The Press-Dispatch

November 27, 2019

The Press-Dispatch

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The Press-Dispatch Winter Sports Preview Wednesday, November 27, 2019 D- 7 Good Luck Chargers 104 E. Main St. Petersburg, IN 47567 • 812-354-8531 Continued from page 6 CELLAR Continued from page 3 MATMEN Continued from page 5 LADIES to improve." Sophomore Shane Mor- son is a very intelligent bas- ketball player. "He can really shoot the ball and has a great under- standing of the game," El- liott said. "Shane plays very hard and will always come prepared to play." Alex Clark is a sopho- more with a lot of potential. "We see flashes of it, but we really need him to de- velop some consistency," Elliott said. "He has the ability to shoot the ball and score at the rim, and can make plays on the defen- sive end as well. He has all the ability to be an impact player." Sophomore Ashton Ev- ans is one of the best ath- letes in the program. He is strong, fast and a good jumper. He can really score in transition and get to the rim at will when he wants to. Hunter DeHaven is a se- nior that is playing again af- ter taking some time away from the team. At 6 -foot- 3-inches, DeHaven is ex- pected to make a major im- pact right away. "We are very happy to have him," Elliott said. "He can really shoot the ball and alter shots on the defensive end. Hunter is a very good athlete and a hard worker. He is another one that when he is playing well, we will play well, he has the capa- bility to really change us." Gabe Caldwell and Jaylon Mills are two more seniors that are back on the hard- wood after not playing for the past couple seasons. Caldwell is a tremendous athlete who competes at a high level and can really get to the rim. "I think he could really be one of our best defend- ers and rebounders," Elliott said. "Jaylon has a great knack for basketball and is one of the best catch and shoot guys we have. Both of them are learning a lot and will improve each and every game." Junior Garrett Boyd is another that has rejoined the team after some time away. Boyd is one of the best all-around athletes on the team. "We are very excited to have him back on the bas- ketball team," Elliott said. "He is picking up on things very quickly. This will be a big learning year for him, and he can be a huge piece for us moving forward." Sophomore Jeremiah "JJ" Johnson joins the team af- ter moving into the district last year. "He is a gym rat and re- ally loves basketball," El- liott said. "He has the abili- ty to score the ball in a num- ber of ways and is learning something new every day." The Chargers' freshmen class has some great poten- tial that is creating a lot of excitement. Kendric Sorgius can real- ly shoot the basketball and is a very intelligent player. "Kendric has grown quite a bit this summer and we look for him to make some big jumps this year," Elliott said. "He can run the point and has a great understand- ing of the game and plays with a lot of confidence." Peyton Howald is a natu- ral born leader with a knack for basketball and can score with the best of them. He makes a lot of plays on the defensive end and is very long and athletic. Braden Howald is a competitor, he just wants to win at ev- erything he does. He is not afraid of anyone and is a very smart basketball play- er, who can play with and without the ball very well. Peyton Chanley is another one who puts in a lot of time on his game. He has a lot of natural ability and is a great athlete. "When Chanley is confi- dent and aggressive, he is very hard to stop," Elliott said. "We need him to be- lieve in himself and his abil- ity." "Jagar Dent will just find a way to win no matter what we are doing. He can play inside and outside and coaches expect big things from him." Isaac Ross can really re- bound the basketball. "We are working hard on his footwork and finish- ing and he is improving ev- ery day," Elliott said. "He is a very smart kid and very hard worker." Fenton McCrary is play- ing organized basketball for the first time, so he is learn- ing a lot. He is a great ath- lete that can run and jump as well as anybody. Brycen Knepp is back on the bas- ketball team after wrestling the past couple years. He is a great athlete and another one that is learning a lot and progressing very well. "Our youth programs are in a really good spot," El- liott said. "We have around 70 kids signed up for Char- ger Cub and we are really working with them on the fundamentals. We changed our format a couple of years ago and I think it is starting to pay off for our kids. They are developing a solid foun- dation that will help them throughout their career as a Charger basketball player." Pike Central has strong classes in the sixth, sev- enth and eighth grades, with some athletes who re- ally work on their games and have a lot of potential. "We had the opportuni- ty to work with some of the seventh and eighth grad- ers this summer and they looked much improved," Elliott said. "We are excit- ed to see how much they grow and develop this sea- son. Developing a love and passion for basketball and the willingness to put in the work is really something we hope to instill in our kids." Pike Central is sched- uled to begin its season on Wednesday, Nov. 27 at Northeast Dubois. year. Kenzie Powell ( Jr., 5 -5, guard) has good speed and quickness. She returns af- ter averaging three points a game last year. Mallory Hunt (So., 5 -9, center) pro- vides a nice physical pres- ence in the paint. She aver- aged two points per game a season ago. Kya Leighty (So., 5 -9, for- ward) and Kailee Mann ( Jr., 5 -8, forward) will both con- tribute to the varsity team after being moved up from the junior varsity squad. "We have some good athletes with length so we should be able to pressure the ball a little more this year," McCutchan said. "I like the group of players we have back this year. We have some length and athleticism and we have a good mixture of shooting and post play- ers returning on the offen- sive end." Pike Central is in a search of its first winning season since 2006 -07, when they finished 19 -5. This will be McCutchan's third season as the La- dy Chargers' head coach. Trent Whitehead will serve as the varsity assistant for the third straight season, and Eric Knight is in his first season as the junior varsity coach, however, he's coached middle school for the past decade. Athletes that will mostly play junior varsity, but could see some varsity time, are sophomore Hailey Parker, and freshmen Liberty Tay- lor, Kahle Young, Tiffa- ny Arteaga, Delany Welch, Kenna Young, Jasmine Leighty and Chloe Williams. Junior Hayden McDowell will also be at 152. "This is his first year and he came out a lot this sum- mer and went to a camp," McCain said. "He's got a lot to learn, but is willing to put in the work." It will be sophomore Damien Fullington at 126. Fullington wrestled through middle school and is return- ing for his first year with the high school team. "He has a great work eth- ic," McCain said. Pike Central hopes to im- prove off of its 11-21 record from last season. "We are gonna be a young team again, so we need all the mat time we can get," McCain said. "We need to reduce the number of pins we give up. I've got to come up with a way to motivate these guys to not give up easy pins, find a way to stay in the match and see as ma- ny situations as possible, so we can learn from that." Pike Central's season be- gins on Wednesday, Dec. 4 in a triangular meet with Princeton at Washington. Front row (l to r): Garrett Boyd, Trent Zimmerman, Ashton Evans and Shane Morson. Back row: Alex Clark, Aden Brown, Hunter Traylor and Jeremiah Johnson. Front row (l to r): Fenton McCrary, Peyton Chanley, Braden Howald and Brycen Knepp. Back row: Isaac Ross, Jagar Dent, Peyton Howald and Kenric Sorgius. Have a great Season! Wyatt Seed Company, Inc. WHOLESALE DEALERS IN RETAILERS FOR P.O. BOX 218, HWY. 57 SOUTH, PETERSBURG, IN 47567 Phone: 812-354-8542 or 1-800-581-5826 • Dealers in Sports Trail Dog Food • Purina Feeds • Bird Feed and Feeders • Full line of Lawn Grasses and Field Seeds • Variety of Bagged Fertilizers SEIZE THE WEEK'S SPORTS NEWS. Get a hold on the sports world when you read the newspaper. We bring you complete coverage of sports events and scores, so you can keep up with your favorite teams at a glance. Seize the day and subscribe today; call 812-354-8500 for convenient home delivery. Boys' J V Basketball Boys' Freshmen Basketball

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