11/21/2022
BY JACK BULLOCK
CARBONDALE - The Eldorado Eagles have the makings of a team that could be much improved over last season's 19-10 overall, 7-3 BDC East Division, finish.

Considering that Coach Josh Bradley and his club lost their first three games of the season at the Vienna Thanksgiving Classic, it was quite a turn around last year.

The Eagles handed Carmi-White County its only league defeat (51-44 on February 7) and had won 12-of-13 games before losing to Carterville in the Harrisburg Regional semifinals.

Missing from that team is four-year starter Parker Price, an ABV honorable mention selection, along with Gage Heath and Josh Owens.

That trio represented a bunch of scoring and leadership.

Coach Bradley has his son returning for his senior year as 6-5 forward Boston Bradley (who averaged a double-double in points and rebounds as a junior) will lead the Eagles into the campaign.

Two other seniors will also be a big part of what the Eagles can do.

Six-four senior Anderson Woolcott also started as a junior and he will bring a lot to the table along with senior 6-5 forward Canon Weatherly.

Weatherly came off of the bench last winter and he should have more minutes in 2023-24.

Six-three junior Andrew Murray spent time on the DL last winter but he should be a more significant contributor this season.

Five-nine junior Jake Phelps was the point guard last season as a sophomore and that position is as important as any on the floor.

Coach Bradley mentioned 5-9 sophomore Grayson Stafford, sophomore Maddux Rash and 6-3 sophomore Drayson Grathler as potential reserves who will be a part of the rotation as the season begins.

“We are going to be pretty big, I think once we figure out an identity we could be pretty tough down the stretch. As always we will be defensive minded and put emphasis on rebounding. Early on got to focus on turnovers. Should be a fun year, got some experience back, but several young kids to bring along,” said Coach Bradley, who played at Eldorado for recently retired athletic director Coach Greg Goodley on a sectional finalist in 1999-00.

For Carmi-White County and head coach Kevin Wolf, the 2022-23 season ended abruptly.

After having won 16-of-17 games heading into the first round of the regional and then a win in the opener against Anna-Jonesboro, things were looking good for the Bulldogs.

But a 70-47 shellacking by Vienna ended the season at 26-6, 9-1 for CWC.

The graduation parade took seniors Bryce Conner and Tyler Goemaat from the squad along with a ton of offensive numbers.

Conner was an ABV 2A honorable mention selection.

Coach Wolf has some players in the fold ready to get going who contributed minutes and points last winter.

Senior Landon Driscoll, a 6-3 guard, was all-Black Diamond last season.

Six-six junior Mitchel Edwards was also all-league.

Driscoll averaged 10.4 points a game and Mitchell netted 12.1 points a night.

Six-one junior guard Gavin Holloman put up seven points and five rebounds a game as a sophomore.

Trey Dixon, a 6-0 senior forward, came off the bench for CWC last season and should be one of the key players in 2023-24 for Coach Wolf.

“I really like our team. We are looking to build off what we accomplished last season,” said Coach Wolf. “We will play solid competition night in and night out and are looking forward to see what the year brings.”

Edwards County head coach Kevin Schnicker will rely on a mix of older and younger kids when the Lions head into battle this season.

Two of the players; 6-1 forward Max Gerlach and 6-2 forward Anjuan Rhodes are seniors who started and played a great deal of the time during last season's 7-21, 1-9 finish.

A loss to Waltonville, 65-64, in the first round of the 1A Webber Township Regional ended the run.

A pair of junior holdovers from last season should also expect minutes galore.

Five-nine guard Cy Nelson and 6-5 forward Owen Grimes will suit up for the Lions and a pair of sophomores; 6-1 forward Jax Duncan and 6-1 forward Cash Conner are the main six players according to Coach Schnicker, who is 21-35 in two seasons as head coach at the school.

“I think in my third year we will continue to improve defensively and get better as a team. I have several players that continue getting better and have a desire to win so we just keep working on what it takes to win,” said Coach Schnicker.

Scott McElravy heads into season number 19 as a head coach and one of his problems in 2023-24 is to look down the sideline and not find ABV 2A honorable mention player Eric Rodgers, who was the Fairfield Mules' top scorer in 2022-23.

The quarterback on the football field was also a court general for Coach McElravy as the team had moments but didn't put together any sort of winning streaks during the long campaign.

Fairfield ended up 13-19, 4-6 in the East Division, good enough for just fourth place.

One highlight was winning the consolation title of the Eldorado Holiday Tournament.

The Mules lost to the host Indians, 64-43 at the 2A Lawrenceville Regional.

Other seniors from last winter are Luke Duckworth, Reegan Taylor and Nick Easton that have left the program.

Coach McElravy will turn to some other kids to move forward.

Six-two senior Landon Harrelson averaged 6.3 points a game last season for the Mules.

Layne Tucker, a 6-3 senior, was at 7.5 p.p.g.

Another returning letterman is 6-3 senior Trent Bliss.

Jay Snyder, a 5-11 senior, missed his junior season with a torn ACL suffered during football season.

His brother Latrael Snyder, also a 5-11 senior, is also part of the squad this season along with 6-0 senior Creson White.

Look for juniors Justice Dagg, a 5-10 guard (5.7 p.p.g.) and 5-11 Ethan McElravy to be in the rotation of players.

Five-eight sophomore Jake Easton and 6-3 freshmen Owen Gruen and Jaylon Maners should also get a shot, especially during the grueling Lawrence County Capital Classic on November 24-25.

The Mules will play four games in 36 hours time.

“We lost our all-south player (Rodgers) but a lot of the listed players got some varsity experience a year ago. We have some depth and we have a talented freshman group coming in to help the Mules this year. Play a very challenging schedule and we play most of the Little Illini Conference teams this year, too, which I think will be very strong,” said Coach McElravy. “We will have to have a balanced approach to scoring. We won't have an 18 to 20 points per game guy. We'll have to improve our defense from the year before to be competitive with the teams on our schedule. This is a fun group of kids to work with.”

The Flora Wolves were a bit of a surprise last season in the Black Diamond Conference race, ending up in third place in the East Division with a 6-4 mark, 17-15 overall.

Coach Phil Leib got a lot out of the squad a season ago with some quality wins over 2A regional champion Greenville (twice), Newton, Eldorado and Fairfield.

A loss to Robinson in the semifinals of the 2A Teutopolis Regional, 60-53, ended the season.

Gone from the squad are eight seniors, including honorable mention ABV pick Jacob Stanford and all-conference selection Malachi Tolliver.

According to Coach Leib, five of the top eight players from a year ago return, which bodes well for a possible run at the East Division crown.

Six-three senior Neil Young (11 points, six rebounds) returns for the Wolves.

Productive scorers; 6-1 senior Trevor Johnson (10 p.p.g./four r.p.g.) and 5-10 senior Lawson Spicer (six points a game) are also back.

Two other seniors; 5-8 Tyler Conrad and 6-3 Quinn Uebinger, will be joined by juniors 6-2 Garrett Patridge and 6-5 Jadon Leib.

Add 5-9 sophomore Kyler Dennis to what could be a prosperous reserve unit for Flora as the once again will play a tough post-Thanksgiving tournament at the Carlyle Kaskaskian Classic.

“I feel we will be very competitive and hoping to compete for the BDC West championship. We have a team I think is very skilled and capable of putting some points on the board, which has been a struggle the past two seasons,” said Coach Leib, who is one win away from tying Tom Welch for the all-time mark at Flora. “Trevor Johnson led us in scoring down the end of the season last year. He has worked extremely hard on his game, putting him in a position to be a fine player. Neil Young is very athletic and capable of putting up some big numbers as well as rebounds. Lawson Spicer is another fine shooter and scorer giving us a triple threat most nights.”

11/21/2023
BY JACKBULLOCK
CARBONDALE - It was quite a season for the Vienna Eagles in 2022-23 which ended with an outstandings 29-4 mark.

The four defeats (Massac County (twice), Herrin and Carterville) were to teams with a combined 78-19 won-loss mark.

After having defeated Carterville at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament back in December, the Lions won the rematch in the title game of the 2A Harrisburg Regional, 71-53, which ended the winningest season in the Vienna program's history.

The job that Coach Stephen Dreher did earned this mentor the ABV 2A “Coach of the Year” honor for 2022-23.

Heading into 2023-24, Coach Dreher has to replace a pair of important seniors, Kaiden Vaughn and Charlie King, from the squad that accomplished so much last winter.

But the rest of the team returns, including first team ABV 2A selection Owen Treat.

Treat, a 6-1 senior guard, returns for the Eagles' program that is looking for an even better run this season.

The senior play-maker is within range of breaking the school's all-time scoring record.

Another senior returning is 6-2 Dayton Nichols while the status of the third starter for the season is unknown.

Tommy Holhubner, a 6-4 senior, tore his ACL back in the spring and Coach Dreher is looking for perhaps getting him back on the floor late in the season.

In the interim others will need to move up.

Letter winners from last year will have more important roles.

Two seniors; 6-0 Cato Constante and 6-1 Buddy Clay who were sparks off of the bench for the Eagles last season, both return.

Coach Dreher also added the names of four juniors for minutes.

Job Winterrowd, a 5-7 guard, 6-3 forward Jacob Waters, 5-10 guard Jackson Etheridge and 6-0 guard Hunter Webb will be part of the roster when the Eagles tackle their annual Vienna Thanksgiving Tournament.

Six-five junior Nick Johnson is also someone with potential to garner some varsity minutes and Coach Dreher will have some sophomores and freshman who could step into the picture.

“I really like this group. They have been very driven and have held each other accountable. As a result we are a stronger, more athletic team this year. So far during my tenure we have been a substandard rebounding team. I think that is about to change. I expect our practices to be wars because of our depth and competitiveness,” said Coach Dreher, who is nearing 400 combined wins in Illinois and Kentucky.

Coach Todd Tripp continues to get the job done at this school, having a 400-180 mark in his 19-years coaching at his alma mater.

He has seven regional championships and two sectional/super-sectional titles to go with it.

The 35-2 Covid19 shortened 2019-20 is a program record for wins in a season.

Last season the Blackcats ended up 24-10 overall, 10-2 in the West Division of the Black Diamond.

Goreville's campaign came to an end on its home floor with an 85-72 defeat to Mounds Meridian in the 1A Goreville Regional championship game.

Meridian went on to play in the super-sectional while the Blackcats got ready for baseball.

Coach Tripp must replace the production and minutes left by three seniors; Ian Sopczak, Marquavion Cleaves and Ethan Lingle.

However as this program is accustomed to, there are players with experience returning for Coach Tripp.

Five-eleven senior Drake Moss returns after being named BDC All-Conference as a junior.

Another senior returning is Tyler Suits, a 5-11 guard, who was a keen 3-point shooter for the Blackcats last winter.

Five-five senior Evan Holm also saw minutes last season for this mentor.

Cole Tripp, a 6-0 junior, also played in important games as a sophomore and more minutes are in his future.

Add 6-6 junior Drake Buffington to the lineup after leading the club in rebounding as a sophomore.

Six-two junior Connor Craig is also available.

Others expected to wear the Black and Gold this winter include a group of seniors and a pair of sophomores.

Duncan Rhoads, a 6-1 senior, is a versatile player according to Coach Tripp.

Six-four senior Levi Damon, 6-5 senior Grant Howell and 5-11 senior Evan Moore are on the list as well as sophomores 6-2 Garrett Church and 5-9 Zech Green.

Of the 10 losses last season, only one of them (Hamilton County) came against a team that ended up with a losing record (13-19).

Meaning that the teams Goreville was supposed to beat were defeated by the Blackcats.

“This team has potential to have a lot of depth and kids will have to fight for playing time. We have kids that have had a chance to get varsity minutes the last couple of years and there is a good mix for success,” said Coach Tripp. “This group works really hard and this should be a fun year. Looking forward to see where they start and how they finish. Our goal is to be better come regional time and not stress over how we are in the Goreville Invitational Tournament.”

Head coach Scott Burzynski will have some seniors returning that will need to help lead his Johnston City Indians into the 2023-24 season.

Although the round-ball success hasn't been plentiful in the past few seasons (18-15, 7-5 last year) the boy's sports programs (football especially) have shown that they know what it takes to win ballgames.

Perhaps this year's upperclassmen can transfer the football success into some additional wins on the court.

Last season three seniors were very important; Laith Hoxworth, Connor Mowery, and Isiah Watson were important pieces for a team won a regional game over Hamilton County before losing to eventual regional champs Massac County at the 2A Benton Regional.

Keaton Fort, a 6-5 senior forward, returns for the Tribe after leading the football squad to a 9-2 mark as the team's QB.

Another senior starter returning is 6-2 guard A.J. Butler.

Coach Burzynski also mentioned 6-2 senior forward Wade Galbraith, who last played basketball for JC as a freshman.

Six-foot junior guard Nolan Causey returns after playing a lot of varsity minutes as a sophomore.

Two other juniors, 6-1 forward Evan Sanders and 5-11 guard Seth Rice, also return.

Coach Burzynski has six sophomores that he listed as players for this season and the future at Johnston City.

Trey Johnson, a 5-9 guard, 6-1 forward Wyatt Henderson, 5-10 guard Kaden Koening, 6-2 forward Carson Murrah, 6-0 guard Brody Watts and 6-0 forward Logan Moore are going to contribute.

“We had really good summer. Hopefully, we can continue that momentum into the winter time. I really like our club. We have guys that enjoy being around each other and they compete each day. Our league will be very good. We will lean on our seniors to provide leadership,” said Coach Burzynski, who is nearing 400-wins for his career.

With two returning starters and some young kids ready to move up, the Christopher Bearcats look to improve on a 12-18, 4-8 record.

This team was a quick out at the 1A New Athens Regional, losing to the host Yellow Jackets, 40-32, in the first round.

Just two seniors; Trey Cole and Matthew Traiteur, are gone from that squad so there are others ready to get things started at the Christopher Thanksgiving Tournament this week.

Six-three senior Scout Hudgens is the top returning player for head coach Eric Stallman.

Hudgens averaged 14.1 points a game last winter for the Bearcats.

Carson Hobbs a 6-1 junior, also contributed in the scoring with just over nine points a night.

The other player returning with significant playing time last winter is 6-1 junior Chase Cole, who averaged four points a contest.

Coach Stallman mentioned Samuel Traiteur, a 6-1 junior, as a potential starter along with Chase Freeman, a 6-4 junior.

The Bearcats will have some size with 6-7 junior forward Connor DeWeerdt.

Aidan Skropka, a 6-1 junior, 5-9 junior Bradden Mays and 5-8 sophomore Landon Sveda will also be a part of the roster.

“We will have some depth this season, with nine players that I feel can contribute minutes in varsity games this season. After going 12-18 last season we have a lot of room for improvement,” said Coach Stallman. “Last year we played a lot of sophomores and were not physically strong enough to have much success at the varsity level. Hopefully that experience will help us this season. This is a great group of kids that are a pleasure to coach. I expect us to be more competitive this season.”

There is a new head coach at Trico as former Pinckneyville standout player Kyle Luke takes over a program that went just 5-27 last winter, including 5-7 mark in the BDC West.

Which means in non-conference games in 2022-23, the Pioneers were 0-20, including a 59-50 loss to Okawville at the 1A New Athens Regional.

Coach Luke would like to change that narrative moving forward.

Trico has some kids returning to begin the season.

Kanon Wilson, a 6-8 senior forward, is a good place to start.

Having that sort of size for a 1A school is a big plus.

Six-two senior Brady Heins is a returning starter with varsity experience.

Two other seniors; 6-1 Kaden Starkey and 6-1 Paxten Sidner will move up.

“We are proud to have a heavy senior presence on the team, including some other seniors who have been in and out of the program,” said Coach Luke.

Coach Luke added 5-10 sophomore guard Beau Kohen to the competition for minutes, especially early in the season at the annual Pioneer Invitational Tournament.

“Having been hired in August, which gave myself a later start compared to most other coaches, I'm relying on my seniors to take the lead. I believe I have a group of athletes who are tough, gritty athletes who are committed to playing hard and doing whatever it takes to win,” said Coach Luke.

Someone who is very familiar with the school district takes over the head coaching duties at Zeigler-Royalton this season.

Coach David Russell spent 13 years coaching at the junior high level and now takes over the a Z-R program that went 6-24, 0-12 in the West Division and were ousted from the New Athens Regional by Marissa/Coulterville.

Coach Russell has two returning starters coming back from last winter.

Five-nine senior Nick Holder (3.1 p.p.g.) and 5-10 senior Chase Vanhoorebeke (7.7 p.p.g.) return after quality minutes last season.

Cole McKinney, a 6-5 senior, is another player with experience back for the for the Tornadoes.

Chase Speakman, a 5-9 guard, 5-8 guard Marshall Tucker and 5-10 guard Peyton Foster are part of the senior group.

Six-three junior River Freeman is the top returning scorer for the Tornadoes at 12.8 points a contest.

Jimmy Gaddis, a 5-10 junior, 6-2 junior Shadow Goodman, 5-8 junior Kolton Wynn and 5-5 junior Chance Harris are part of the mix.

Coach Russell mentioned 6-1 freshman Lucas Rogers as someone who should get some PT as he was the top scorer on the junior high team.

“Anytime you change coaches there is always a transition. Coach Stevens did a great job (Jimmy was a former JH player of mine, one of my best) and I hope to keep the momentum he build with effort and enthusiasm that his teams displayed,” said Coach Russell. “I hope to use what I have learned from being at Carterville with Coach Hawkins, Rogers and Crain and adapt it to how we will play at Z-R. The BDC is tough with great players, coaches and programs. We want to be competitive and win a few. I have great kids that have been willing to work and I am excited to be their coach.”