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JANUARY 2014 Page 8A • FREEMAN & ENTERPRISE LAKE COUNTRY PREP PROFILE PREP PROFILE Ellingson always ahead Hamilton senior team's leading scorer since freshman year Get to know ... BRADY ELLINGSON By Pat Neumuth Freeman Staff Coach Andy Cerroni Class In School/Age Senior/17 Freeman file photo Hamilton's Brady Ellingson has signed to play basketball at Iowa. have my back." Signing his national letter of intent to play at the University of Iowa was also pressure that got lifted off his shoulders. Ellingson said it's always been a dream to play college basketball. At first, he liked the courting by all the coaches. He would get calls and text messages from coaches from around the country , but when July came around Ellingson said the process was getting a little much. "The first week after our last tournament in Vegas, I got 20 to 30 calls in that week," Ellingson said. "It got kind of tiring. I was glad I made the decision when I did." However, Cerroni said there were only about seven schools that were interested in him until July It was Ellingson's . play with his AAU team, Ray Allen Select, that put him on the radar for more coaches. Other than the normal adjustment to playing at another level, Cerroni has no doubt Ellingson will excel at Iowa. Cerroni said his standout senior has the tools and the mental makeup to play Also In My Family Are: my father, Brian; my mother, Connie; and my brother,Tyler. The Athletic Accomplishment I Am Most Proud Of Is: winning conference last year. My Favorite Subject In School Is: social studies. My Favorite Teacher Is: Mrs. Hillmann, my computer teacher. My Favorite Movie Is: "Step Brothers." My Favorite Recording Artist Is: Drake. My Favorite TV Show Is: "Family Guy." The Best Meal My Mother Makes Is: spaghetti. A Bad Habit I Have Is: biting my nails. A Pet Peeve I Have Is: when things aren't organized. The Thing I Do Best Outside Of Athletics Is: being a good friend. The Person I'd Most Like To Meet Is: LeBron James. The Last Time I Cleaned My Room I Found: an old program from AAU Nationals from back in fourth grade. Nobody Ever Says I'm: loud. My Most Memorable Experience Is: beating Arrowhead in the regional finals my sophomore year. My Most Prized Possession Is: my phone. One Thing People Might Not Know About Me Is: I'm obsessed with shoes. One Thing I Would Change About Myself Is: nothing. One Thing At My School I Would Change Is: to have better hot lunches. I See Myself In 10 Years: working in some sort of management job in a big city. I Wish Coach Cerroni Would: nothing. He lets me shoot enough. Division I basketball. "He got a place that really wants him and he will fit a role that they expect to play early Cerroni said. "Hopeful," ly he will have a memorable senior year before he goes on to his next chapter." Email: pneumuth@conleynet.com Get to know ... KELLY SMITH Freeman Staff School/Sport Hamilton/Basketball By Pat Neumuth TOWN OF LISBON – Brady Ellingson led his team in scoring since he stepped on his school's basketball court. The Hamilton High School seniors plays older than he is. That's because he's been playing with older guys his whole life. Ellingson has played up a class since fifth grade, so the 2013 graduating class had been his teammates the longest. "It was definitely hard to see them go with all the memories we made, and I thought our chemistry was really well on and off the court," Ellingson said. "This year's team (chemistry) has been pretty good. We've played a lot in open gyms together and all the summer league tournaments. The core group of guys played together through youth, but I played up, so most of them have a good feel for each other." His freshman year on varsity the core group of guys he , played youth basketball with were sophomores. That made it as easy of a transition a freshman can have playing with familiar teammates who were also underclassmen. Hamilton coach Andy Cerroni said it's a new challenge playing with a different set of guys. The last time Ellingson really played with this year's core group of players his age was in eighth grade. "They say great players make everybody better and that's what he's doing right now," Cerroni said. "We've got a lot of young kids that are inexperienced. His work ethic and leadership has made him someone that is making everybody better. It's been a different challenge for him, but he's capable of doing it." Cerroni has given Ellingson the green light on the floor. For some that can be a lot of pressure. Opposing coaches know they need to stop Ellingson to beat Hamilton, but he doesn't mind that pressure. He actually prefers it. "I like having the weight on my shoulders," Ellingson said. "I know my teammates Smith's work paying off TOWN OF MERTON – Kelly Smith has been able to break down barriers at Arrowhead High School. The school has a workout at 6 a.m. each Friday in which only football players participated. Smith wanted to change that. "Ally (May) and I just started in the spring because we didn't do a spring sport," Smith said. "We decided we wanted to get into the weight room after school. We just decided one day to go check out and do the morning workout. We knew it was going to be hard. But we continued the 6 a.m. morning workout. In the fall more girls from the basketball program also came." That's the leadership basketball coach Rick Witte likes from his senior. Witte has seen Smith the last three years on varsity and it's the , strength training that's transformed her into an NCAA Division I recruit. She will play at Northern Illinois University next winter. "There were a lot of younger girls all looking at Kelly Smith, because they all know who she is. They are seeing her in the weight room," Witte said. "Whether or not she knows it, she's the one that allows these girls to be comfortable in their own skin in that weight room. She's not just there, but she's getting after it, working hard – if not harder than anyone in that room." Witte said it took a little time for the girls to get comfortable in the weight room. But it didn't take long for Smith. That's because she's a competitor, and Witte said sometimes she's too competitive to a fault. The weight room workouts started to be a competition for her. Smith said the workouts are a great way to start the day . The morning workouts are MetCon workouts – metabolic conditioning where workouts are done at a fast pace. One workout was called the pumpkin pie punisher where Smith and others at the workout would have to do a different lift every 20 yards. "Getting in there with the guys, Ally May and I, we kind School/Sport Arrowhead/Basketball Coach Rick Witte Class In School/Age Senior/17 Charles Auer/Freeman Staff Kelly Smith was the leading scorer for Arrowhead's statequalifying basketball team last season. Also In My Family Are: my father, Mike; my mother, Kris; and my sister, Jenny, a sophomore on Bradley's women's basketball team. The Athletic Accomplishment I Am Most Proud Of Is: making it to state last year. My Favorite Subject In School Is: biology. My Favorite Teacher Is: Mr. Watry, my freshman year English teacher. My Favorite Movies Are: the "Harry Potter" series. My Favorite Recording Artist Is: Mumford and Sons. My Favorite TV Show Is: "Bones." The Best Meal My Mother Makes Is: rigatoni with marinara. A Bad Habit I Have Is: I tend to talk myself while doing schoolwork. A Pet Peeve I Have Is: when a guy gets jealous when a girl lifts more than he does. The Thing I Do Best Outside Of Athletics Is: knitting. The Person I'd Most Like To Meet Is: J.K. Rowling. The Last Time I Cleaned My Room I Found: I haven't cleaned my room in a while. Nobody Ever Says I'm: short. My Most Memorable Experience Is: Ally May hitting the buzzer beater against Kimberly to make it to state last year. My Most Prized Possession Is: my dog, but she's not really a possession, she's a part of the family. One Thing People Might Not Know About Me Is: I really love wolves. One Thing I Would Change About Myself Is: to be less critical about myself and more carefree. One Thing At My School I Would Change Is: to make gym not a requirement for varsity athletes. I See Myself In 10 Years Being: just out of vet school and a certified vetrinarine trying to run my own practice. I Wish Coach Witte Would: give us one more water break in practice. of had to prove ourselves and gain the same mentality as the football guys," Smith said. "You have to be really focused and determined to get stronger. The discipline to get through the MetCons had an impact on me, and it carried over to my basketball game." Smith has gotten so accustomed to working out four days a week that she said it's a weird feeling when she misses a workout. Smith proudly admitted she gained about 15 pounds of muscle. "After we lost to Mukwonago at state, I told the girls to go away and rest their bodies," Witte said. "It wasn't more than a week later and I couldn't tell Kelly to go away She . was in the weight room that next week. "She got stronger physically and I think, more impressive than that, she got stronger mentally . The weight room did that for Kelly ." Witte has seen the transformation the weight room has done to Smith as a teammate as well. Witte said everyone around Smith has gotten better because of her leadership, and that's not just limited to girls on the basketball team. "She's taken it to a level that has surprised us," Witte said. "It's not just me and my coaching staff. I work in there with all sorts of coaches. I work very closely with the body and I can make people football coaches and their better." team. Kelly has realized that Email: pneumuth@conleynet.com she can share this with every236352003 The Comfort of the Patient Always Comes First PEWAUKEE DENTAL Michael J. Schneidler, D.D.S. & Associates NEW PATIENTS WELCOME Get to know us • Free Comprehensive Exam with Photos Cavity Detecting X-Rays www.PewaukeeDental.com • Free • Free Smile Make Over Check out our reviews and see why so many patients return and refer their family and friends 262-373-6124 Experience the Difference! • Free • No Shots • No Drills • No Fillings! Consultation Second Opinions Schedule Between 10 am & 2 pm to be Entered in Our Drawing for a WaterPik Sonic Toothbrush Valued at $70.00 Before After Offering You Exceptional Personal Care Proudly Serving the Lake Country Area Since 1985 PEWAUKEE DENTAL 1231 George Towne Dr., Suite D Pewaukee, WI 53072

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