enough last season to be the team’s leading returning rebounder with 5.9 per game.

The biggest key to the uptempo offense will be Drake, however. The guard is the Wildcats’ top returning scorer with 6.7 points-per-game and defensive player with 2.3 steals-per-contest.

Drake will have a much larger role this season without Tynon and she will likely be the one counted on to be the team’s go-to option.

This isn’t the first time Drake has been asked to take a bigger role for the Wildcats. During volleyball season, she was asked to become the team’s top player and fill Tynon’s shoes. She responded to that challenge by posting a unanimous all-league first-team season.

Now Cole must hope that Drake can repeat that feat during the basketball season.

Covey and Newman split time at the other guard spot last season, but now with Storrer making the switch to forward, they both will likely be permanent fixtures in the starting unit.

The veteran team is ready to get the season started.

“I am stoked,” Storrer said. “I think we can accomplish a lot and we have been playing together since the third grade and learned a lot over the years. It is time to show what we can do with all the experience we have.”

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

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14 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Lancers try to rebuild quickly

A HEAD COACH: Travis Hermreck (11th year) LAST SEASON: 14-8 Lost in sub-state final to Hartford ROSTER: Kanon Coberley Evan Bain Jasper Davis Ryan Culler Nick Vaughn Nate Berry Austin Hendrix John Wood Hayden Hermreck Bryce Atzbach Hayden Seabolt Caleb Stephens Greg Hardwick

10 9 9 10 11 12 11 10 10 10 11 11 9

SCHEDULE: December 1 - Southern Coffey Co. 6 - at Humboldt Tourn.

8 - at Humboldt Tourn.

9 - at Humboldt Tourn.

13 - at Pleasanton January 3 - at Northeast Arma 6 - at Marmaton Valley 13 - Altoona-Midway 16 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

18 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

20 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

27 - Uniontown 31 - at Yates Center February 3 - Chetopa 7 - at Olpe 10 - at Oswego 14 - Lebo 16 - at Jayhawk-Linn 21 - Madison 23 - St. Paul

ny fan going to watch the Crest Lancers boys’ basketball team this season may want to keep their program handy.

This Lancer team is about to enter into one of largest rebuilding projects imaginable.

The team is replacing its top six players from last season’s team that advanced to within one game of the state tournament before losing in Hartford, and with Hunter Frazell, Evan Godderz, Colton Strickler, Brandon Brallier, Garrett Sipe and Kellen Ramsey having graduated, it is time for the next generation to make their mark.

“Most people don’t know much about us because we lost that top six last year and we are bringing up the young guys,” Crest coach Travis Hermreck said. “They are young, hungry and ready to play.”

That hunger and the team’s tenacity will be key in the effort to replace all the talent the team lost from a year ago.

“They are a lot like I am, because they like to be doubted,” Hermreck said.

“They have a chip on their shoulder. We have some growing pains that we will go through, but at some point this year we are going to be a very competitive team. I am excited for that.”

Hermreck is going into his 11th season as the Lancers’ coach and has seen all sorts of different teams in his time in Colony, but he says that the special thing about working at Crest is that no matter how tempered expectations are, the community will support its Lancers.

“Here at Crest, the kids

Lancer junior forward Caleb Stephens glides in for a lay-up during one of the Lancers’ preseason practices in Colony. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA that have come before this group have put so much into what they have done,” Hermreck said. “They have worked so hard and committed so much into it and then we get a rebuilding year like this year and it is nice to see people still come around. A lot of times when the seniors graduate, everyone moves on and they lose interest in you.

They assume that they know

what is going to happen to your season and they lose interest in you, but not around here.”

That support should be rewarded this season with a young team that is sure to show plenty of growth throughout the season.

Sophomore Hayden Hermreck and junior Austin Hendrix represent a lot of the hope that exists in Crest.

They each saw spot minutes on the floor last season, but this season, they get the keys to the Lancer offense.

“Obviously we are all young. In the past when younger guys have come up, we’ve had older guys there knowing what is going on,” Hayden Hermreck said.

“This year we are all in the same boat though.”

Hendrix will take over the point guard responsibilities this season and he is looking forward to that chance to guide his team.

“I have to be the new face of this team,” Hendrix said.

“To do that, I have to have consistency and work hard out there... When I am on the court, whether they realize it or not (my teammates) are looking up to me as one of the captains of the team.”

Despite still being an underclassman, Hermreck knows that without Frazell on the roster, Crest is looking for a player to be their go-to guy when they need a basket late in games and he hopes that he can fill that role.

“I am looking to be the guy that we can count on to score,” Hermreck said.

One thing going in Hermreck’s favor is that the player he is trying to replace has been helping guide him throughout the Crest preseason practices with Frazell attending several of the team’s practices and helping the coaching staff while providing plenty of wisdom to this next generation.

“Around here, when we have five guys come in and even just play a pick-up game with the new guys, it is like there are five coaches on the floor to help our young players,” Travis Hermreck said.

“It is really a pretty special deal.”

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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16 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Lancer rebuild takes next step

C HEAD COACH: Elaine Holloway (3rd year) LAST SEASON: 2-20 Lost in second round of substate to Hartford ROSTER: Miranda Golden Laurel Godderz Makayla Jones* Reagan Godderz Cassie Bowen Camryn Strickler Jewel Armstrong Callie McGhee Ridley Black Annie Culler

12 12 11 10 10 10 10 12 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 1 - Southern Coffey Co. 6 - at Humboldt Tourn.

8 - at Humboldt Tourn.

9 - at Humboldt Tourn.

13 - at Pleasanton January 3 - at Northeast Arma 6 - at Marmaton Valley 13 - Altoona-Midway 16 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

18 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

20 - at Liberal Mo. Tourn.

27 - Uniontown 31 - at Yates Center February 3 - Chetopa 7 - at Olpe 10 - at Oswego 14 - Lebo 16 - at Jayhawk-Linn 21 - Madison 23 - St. Paul

rest offered the ultimate rebuilding project for coach Elaine Holloway when she accepted the Lancers’ job three years ago.

In Holloway’s first season on the job, the Lancers were forced to forfeit a portion of their season and once played a stretch with just three players.

Last year, help arrived in the form of four freshmen newcomers.

The Lancers still struggled last season by only winning two games, but without any seniors on last season’s team, the Lancers set themselves up with a very experienced team for the 2016-17 season.

“At our first practice, I stopped them and told them that I was liking what I was seeing, because they were just doing what I asked and knew what to do,” Holloway said. “It was a relief because I could just take a deep breath and realize that I don’t have to reteach everything.”

Senior Miranda Golden serves as the anchor for the Crest offense and defense.

The 6-1 center has tremendous size that few teams in the Three Rivers League can match.

“There are a lot of schools that keep asking if she is a senior yet,” Holloway said.

“They are ready for her to be gone.”

Golden was the team’s leading scorer at 9.4 points per game.

The Lancer’s other returning senior is wing Laurel Godderz.

“Being a senior, I am very excited about this group,” Godderz said. “Last year, we were like a family and got along really well together.

Crest senior center Miranda Golden goes up for a shot last season against Olpe in Colony. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA With the same people plus our addition, I think we will do great things.”

The 5-4 wing averaged 7.6 points per contest last season.

Golden and Godderz will be expected to provide the leadership the Lancers will need to make a big jump up the Three Rivers League standings.

The key for the team’s growth will come from Laurel’s sister Regan Godderz.

Godderz will be the team’s

starting point guard for a second year and Holloway is excited about the growth she has shown.

“I ask a lot of Regan,” Holloway said. “She had a lot of very good games and then she had games where she would get into her own head and it would affect the whole team.

“She told me that she is feeling a lot more confident now, because she isn’t that freshman now.”

Regan Godderz averaged

six points per game last year including a stretch in the middle of the season where she scored double figures in four straight games including 13 points in Crest’s win over Altoona-Midway.

“Regan is a dominant point guard,” Laurel Godderz said.

“She can do whatever she wants with the ball.”

Regan Godderz wasn’t the only freshman to make an impact last year. Camryn Strickler was the team’s fourth-leading scorer last season and the athletic 5-7 player is a versatile weapon for the Lancers.

Junior Makayla Jones and sophomores Cassie Bowen and Jewel Armstrong round out the returning players for Crest.

“Cassie Bowen has been working her butt off,” Holloway said. “She will be another post player that I will have down low. She just isn’t as big as Miranda is, but she is learning and she does what I ask of her.”

Laurel Godderz has been impressed with the young players’ development as well.

“Cassie and Camryn have really improved over the summer,” Godderz said.

Three new Lancers will join the team this season with senior Callie McGhee and freshmen Ridley Black and Annie Culler.

Holloway says that although there is a lot to be excited about with this team, they are not going to get ahead of themselves and they need to stay focused on simply improving every time they take the floor.

“For this year, we are just taking it one game at a time,” Holloway said. “We are close, but we haven’t been able to quite get over the hump.“

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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17

18 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Blazek, Toney look to return to state

T

here is little doubt about who the leaders of the wrestling team at Iola are this

Iola senior Tavon Blazek wrestles during last season's regional tournament in Columbus. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA

season.

With state-qualifiers Colton Toney and Tavon Blazek back for their senior seasons, the Mustangs are in good hands in the leadership department, even if the two seniors have very different approaches to leading.

“They really complement each other,” Iola coach Jason Bates said. “Colton is the talker and he’s the funny guy, while Tavon is just a hard worker and he busts his butt every day at practice. Both of them are positive guys that like to have fun and they make the team an actual team.”

On the mat, Toney and

Blazek will give the Mustangs two anchors at the bottom of their lineup to provide consistent team points.

“I was glad to see them make it to state last year,” Bates said. “It gave them the opportunity to see what it takes to be that kind of wrestler and I really think it will motivate them this year to work even harder and to give everything they have.”

One new addition to the wrestling room this season is senior Seth Sanford, who took a brief hiatus from the sport, but is looking to come back strong in his final opportunity on the mat this season.

The Mustangs begin the year with 16 wrestlers after ending the year with only seven last season.

HEAD COACH: Jason Bates (3rd year) SCHEDULE: December 3 - at Caney Invitational 10 - at Anderson Co. Invite 15 - Erie at Humboldt January 7 - at Burlington Invitational 12 - LCHS at Erie 17 - Columbus at Fort Scott 21 - at Eureka Invitational 26 - Independence, Caney 28 - Fredonia Invitational February 2 - West Elk, Osawatomie 9 - League at Santa Fe Trail

Cubs try to make sophomore leap

H HEAD COACH: Tell Wyrick (2nd year) SCHEDULE: December 1 - at Leon-Bluestem 3 - at Caney 15 - Iola at Erie 20 - Diamond at Southeast January 7 - at Burlington 21 - at Eureka 28 - Fredonia February 10 - League at Cherryvale

umboldt and coach Tell Wyrick started from scratch last season and now as they begin their second season as a program, they are poised to make a jump.

“Last year was the first year,” Wyrick said. “We were pretty much all new to the sport so it was a building year for them.”

Dagen Goodner came into last season as one of the most experienced members of the Humboldt program with a vast amount of time on the youth circuit. That experience paid off. Goodner was the only member of the Cubs’ team to finish the season with a winning record. Now, the sophomore is looking to lead the Cub program as they continue their growth.

“The program is building,” Goodner said. “This year I want to dominate the 160-pound class and when it comes to state, earn a podium spot.”

The team around Goodner is growing as well with several members experiencing different degrees of success.

Noah Johnson and Seth Hegwald are two of the primary returners with experience.

“Last year, everyone was very nervous with the first year of the program,” Johnson said. “Now I think, especially with the returners, everyone is more comfortable.”

Humboldt finished last season with only eight kids on the roster, but their numbers have grown to 14 for the program’s second year. Wyrick expects a lot of growth from

The 2016-17 Humboldt wrestling team consists of, back row, left to right, Chad Classen, Dagen Goodner, Noah Johnson, Seth Hegwald, Levi Habiger, Brady Slocum; front row; Josh Vanatta, Speed Hoepker, Cheyenne Harris, Gunner Elder; not pictured; Sam Wehlage and Nate Todd. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA his kids throughout the season with only two weeks of preseason practice.

“There is so much a lot of our kids still need to learn

about the sport,” Wyrick said. “It is a very physical and technical sport and it’s hard to teach that to a kid in two weeks.”

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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20 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Wildcats return talented core

S HEAD COACH: Tanner Davis (3rd year) LAST SEASON: 10-11 Lost in first round of substate to St. Mary’s Colgan ROSTER: Jon Barnes Mikey Bruner Gavin Dillow Kobe Forsyth Braydon Gaulding Josh King Jordan Smith Nolan Jones Aaron King Hadley Splechter Trent Burton Cade DeWitt Caden Graham Jaymond Rice Asher Sievers Tytan Smoot Reece Solander

12 12 12 11 11 11 11 10 10 10 9 9 9 9 9 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 1 - Neodesha 5-9 - Wildcat Tournament 16 - at Altoona-Midway January 3 - at Flinthills 6 - at West Elk 13 - Jayhawk-Linn 16-20 - at Neodesha Tourn.

24 - Pleasanton 27 - Marmaton Valley 31 - Crest February 3 - Oswego 7 - at Uniontown 10 - at Erie 14 - at Northeast Arma 17 - St. Paul 21 - at Chetopa

witching from the TriValley League to the Three Rivers League should provide the Yates Center Wildcats with plenty of optimism for the 2016-17 season. The other thing that will give the Wildcats hope is their talented and experienced roster.

“We are very excited and very optimistic this season,” senior guard Mikey Bruner said. “We hope to have a really good season with so many good guys back.”

The Wildcats return six players with some sort of starting experience and the fact that only one of those players is a senior gives coach Tanner Davis even more reason to be excited.

“It is an incredibly exciting year to bring back all of that experience,” Davis said. “In a way, we are still young, but as far as experience we have a lot.

“We want to make teams try and keep up with us and run up and down. At the same time we need to play smart.”

Bruner will run the show again for one final year and he provides a steadying force for his younger teammates.

“Mikey is a hybrid he can play anywhere from a one to a four spot,” Davis said.

Bruner averaged three assists per game as a junior last season.

Joining Bruner in the backcourt will be Jordan Smith, who broke out last season after going into the year with an uncertain role with older, more experienced players in the lineup.

“I want to develop into a leader of the team and help us win, that is pretty much it,” Smith said. “We are probably one of the more athletic teams in our league and I think we can out-run pretty

Yates Center junior guard Jordan Smith drives past an opposing defender during a game in Yates Center last season. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA much everybody and score a lot, I hope. That is the plan at least.”

Smith ran cross country this fall in part to prepare himself for basketball season and get into great shape. The decision certainly paid off for Smith as he finished seventh in the state and says he feels great heading into basketball season.

“I feel really comfortable,”

Smith said. “I’m excited to see what I can do.”

Smith quickly became one of the top players for the Wildcats and with him joining forces with Bruner at the guard spots, Yates Center should be in good hands.

“Jordan was great for us last year,” Davis said. “He is just an all-around good kid and he wants to be good and continue to get better. He

works hard every single day.

This year, I am looking for him to step up and be even more of a leader out there.

That will be another huge step for him” The frontcourt should also be rock-solid for the Wildcats this season thanks in large part due to the return of the King brothers.

Aaron King burst onto the scene in a big way last season by leading the Wildcats in scoring at 14 points per game as a freshman.

“Any time you can get a 6-3 kid who can play outside it is always fun,” Davis said.

“Aaron can play a little bit of everything. If you get mismatches, he can go down low, he can shoot outside, and he can get to the basket with the best of them. He is a versatile kid who brings a lot to the table.”

With another year to develop and hone his skill, Davis expects even bigger things from his talented forward this year.

Joining Aaron King on the block with be his older brother Josh King. The junior led the team in rebounding last season at seven per game.

With both King brothers having a year under their belts playing against the larger schools in the Tri-Valley League, they will each be looking to have a strong season against the smaller Three Rivers League competition.

The Wildcats feature a deep bench. The fifth starter and bench roles will be filled seniors Gavin Dillow and Jon Barnes along with juniors Kobe Forsyth, Braydon Gaulding and sophomores Nolan Jones and Hadley Splechter.

“You add all those guys up and we have ten guys that we can run in and out of there on varsity,” Davis said. “It is go-

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

New coach, new league offers hope

T

he Yates Center Wildcats with be going through a transition this season as they open the season with a new coach at the helm for the second season in a row.

After Jason Graf spent one season coaching the Wildcats, veteran coach Dallas Scothorn will take over the Yates Center program which has struggled in recent seasons.

Scothorn has coached at several stops in his career with stints at Burlingame and Mission Valley. He also spent over a decade as the athletic director and principal at Burlington. While at Burlington, he served as the boys basketball assistant coach.

After retiring, Scothorn just couldn’t stay away from sports and coached the Yates Center Middle School boys basketball team until this year when Graf and he traded roles. Graf took over the middle school boys squad, while Scothorn inherited the Wildcat high school girls program.

“They were able to talk me back into coaching and now I am back into it again,” Scothorn said.

As practices opened up, Scothorn is taking his team’s progress day-by-day and simply looking for improvement each day.

“Tuesday’s practice was a lot better than Monday’s,” Scothorn said. “We’ve got a lot to do and a short time to do it in, but they have been very eager to learn and that is a good thing.”

Scothorn says his personal philosophy is to play a highpaced style of basketball, but he is not going to rush his team into a specific style until he discovers what works best for them.

“I’m an up-tempo style of

Yates Center junior forward Katelynn Jones makes a pass during a Wildcat preseason practice in Yates Center. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA

coach, but I don’t know if we have the numbers to do it,” Scothorn said. “I want to get the ball up and down the floor quickly, but I don’t know if we have the numbers to play that way.”

The team only has three returning upperclassmen so the burden on them to be strong leaders throughout another adjustment to a new

coaching staff will weigh heavily on them.

“Emily Proper, Katelynn Jones and Melanie Hegwald are my three upperclassmen right now and they will be looked to lead,” Scothorn said.

Jones says the team is adjusting well to Scothorn’s approach to practice.

“His style is very differ-

ent from our past coaches with Graf and (Chris) Wells,” Jones said. “They were a lot more into the running and conditioning part and he is more focused bettering our skills.”

Scothorn may have more of a chance for success this season than his predecessors have.

“I feel like we are acting more like a team than we have in the past couple of years so we have come together from that aspect,” Jones said. “We have a lot of natural talent coming into this year.”

The team has several intriguing young players including 5-10 sophomore Allie Pringle who figures to be a bigger part of the team’s game plan this season. Sophomore guard Jordan Weseloh has also shown promise early in her career “Allie Pringle played quite a bit last year and Jordan Weseloh did as well,” Scothorn said when asked who he was looking to have step up among the underclassmen on his roster.

One thing is certain, Scothorn is inheriting a group of players that are hungry to turn the program around and experience success at the high school level.

“In my high school career, we have won a total of three games so I just really want to improve on that number,” Jones said.

The team is ready to prove doubters wrong after being picked to finish ninth in the league.

“Our goal as a team is to show the league that they don’t know us,” Scothorn said. “We are short in numbers and have a challenge in front of us, but we expect to meet those challenges throughout the season.“

21

HEAD COACH: Dallas Scothorn (1st year) LAST SEASON: 2-19 Lost in first round of substate ROSTER: Emily Proper Essy Vargas Melanie Hegwald Katelynn Jones Emma Chrisman Maria Jimenez Allie Pringle Jordan Weseloh Jaylee Catron Maddie Collins Taylor Jacobs Elizabeth Wertz

12 12 11 11 10 10 10 10 9 9 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 1 - Neodesha 5-9 - Wildcat Tournament 16 - at Altoona-Midway January 3 - at Flinthills 6 - at West Elk 13 - Jayhawk-Linn 16-20 - at Neodesha Tourn.

24 - Pleasanton 27 - Marmaton Valley 31 - Crest February 3 - Oswego 7 - at Uniontown 10 - at Erie 14 - at Northeast Arma 17 - St. Paul 21 - at Chetopa

22 Tuesday, November 29, 2016

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Titans hope speed pays dividends M

HEAD COACH: Zach Douglas (3rd year) LAST SEASON: 6-16 Lost in second round of substate to St. Paul ROSTER: Lane Gibson Bryce Isch Trevor Filbrun Weston Weers Chonnor Ludolph Jett Harvey Dawson Leimkuhler Kogan Ohl Zeke Lyons Jonathan Borntreger Luke Gillis Trenton Yoho Brett Stout Derek Ratzlaff Coy Dresch Cooper Harred Cale Lee

11 12 12 12 11 10 10 10 9 10 11 10 10 9 12 9 10

SCHEDULE: December 1 - at Crest 5-9 - Yates Center Tourn.

13 - MdCV 16 - at Waverly 20 - at Burlingame January 6 - Olpe 10 - at Hartford 13 - Madison 17 - Lebo 23-26 - LCL Tournament at Emporia February 3 - Waverly 7 - at MdCV 9 - St. Paul 10 - at Marmaton Valley 17 - Lebo 21 - Uniontown

any teams go into the season preaching about wanting to play at a faster pace, but for the Southern Coffey County boys team, there is certainly no question that few teams will be able to match the pure speed that the Titans will be able to throw at opponents this season.

“Our No. 1 goal is to get out in transition and try to run as much as we can,” Titan coach Zach Douglas said.

Junior guard Chonnor Ludolph is coming off of a second-team All-State caliber season when he guided Southern Coffey County from his point guard position and was able to accumulate some gaudy statistics with 14 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3 assists per game.

“He definitely is what makes our team go,” Douglas said.

Ludolph spent the offseason in preparation to become a more well-rounded offensive weapon. During his sophomore season, Ludolph only shot 21 percent from behind the arc, but he is confident that he can add the threat of an outside jumper to his arsenal.

If he can do that, there may not be a more dangerous offensive threat in the area.

“I’m really excited. I feel like we have a pretty good squad. We are still pretty young, but I think that just means that we are going to keep getting better. We are good when we are in transition which is going to be a big part of our offense because we can get out and run with our speed.”

Ludolph will be able to share more of the play-making role in the Titans’ backcourt this season with the

Southern Coffey County junior guard Chonnor Ludolph drives to the basket during a preseason practice in LeRoy. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA much-anticipated arrival of freshman Zeke Lyons.

“Having two point guards is a big advantage,” Ludolph said. “Look at Kansas with Frank Mason and Devonte Graham and what they can do with two point guards. It is going to be nice, because we can switch positions if we need to.”

Lyons was a dominant player on the middle school level last season and his vast skillset already appears to be translating well to the high school game.

“Zeke brings a lot of talent to our team this year,” senior Weston Weers said.

Lyons has been running the point for the Titans in practice and with his talent with the ball in his hands, it opens up the offense for Douglas and allows Ludolph to play off-ball.

Lyons also brings a capable jump shot to the table which should provide more space in the offense for Ludolph and the other Titans to work.

While the presence of Lyons and Ludolph would

make any squad a fast-paced team, it is 6-4 big-man Dawson Leimkuhler who pushes that team speed to the next level.

“The major key is our ability to control the pace,” Ludolph said. “We can’t let opponents control what we do.”

Last season, the sophomore averaged 9.9 points and 7 rebounds per game.

“Dawson is the fastest kid we have and has all the tools in the world,” Douglas said.

Joining the three speedsters in the starting lineup is Weers.

“He has improved the most out of any kid I’ve seen in the past two years,” Douglas said.

The wing looks to improve on his numbers from a season ago when he averaged 8.5 points-per-game and led the team by shooting over 30 percent from behind the three point arc.

“I really worked on my three-point shot,” Weers said. “That is a big thing for me to try to get better at.”

The Titan lineup will be topped off with sophomore Kolgan Ohl joining Leimkuhler on the front line. Ohl was injured early last season, but his return should really bolster the Titan frontcourt.

With Lyons on the team and Ohl back, the Southern Coffey County bench will feature a pair of experienced seniors.

“Our bench is pretty deep this year,” Ludolph said.

“We are able to go nine or 10 deep.”

Bryce Isch averaged 4.7 points-per-game and led the team in steals. Trevor Filburn gives the team another veteran guard with the quickness to play with the Titan starters.

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Titans look to make jump T he Southern Coffey County Titans will be looking to build off of what was a disappointing season last year when they finished seventh in the Lyon County League with a 1-6 league mark and a 9-13 record overall The biggest positive going to the Titans is that they have the ultimate steadying presence guiding the ship with 27-year coaching veteran Jeff True at the helm of the program.

“We just need to be more consistent in all phases,” True said. “If we can be more consistent then that allows us to become more competitive.”

True has won over 300 games in his coaching career and orchestrated all sorts of teams during that time. This season he has a group that appears ready to take that next step in the rebuilding process with several of their top players becoming upperclassmen this year.

“I’m very optimistic with a lot of our scoring coming back,” True said. “We lost a lot of experience last year, but a lot of our returning players have a lot of experience, too.”

Juniors Danielle Kasprzak and Ericah Lyons begin their second season as fulltime starters and they will be counted on to take a big part of the on-court leadership responsibility this season for the Titans.

Lyons was a second-team all-league last year while starting at guard and sharing the lead guard responsibilities with senior Kalyn Deal.

With Deal graduated, Lyons will be asked to do more.

The 5-6 guard averaged 9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.2 steals and 2.3 assists last sea-

Southern Coffey County junior Danielle Kasprzak dribbles during a game last season in Moran. REGISTER/JON DYKSTRA son.

“Erikah plays more like she is 6-2, because her vertical is just crazy good,” True said.

Kasprzak is a Swiss-Army knife for the Titans. The 5-10 playmaker can play whatever role True asks of her, but she will likely play a wing spot with the Titans losing much of their backcourt production outside of Lyons.

On the front line, Southern Coffey County has a pair of sophomores who were able to give the team some

minutes on the varsity level last season, but will be asked to do much more in their second years.

Haven Harvey is a 5-11 center and Crystal Alumbaugh is a 5-9 forward. Harvey averaged 1.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game, while Alumbaugh scored 1.8 points and collected 3.2 rebounds per game.

“We go bigger this year, because Alumbaugh can handle the ball and shoot from the outside so we put a pretty good-sized team on

the floor with Kasprzak and Alumbaugh able to play the wing spots,” True said.

True projects both Harvey and Alumbaugh to earn starting spots.

Around his young core, True is excited about what his seniors can bring to the table this season.

Kaitlyn Meats, Emma Lehmann and Carolyn Vanderman each offer excellent leadership qualities and will provide great depth for the Titans.

“I’m embracing all of it,” Lehmann said. “I’m a born leader basically and I love how we have so many veterans on the team to keep everyone in check.”

Lehmann will help back up Lyons and the rest of the Titan backcourt.

“I’m really excited for my senior year and I think it’s going to be a blast,” Lehmann said. “I just want to better myself in any way that I can as a player. I want to improve one percent in every area.”

Meats will be an important role player and mentor to the young Southern Coffey County bigs.

“I feel like this year we are going to be better than we were coming out of the gate last season,” Meats said.

Vanderman was forced to miss last season due to injury, but she provides the team with another physical presence in the paint.

“My personal goal is to make sure I keep everyone up and talking,” Vanderman said of her leadership ability.

True is excited to see what Vanderman is capable of this season.

“If she gets her hands on the ball, there isn’t anyone that is going to take it a way from her,” True said.

23

HEAD COACH: Jeff True (14th year) LAST SEASON: 9-13 Lost in second round of substate ROSTER: Danielle Kasperzak Erikah Lyons Haven Harvey Crystal Alumbaugh Kaitlyn Meats Kimberlyn Gunlock Jordyn Stone Emma Lehmann Carolyn Vanderman Bryli Copeland Reed Snovelle

11 11 10 10 12 11 10 12 12 9 9

SCHEDULE: December 1 - at Crest 5-9 - Yates Center Tourn.

13 - MdCV 16 - at Waverly 20 - at Burlingame January 6 - Olpe 10 - at Hartford 13 - Madison 17 - Lebo 23-26 - LCL Tournament at Emporia February 3 - Waverly 7 - at MdCV 9 - St. Paul 10 - at Marmaton Valley 17 - Lebo 21 - Uniontown

24 Tuesday, November 29, 2016 Bes

t Wishes SCC

!

H

rs & Remodelers

um Re C A l bo gio ou len n n ld a ty t lC no l w ini op c en

!

The Iola Register Winter Sports Special

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