Winter Preview: Park Hill South Boys Basketball

New head basketball coach Rick Zych starts his first year at Park Hill South this season with plenty of success to grab his players’ attention. In 16 years as the head coach at Bishop Miege, the Stags played in five state championship games, winning two state titles. Now on the Missouri side, Zych will take the reins of a Panther basketball program that went 17-9 last year with a young group of talented players. The core of that team returns this season with heightened expectations from their new coach as well as themselves.

“They (the players) won a lot of games last year. They’re expecting success this year, and they know they have to work hard to get it,” Zych said. “We had a lot of sophomores that competed at a high level so we have some experience.”

Senior point guard Anthony Woods is expected to be one of the area’s most dynamic players this season.

“He’s worked real hard in the offseason and has a real good feel for the game. He’s probably one of the better defensive point guards, is real physical and moves his feet,” Zych said of Woods. “Offensively, there aren’t a lot of things he can’t do. He can take us about as far as he wants to go.”

Also joining Woods for their senior seasons will be Mikel Blake and Spenser Braymer who says will be looked upon early for leadership.

“They’ve been around and they are a big part of this program,” Zych said. “You’re only a senior once so there will be some weight on their shoulders.”

The Panthers will have considerable size with juniors Hudson Welty, Payton Meeks, Robert Lane and sophomore Alan Hitt, all of which are taller than 6’4”. Not only do they present a threat near the basket, but they’re versatile, making them dangerous on the perimeter as well.

“We are expecting big things from them. We’ve got some size and should utilize that,” Zych said. “If we stay out of foul trouble it will allow those guys to step out every once in awhile.”

Zych says he’ll bring a similar playing style to what he used at Bishop Miege, which was a fast-paced, up and down approach, but he also understands that each team is different.

“Every team is different; you can’t really compare it to Miege. This is the Park Hill South team of 2012-13 and we’re excited about it,” Zych said. “We’re going to try to get up and down a bit. Hopefully we’ll have the personnel to do it, but to make it work on offense you really just have to make shots and rebound, which we have to guys to do.”

Park Hill South hosts Lee’s Summit (Dec. 14) then travels to Belton (Dec. 18) before competing in the William Jewell Tournament between Christmas and New Year’s.

Winter Preview: Park Hill Boys Basketball

Park Hill boys basketball coach David Garrison only has two players returning with varsity experience from a team that went 7-19 last year, which ended on a high note with an unexpected run to the district title game. However, he does take comfort in knowing he’ll have a handful of seniors taking the next step up to lead his team who know what is expected of them.

“We’re young and have some older kids that don’t have varsity experience, but they’re kids who have been in the program,” Garrison said. “They know what we’re working on, it’s just up to them to go out, execute, and do it.”

After averaging eight points a game last season, senior point guard Keaton Anchors returns alongside junior guard Ricky Trammell as the only Trojans’ letter winners back for the 2012-2013 season. Garrison says he’ll look to Anchors to set the tone.

“Keaton started last year and improved as the season went on. You can tell he has the experience now,” Garrison said. “He’s going to be relied on to get the guys ready and provide some leadership.”

The Trojans could have up to 11 players seeing playing time this year. Seniors Erik Stratman, Devonte Thornton, and junior Kenny McConnell will present difficult matchups for opposing offenses with their athleticism. Seniors Seth Ell, Connor Samenus, and Austin Truvillion are in the mix as well to provide physical presence down-low. A handful of promising sophomores that will see playing time this year include Landry Shamet, Deionte Wilson, and Louis Reinmiller.

Garrison says the mix of raw potential and varying age levels will be something to watch as the season goes on.

“It’s going to be exciting to watch this team improve,” Garrison said. “When you’re inexperienced, you’re going to get better constantly every day. You can see it in practice.”

Garrison says the Trojans lack overwhelming size, so they will try to pick up the pace from time to time which could involve some four-guard sets. The key for Park Hill will be the development of their young shooters and the all-important fundamental of rebounding.

“We have to potential to be good shooters. We have some kids who can make shots, it’s just having the confidence once the game comes around to come through,” Garrison said. “The one thing we’ll have to do really well is doing a good job of rebounding since we aren’t that big.”

Park Hill will see early season action at the Blue Springs and William Jewell Tournaments in December.

Winter Preview: Park Hill South Girls Basketball

The youth movement Park Hill South has been going through the last couple years is one they hope pays off this year as the Lady Panthers return seven letter winners from a team that went 17-10 and finished third in conference last year. Excited for the opportunity to improve, the Panthers come into the season with a renewed sense of confidence and chemistry they hope to take to the next level.

“This is a chance to better our record from last year. From day one, they came in excited about the opportunity they have,” Coach Jenny Orlowski said. “Their goals are very realistic and number one on that list for everybody is districts.”

Among Park Hill South’s returning starters are First Team All-Conference selections sophomore forward Madeline Homoly and junior guard Samantha Roy. Homoly led the team in scoring with 10 points and six rebounds per game last season while Roy served as the team’s point guard and indispensible floor leader. Seniors Courtney Claassen (5 ppg, 2 rpg) and Jessica Lee (9 ppg, 4.5 rpg) will play valuable roles as will junior Morgan Keesee (5.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and sophomore guards Mackenzie Stout (6.8 ppg) and Anna Courtney (4.4 ppg).

Using their improved scoring abilities to create opportunities down low and around the three-point arc, the Panthers also hope to step it up defensively in the full court using their athletic lineup. With so many different weapons returning, the Panthers are faced with a good problem to have early in the season, which will be the amount of capable and deserving players eligible to start.

“My biggest dilemma is I can start any of our seven returning players on a given night and not see a letdown. We’re about ten players deep on the bench right now.”

Capitalizing on mistakes from last year, Orlowski hopes to instill a more composed playing style that can endure tough situations and limit turnovers; especially those teams commonly find themselves later in the season.

“We’re working on poise and confidence. I think there were a lot of games down the stretch (last year) that we lost because we were immature and decision making wasn’t great. So we’re working on when to slow it down compared to running like crazy,” Orlowski said.

The Panthers will face a formidable conference with defending champ Truman and Lee’s Summit West presenting tough matchups, but by picking up where they left off with their lineup last year, Park Hill South feels they can play with anyone.

“If we can be cohesive and play together as one, we should be a tough challenger in any game we play this year,” Orlowski said.

Winter Preview: Park Hill Girls Basketball

There are only a few contributors left from last year’s 16-11 team that made an appearance in the district title game. Losing seven of their top players to graduation or transfer, the Lady Trojans come into this season with only three players with varying levels of varsity experience. For the most part, Coach Aaron Neeser says his team is young and inexperienced, meaning each game will be an opportunity to learn and improve.

Sophomore Katie Reichert’s three points per game represent the only scoring Park Hill will return. Reichert along with senior Davon Thomas and junior Regina Bolin are the players who have played at the varsity level before. Neeser says while Thomas and fellow seniors Jaeden Cordes and Darion Peterson have done a good job of leading the team so far in practice, they will be just like the rest of the team in looking to overcome their lack of experience.

“They’ve been working hard. They do everything we ask them to do, there’s just not a lot of experience,” Neeser said. “Until we get more experience under our belt, we’re going to have a hard time being competitive.”

Speed is one thing the Trojans hope they can use this season to attack teams on defense with, especially since most of the lineup is made up of guards.

“We don’t have very much height, but we do have some speed so we’re going to try to use that to the best of our ability,” Neeser said. “We’re going to try trapping a little and spread it out, so we can maybe get a few easy layups.”

Park Hill will have a whole host of players in different roles as the season goes on including sophomores Murphy Crowl, Kaylyn Magee, and Jaleiyah Gibbs. As their coach said, we won’t know much about this year’s Lady Trojan squad until their first couple games.

“Until you turn on the lights, you can’t ever be sure what you have or what their potential might be,” Neeser said.

Park Hill starts the season off with some key early season matchups with North Kansas City (Dec. 6^th), Platte County (Dec. 10^th), and Kearney (Dec. 13^th).

Winter Preview: Park Hill Wrestling

There’s something about taking second place as a team at last year’s state wrestling tournament that doesn’t sit well for Park Hill Wrestling, a program defined by its state title aspirations. Not only did the Trojans take second as a team, but they also failed to bring home an individual champion. This has left a fire in the belly of a squad returning seven previous state qualifiers. Coach Bill Erneste says his team is using that for motivation as they come into the 2012-2013 season once again looking for a chance at a state title.

“What we do is talk about taking second,” Erneste said. “We’ve been talking about what the difference is and whether we’re willing to do that little amount more to get to first. It’s our job to make that decision in our minds.”

John Erneste (120) and Russ Coleman (145) return after finishing as runners-up at state last season. Third place medal winner Ke-Shawn Hayes (113) along with fourth place state finishers Hunter Roberts (126) and Malik Colding (170) and fifth place finisher Colston DiBlasi (152) all come back. Also in the mix again this year will be senior Paxton DiBlasi who qualified for state in 2011 at 138.

Adding to the Trojans’ strength will be two freshmen in Canton Marriott and Shawn Hosford, who Erneste says are anything but your normal newcomers.

“We have two ‘impact freshmen’, because they are freshmen by age only,” Erneste said. “They’ve had success on the national level already. It’s nice to be able to have those kinds of kids coming in from our youth club.”

Filling in the rest of the lineup will be several wrestlers who have earned roster spots including August Sobbing and Anthony Enriquez.

Electing team captains for the first team this year, Park Hill will have solid and proven leadership at the helm, which gives Erneste reassuring confidence his team will remain focused on the task at hand.

“They voted Russ Coleman (three-time state finalist), Paxton DiBlasi, and John Erneste,” Erneste said. “I have to be honest; I haven’t had to yell much at practice with them. Everyone remembers what second feels like.”

With another year of experience and physical conditioning in their favor, the Trojans bring back more than a handful of strong guns capable of lifting Park Hill back to state championship status. The question is whether the motivation they take away from their second place finish last year will be enough to get them there.

“I like this year’s team, we’re excited,” Erneste said. “The coaches, the wrestlers, and the parents are all committed to it.”

Winter Preview: Park Hill South Wrestling

If there’s one theme this year’s Park Hill South wrestling senior class has followed over its previous three seasons, it has been their determination to improve upon the previous year. Last year, that meant following the school’s first conference title in 2011 with a second in 2012, later sending the most qualifiers to state they have in program history (8), which resulted in a ninth place overall team finish. With the bar set high, the 2012-2013 Panthers hope to go above and beyond once again.

“We have a good senior group and they’ve been doing well the last three years for us. This group has always wanted to do better than they did the last year, so I hate to say what that is this year,” Park Hill South coach Dan Dunkin said. “Obviously, we want to be in position to push for a trophy at state. We won conference last year and want to give Park Hill a go at it this year.”

State runner-up and team captain Chase Gray will return to pursue a state title he came so close to with his 47-6 record last season.

“He wants to be a state champion now. There are two guys coming back in that weight class so it won’t be easy,” Dunkin said. “He wrestled real well last year to get to the finals and it’s going to be tough.”

Park Hill South will return five other state qualifiers including Alex Fortuna (120), George Barth (126), Jimmy Carpenter (132), Adam Weatherly (152), and Kendric Cook (170). Several were able to win first round matches before falling in later rounds. Fellow seniors joining them will be Tyler Blythe, Alex Weatherly, Logan Gillespie, and Erik Elder.

Dunkin says another added advantage of having a strong senior class is the competition it breeds among less experienced wrestlers. Nasser Baroqua, Daniel Gray, Kaleb Lenhardt, and Zach Horton are just some expected to step into roles this season.

With Park Hill and Lee’s Summit West within their conference for 2012-2013, the Panthers know the competition will be tough, but also have the leadership to guide them through it.

“Our schedule didn’t get easier,” Dunkin said. “But our kids are comfortable and we’re not going to lay down either.”

Winter Preview: Park Hill Girls Swimming

Coming off a 2011-2012 season where the Trojans overcame the odds to earn a share of the conference title with long-time champion Lee’s Summit West, they return this season with several members to build another competitor around. Madison Heydinger, a 200 and 500 freestyle state qualifier last year, returns with second place conference medal winners Lynn Huynh and Jasmine Jones to form the core of experience for this year’s team.

“We’ve looked good so far this year and have some fast swimmers who are familiar with the water. I think our relays are going to be pretty good,” assistant coach David Gourley said. “Right now we’re just working on getting the yards in, so we can improve on speed as the season goes on.”

Park Hill will also have a strong addition to the mix this year with senior transfer Lauren Shaw, who transferred from Warrensburg. She placed second in the 100 backstroke and third in the 100 freestyle at the state swim meet last season.

“She is looking to end her high school career as an individual state champion,” head coach Karl Haley said.

Park Hill will get a good indication of where they stand compared to the competition on January 5^th when they host the Park Hill Invite which will feature 23 local teams. Attempting to repeat at conference against Lee’s Summit West will have an added obstacle with the addition of Park Hill South to the field, but that won’t change the Trojans’ goal of improving on an individual level to give them a shot at going back-to-back.

Winter Preview: Park Hill South Girls Swimming

After losing 11 seniors from last year’s conference title team that took 18^th at state, Park Hill South will look to build around a few key swimmers returning this year to lead the Panthers in a new conference featuring the likes of Lee’s Summit West and Park Hill. Coach Tim Busenhart says there is a lot of potential with this year’s team and if they stick with their motto, there’s no telling what can happen.

“This year we kind of have a motto of: train, compete, have fun,” Busenhart said.

An honorable mention all-state swimmer last season, sophomore Helen Yeater will join fellow state qualifiers Olivia McLain, Samantha Scott, and Abbie Noyes as the Panthers most experienced and decorated swimmers. Scott and Noyes are part of a small senior class of six which also includes Dani Lake, Samantha Chambers, Olivia Rea, and Rachel Riddell. While the core of the Panthers lineup will be freshmen and sophomores, Coach Tim Busenhart says his seniors have done a good job of building team unity in the early weeks of practice.

“They’re all really good at getting the girls to do things together and have a lot of fun with it,” Busenhart said. “The team has really gelled well together with so many of the girls knowing each other through neighborhood swimming.”

Two of the young swimmers who will contribute immediately for Park Hill South are freshmen Tori Beeler and Anna Riekhof, who Busenhart says are already close to swimming state qualifying times. Busenhart said the medley relay appears it will be an early strong point for the Panthers. As far as filling in the rest of the roster spots, they are working on finding out where each swimmer’s strengths can contribute best.

“We’re trying to figure out where our depth is right now and where everyone fits in,” Busenhart said. “With so many open spots, a lot of our younger swimmers are swimming hard because they know they can get one of them.”

Park Hill South has traditionally been a strong conference contender, sometimes running away with it by a couple hundred points, but with Park Hill and Lee’s Summit West in the mix this year, the battle is expected to be much closer. Combined with a lineup of high competition invitationals, Busenhart believes this will benefit the team.

“We like to swim against competition; we have a lot of tough invites. You become a better swimmer when you’re going for first, second, and third against another team compared to against your own teammates.”

The Panthers start the season off with a dual against Park Hill on December 4^th before competing in the Blue Springs Relays on December 7^th.