CLOSING IN ON CAREER MILESTONE … North Central’s Joey Burt, pictured splitting Hilltop defenders in a game last season, leads a veteran group of Eagles along with being 202 points away from 1,000 in his career. (PHOTO BY RICH HARDING / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
By: Nate Calvin
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
sports@thevillagereporter.com
The BBC race promises to be interesting with most teams looking to replace valuable players including Pettisville who will be filling the void left by the graduation off BBC Player of the Year Cayden Jacoby.
Defending champion Stryker loses their own big man in Elijah Juillard but bring back Daniel Donovan at 10.0 ppg last season and Michael Donovan (9.0 ppg).
North Central will feature the only new coach in the conference this season as Ben Scofield takes over a veteran Eagle squad with seven returning letterwinners paced by Joey Burt, who is 202 points away from 1,000 in his career.
Here are the previews for each team in order of their finish in the BBC last season.
1. Stryker (14-10, 7-0 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Toledo Christian 56-48)
HEAD COACH: Tyler Woolace (7th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Elijah Juillard (10.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg), Levi Barnum (7.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg), Mateo Villanueva (4.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg), Jayden Rethmel
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Michael Donovan (9.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg), Jacob Cadwell (6.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg), Gavin LaBo; Junior – Daniel Donovan (10.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg)
NEWCOMERS: Seniors – Jacob Froelich, Devin Montague, Austin Batterson; Juniors – Jacob Meyers, Owen Rupp; Sophomore – William Donovan
STRENGTHS: Guard play, shooting, depth
WEAKNESSES: Defense, rebounding, injuries
SEASON OUTLOOK: “Like every year, it is fun to see growth in the players. We will have a player that will start at the bottom of the depth chart to become a huge contributor.
“Defense and rebounding will be something that we will have to work very hard on and could struggle early in the season.”
“Losing two big kids in Elijah and Levi who protected the paint & rebounded for us will be a hard to overcome.”
“In addition, we have two kids injured that will delay our progress for the first half of the year. However, when the tournament comes around, we are full strength and ready to go.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “The BBC will be extremely competitive and very game will be a fight.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 2 – Toledo Christian (H); BBC Opener: January 4 – Fayette (A)
2. Pettisville (15-9, 6-1 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Antwerp 48-39)
HEAD COACH: Brian Leppelmeier (8th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Cayden Jacoby (17.5 ppg, 10.6 rpg), Jaret Beck (8.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg), Sean Adkins (5.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg), Dane Waidelich, Jonah Harmon
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Joey Ripke (9.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg), Johnny Fenton; Sophomores – Jack Leppelmeier (4.4 ppg, 3.5 apg), Creighton Aeschliman
NEWCOMERS: Seniors – Kaleb Wyse, Zach Morris; Juniors – Caden Bishop, Mason Wyse; Sophomore – Quinn Ripke
STRENGTHS: “We return two of our two primary ball handlers from last year’s team in Joey Ripke and Jack Leppelmeier, along with sixth man Creighton Aeschliman.
WEAKNESSES: “We will be challenged with replacing a four-year letter winner, Cayden Jacoby, that led us in scoring and rebounding. Defending the paint and clearing the glass will be a primary challenge.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “The conference will be balanced and very competitive.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 1 – Delta (A); BBC Opener: January 4 – Holgate (H)
3. Montpelier (8-15, 3-4 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Fayette 44-41)
HEAD COACH: Nick Ramos (3rd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Garrett Walz, Jamison Grime, Trent Thorp
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: James Camper, Grant Girrell, Braydon Brink, Chavez Martin, Drake Sommer
NEWCOMERS: Juniors – Joel Saneholtz, Greyson Saneholtz, Jarron Dohner, Miguel Alvira; Sophomores – Hayden Sharps, Kenneth Smeltzer, Griffin Cooley
STRENGTHS: “Our senior leadership will go a long way this year. We are a lengthy team with more size than we’ve had in the past. We are quick and will look to use those attributes on the defensive end.”
WEAKNESSES: “Losing focus on team goals and starting to worry about individual stats. Those are team killers.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We look to improve off of our 3rd place finish in the league from last year as well as making the district tournament.”
“We have a good core of seniors with a great mix of athleticism in the younger classes, if we as coaches can blend them groups together, along with the players buying in and trusting each other to do their jobs, our outlook for the season will be great.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “Our league will be competitive as ever. There will be three to four teams all vying for the league title.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 1 – Hilltop (H); BBC Opener: January 4 – Edon (A)
4. North Central (8-15, 3-4 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to Stryker 52-40)
HEAD COACH: Ben Scofield (1st Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Quin Burt, Clayton Douglass
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Joey Burt, Cohen Meyers, Ben Pettit, Gage Kidston, Johnny Hicks, Ethan Beard, Jake Turner
NEWCOMERS: Junior – Trenton Douglass; Freshmen – Zach Whitley, Anton Heggler, Talen Reinbolt, Jackson Poynter
STRENGTHS: Experience, toughness, defense, running the floor
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “We are a veteran team with a lot to prove and hope to compete for the BBC title.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 7 – Hilltop (A); BBC Opener: January 4 – Hilltop (H)
5. Edon (6-17, 3-4 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to Toledo Christian 69-43)
HEAD COACH: Matt Ripke (3rd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Carter Kiess
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Cohen Hulbert, Peyton Trausch, Max Radabaugh, Kendol Brigle, Briggs Gallehue, Grant Reed
NEWCOMERS: Corbin Chrisman, Christian Owens, Brennan Duvendack-Hickman
STRENGTHS: “Our returning letterwinners from last season provide us with varsity experience along with a group of newcomers that are hungry and will be counted on to provide much needed depth throughout the year. This group was very coachable this summer and look to pick up where we left off.”
WEAKNESSES: “We will be a young team comprised mostly of juniors and sophomores. Our lack of interior size is another concern and will be vital for us to play physical throughout the course of each game to have an opportunity for success.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “The Buckeye Boarder Conference will be very competitive this year. We think our early season schedule helps prepare us for BBC play and we hope to be in the mix come February.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 1 – Ayersville (H); BBC Opener: January 4 – Montpelier (H)
6. Fayette (9-15, 2-5 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Patrick Henry 52-29)
HEAD COACH: Todd Mitchell (23rd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Kaden Frenn (10.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Skylar Lester (9.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg). Demetrius Whiteside (3.1 ppg), Chase Moats (2.0 ppg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Wyatt Mitchell (8.0 ppg, 3.2 apg), Xander Dunnett (6.2 ppg)
NEWCOMERS: Seniors – Sebastian Jacob, Gavin Figgins; Juniors – Caden Leininger, Xander Goble, Evan Beauregard; Sophomore – Carter Lavinder
STRENGTHS: “We have a group that really likes to play basketball. We should have solid ball handling and some good perimeter shooters.”
WEAKNESSES: “We won’t have a lot of depth or size. It will take a team effort on both ends of the floor and especially blocking out and rebounding.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “With three new starters and new guys coming off the bench we will need to grow up really quick. We only have 14.0 ppg coming back so we will need everyone to step up and contribute.”
“If we give our best effort and have great attitudes, we will be very competitive this year.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “The league will be very competitive again this year. Like most years it will come down to who stays healthy and plays their best basketball in the second half of the season.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 2 – Pettisville (A); BBC Opener: January 4 – Stryker (H)
7. Holgate (4-19, 2-5 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to Ayersville 42-41)
HEAD COACH: Anthony Jackson (3rd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Abe Kelly (8.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg), Owen Leaders (4.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Xavier McCord (8.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg), Logan Miller (3.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg), Junior – Jerret Engle (1.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg); Sophomore – Holden Hartman (2.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg)
NEWCOMERS: Senior – Dylan Boecker; Sophomores – Wyatt Meyer, Matt Healy, Austin Medina, Kaiden Giesige; Freshman – Zack Boecker
STRENGTHS:” We are looking to have more depth at several positions. We hope to be more balanced with post and guard play.”
WEAKNESSES: “We will be fairly young, which can lead to inconsistent play.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We are looking to improve and show growth from last season.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 2 – Antwerp (H); BBC Opener: January 4 – Pettisville (A)
8. Hilltop (5-18, 1-6 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to MVCD 55-35)
HEAD COACH: Connor English (2nd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Aiden Funkhouser
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Raace Haynes, Anthony Eckenrode, Brock Kesler; Juniors – Devin Dempsey, Cameron Schlosser; Sophomore – Drew Bailey
NEWCOMERS: Junior – Carson Crossgrove; Sophomore – Brycen Grubbs
STRENGTHS: “We are adding some size in our underclassmen, with three freshmen coming in at 6’2 or taller. We are looking to build with that and all of our returning guards to build a solid program.”
“We have all of our starting five back with the exception of one player this year, so the familiarity is there and comfortability with each other is there as well.”
“We have looked good getting to the basket so far during the early stages of the season and are hoping to continue with the aggressiveness as we head into the season. Using those abilities will hopefully allow our shooters to get some open looks that they are able to knock down.”
WEAKNESSES: “Experience with size is going to be a weakness for us on the varsity level. While we do have all of these freshmen coming in with some size, at the varsity level it is not there.”
“We have Drew Bailey and Anthony Eckenrode with some size that will have to be willing to step into some new roles this year playing in the post.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We made a lot of strides last season and we are looking to return a lot of our players from last season and build on what we started last year.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: December 1 – Montpelier (A); BBC Opener: January 4 – North Central (A)
