The Mail-Journal, Volume 26, Number 3, Milford, Kosciusko County, 4 March 1987 — Page 8
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THE MAIL-JOURNAL — Wed., March 4,1987
<2 Sports
Wawasee tops Bremen in letharqic fashion
I By MARK HUFFMAN Sports Writer ” SYRACUSE - Luckily Wawasee High School chose last Friday’s game at the Warriors’ Gym for Hawaiian night, with brightly printed shirts spotting the stands to keep an otherwise lethargic crowd alert. Both teams to have taken the night off for a luau, with neither squad able to sustain a tempo. Nevertheless, the Warriors left with their best record, 16-4, since fashioning a similar mark during the 1971-72 season. Senior Tim Mangas also
Keener leads Warriors at state
INDIANAPOLIS — Wawasee did not win the 1987 boys’ state championship this season, but the Warriors represented themselves well last weekend at the Indiana high school boys’ swimming championships in Indianapolis. Lake Central won the event, edging Indianapolis North Central 167-165. Blit, for the Warriors, a 25th place finish was good enough — especially because of they way they swam. “Every event, except the 50, we swam faster than we ever have,” said Wawasee coach Tim Caldwell. “The kids really rose to the challenge and performed. They should be proud of their effort.” Two school records were broken by the Warriors in the two-day event. Mark Rich, the lead swimmer in the 400 freestyle, went 49.44 to eclipse a previous Wawasee best. Rich’s record swim assisted the relay’s overall time — 3.19.16 — which proved to be another > school record. t The 400 freestyle relay finished Vin 13th position, eight seconds than Anderson’s state Championship time. However, the 400 freestyle relay was not all Warrior fans had to shout about. Sophomore David Keener continued to polish his skills in onemeter diving at the championship. A year ago, the young Warrior placed seventh at the Elkhart Sectional. A year later, Keener is one of the state’s top divers. Keener proved to be the best diver in the Northern Lakes Conference with his eight place finish in Indianapolis. He concluded with a 349.70 score. “David Keener did a heck of a job,” admitted Caldwell. “He deserves a lot of credit, as does his coach, Rex Rymers.” In addition to Wawasee’s two new school records, four state championship meet records were set Saturday. South Bend Riley’s Brad Toothaker’s 49.59 in the 100 butterfly eclipsed his own record of 49.62 set a year ago. Crawfordsville’s Josh Mikesell bettered his own record in the 100-yard backstroke, also set last year. He finished in 51.87, slipping past his 52.46 mark of a year ago. Other record-breaking swims included Munster’s 200-yard medley relay team, and Anderson’s Todd Griner in the 200 freestyle. Munster’s relay team
Warriors, fans geared for exciting sectional
Nationally, this time of the year is labeled ‘March Madness’. In In diana, it’s Hoosier Hysteria. It all begins Wednesday evening for the local Wawasee Warriors. The 16-4 Warriors have the best record entering play at Triton High School, but that will not guarantee the Warriors of a sectional championship. For Wawasee, the road to the Triton Sectional championship runs through Warsaw. There’s no escaping the Tigers — Wawasee battles them in the tournament lid-lifter. In an earlier meeting between the two, Wawasee came away with a stunning 63-62 victory. However, a lot has changed since that December meeting. The Warriors lost their starting center, Fred Steffen, to injury midway through the season. Steffen, at the time, was the Warriors’ second leading scorer and rebounder. The non-related basketball injury forced Steffen to the sidelines for seven games. He returned Friday evening, however, and could be a factor in Wawasee’s bid for the sectional crown. But another potential factor in Wawasee’s run for the title will be its sixth man. At the start of the season, the Warrior fans were silent and boring. But, since the Warsaw game, the fans have been sensational. They have become a vital part in Wawasee’s effectiveness, and will have to continue their enthusiasm at the sectional if the Warriors are to be successful. The sixth man —The Solid Ones — must contribute in Bourbon. The Warrior basketball teams knows one bad performance can sideline them for the season. The same is true with The Solid Ones. It is time to pull out all the stops. Almost anything goes at the sectional. Brine out the sand blocks, heeke” sticks, homo no whistles — aua whatever else you chink maxes a lot of noise. The Warriors need y out; support It is time to have fun at the Triton Sectional.
managed to wake up the crowd in ■<Jime to witness his 1,000 point — ’“’totaling a game high 29 to push his career mark to 1,002 and lead Wawasee to a 59-52 win. The Wawasee guard reached the coveted milestone on a feed from Darin Atwood, scoring a layup with 10 seconds remaining in the game. Both teams had a hard time finding iron in the first quarter, with five of 20 shooting accounting for an 8-6 Wawasee lead at the first stop. “There wasn’t anything that went real well — neither team could get going,” Wawasee Coach Gary Goshert stated,
finished in 1:36.91, improving on Anderson’s 1986 record of 1:37.94. Griner finished in 1:40.10, replacing North Central’s Jeff Holowatch’s 1982 record of 1:40.66. “This was a good experience for our kids,” said Caldwell. “The kids worked hard, dropped their times, and were rewarded. Now they can enjoy their accomplishments.” INDIANAPOLIS — Team scores and individual leaders In Saturday's 50th IHSAA Boys State Swimming Championships at the Indiana University Natatorium: Team Scores 1, Lake Central 157. 2, Indpls. N. Central 165. 3, Columbus North 159. 4, Anderson 152; 5, Munster 137. 6, Valparaiso 109. 7, Bloomington South 97. 8, Kokomo 92. 9, Highland 89. 10, Carmel 71. 17, Warsaw 36. 25, Wawasee 19.55, Manchester 2. Individual Results 200-yard Medley Relay —l, Munster, 1:36.91. 2, Indpls. N. Central, 1:37.70. 3, Bloomington South, 1:37.69. 8, Warsaw, 1:42.05. 200-yard Freestyle —l, Todd Griner, Anderson, 1:40.10. 2, Tom Wildhart, LaPorte, 1:43. 3, Fritz Prine, Indpls. N. Central, 1:43.88. 200-yard Individual Medley —l, Brad Toothaker, S. Bend Riley, 1:53.42. 2, Josh Mikesell, Crawfordsville, 1:56.09. 3, Franc Sanchez, Bloomington South, 1:56.76. 50-yard Freestyle —l, Brian Benedict, Valparaiso, 21.14. 2, Jason Gedmin, Munster, 21.61. 3, Erick Strelb, Bloomington North, 21.70. 1-Meter Diving —l, Jim Dunavant, Lake Central, 425.15. 2, Kevin Rockhill, Anderson, 393.50. .3, Chris Unruh, Brownsburg, 392.55. 8, David Keener, Wawasee, 349.70. 15, Kevin Reed, Manchester, 319.85. 100 yard Butterfly —l, Brad Toothaker, S. Bend Riley, 49.59. 2, Gregory Drake, Indpls. N. Central, 50.61. 3, Brendan Barrett, Indpls. N. Central, 51.00. 14, Chad Twombly, Warsaw, 53.67. 100-yard Freestyle —l, Brian Benedict, Valparaiso, 46.72. 2, David Fatzinger, Anderson, 47.22. 3, Craig Arsenult, Chesterton, 47.58. 500-yard Freestyle —l, Todd Griner, Anderson, 4:34.72. 2, Paul Uttley, Lake Central, 4:42.00. 3, Thomas Wildhart, LaPorte, 4:43.75. 100-yard Backstroke —l, Josh Mikesell, Crawfordsville, 51.87. 2, Edison Silva, Bloomington South, 53.80.3, Bob Drew, Jasper, 54.22. 100-yard Breaststroke —l, Guy Hudson, Columbus North, 59.1 V 2, Franc Sanchez, Bloomington South, 1:00.22. 3, Larry Herr, Kokomo. 1:00.85. 8, Rod Mohler, Warsaw, 1.02.21. 400-yard freestyle relay —l, Anderson 3:11.22. 2, Indpls. N. Central, 3:13.83. 3, Valparaiso, 3:13.90. 13, Wawasee, 3:19.16.
noting that, despite an 11 point second quarter lead, the Warriors were unable to put the game away. However, the second quarter made the difference in the end, with both teams driving to a near stalemate in the third quarter and Bremen outscoring the War-
Hll IfftZS fl U1 BE * HL* mb. t . ■k i I I % I r-’' .- t, TAKEDOWN — Wawasee’s Matt Dick appears to have taken down a Bremen player during the Warriors’ 59-52 Northern Lakes Conference victory Friday. Dick scored four points as Wawasee improved to 16-4 on the season. (Photo by Mark Huffman)
Indiana's best square off at Grace
j By MARK WEINSTEIN Sports Editor WINONA LAKE - At the start of the basketball season, Grace College was listed as the second best NAIA team in Indiana. Taylor University was first. But the two school's have changed positions since the beginning of the season. Grace is ranked atop the NAIA District 21 poll while Taylor is second. So which team is the best in Indiana? That question will be determined Wednesday evening in Winona Lake when the two square off in the NAIA District 21 championship game. A sellout crowd is expected. For Grace, a victory in the district title game would send the Lancers into the NAIA national tournament in Kansas City, Mo. It would also be the first time a Grace basketball team advanced to the national level. Although the tournament in Kansas City has special meaning among the Lancer players, it has even more meaning for head coach Jim Kessler. For it was at the NAIA national tournament that Kessler first learned of Grace College. At that time, Kessler was enrolled at Calvary Bible College in Kansas City. His team was ineligible to play in the oldest post-season - basketball tournament, so he watched front the stands with his coach. Dick Spencer. In those days, though, the tournament was played in Kansas City's Memorial Coliseum. Since then, the 50-year old tournament has moved to its present site, Kemper Arena. -. “I remember sitting in the stands with my coach, and then I heard my name being called over the public address system,'' recalled Kessler of the heart-stopping moment. “The announcement said, ‘would Jim Kessler please report to the public address announcer. That’s exactly what the future Grace coach did. Once on the floor of the Coliseum. Kessler met his future coach. Grace College head coach Chet Kammerer They talked, primarily, about basketball. That discussion led to further discussions, which, finally, resulted in Kessler transferring to Grace. The rest is history. Kessler has become Grace’s winningest basketball coach. Kessler surpassed the 200-win plateau this season, and is hoping to lead the Lancers into the prestigious NAIA tournament "It has always been a personal dream of mine to go back to Kansas City to play in the tournament,” said Kessler. *‘Nbw I have a chance at taking a team to the tournament.” ’ The Lancers must stop Taylor tonight in order for Kessler's dream to come true. “We’ve been talking, long before the playoff picture developed.
Still, another way The Solid Ones can help the Warrior basketball team is by wearing the T-shirt given to every Wawasee ticket holder. The shirt was sponsored by several in the Wawasee Community School Corporation area. This sectional should be interesting and fun for all Wawasee fans. The Warriors have the best team, overall, and could walk away with the title. □ Although I briefly mentioned about The Solid Ones T-shirts
before, I feel more needs to be said. The reason why everyone pur chasing a sectional ticket received a t-shirt was because of the work of Dave and Susie Butler. The pair, along with a few other loyal supporters, combed the Wawasee Community School Corporation area and found many merchants willing to back the Butler’s idea of free tshirts for the sectional. . . The reason behind Butler’s idea? Simple. The Butler’s wanted to ignite some spirit among Wawasee’s fans, and they were tired of always seeing Orange in the stands. This year, white will be the dominate color in the stands and forest green and gold on the floor. The other reason for this action was that Wawasee fans were tired of sitting next to Warsaw fans. In previous years, Warsaw residents bought all the unsold Wawasee tickets. But they won’t this year. Residents supporting the Warriors pur chasedall 672 tickets —-not giving WCHS faithful and oppoFtunity to buy Wawasee ticxets. It is the first time in Wawksee High School history that all sectional tickets have been sold — to WHS fans.
"riors by two in the final stanza. “Somehow we managed to sustain a five to seven point lead, but we looked like we played with a lot of pressure on us,” Goshert added. Bremen managed to narrow the lead to four with one minute on the clock, 52-48, but Rhoades
On The Mark MARK WEINSTEIN J*
hit on the ensuing play to make it 54-48, with ball control and a smothering defense helping to maintain that lead. g “Our last five games have been positive defensively,” Goshert said, while the return of 6-3 junior Fred Steffen to the lineup helped clog the middle.
that we want to do the things we do well,” said Kessler. “We want to play tenacious defense, rebound well, and have good shot selection.” The Lancer coaching staff feels if they are able to accomplish those goals, they will be making a trip next week to Kansas City. “We have a lot of confidence in our abilities,” insisted Kessler. “This is a veteran group that knows how to play together.” The Lancers, in year’s past, have rarely been in position to play for the trip to Kansas City. Asa matter of fact, the Lancers’ title game tonight marks the second time in school history that a trip to the NAIA national tournament was on the line. The first time. 1983, Grace hosted Tri-State University. The outcome. a 74-58 Tri-State victory did not settle well with Kessler. The game was close the entire way. Rarely did a couple of buckets separate the two schools. Until the end. Tri-State exploded in the final five minutes, outscoring Grace 20-5 down the stretch, to advance to the tournament. In that game, Kessler noted that Grace failed to collect an offensive rebound in the second half. “We do not want to get shut out on the boards against Taylor,” said Kessler. "Generally, if we rebound like we are capable, we will win." J ’ Grace's season proves that statistical point. In five of the Lancers’ losses, Grace was outrebounded. For the season, Grace holds a 3.6 rebounding edge over its opponent. The Lancers average 38 boards a contest, while the opponent usually collects 34.4 rebounds a game. Taylor reached the championship contest with its 81-74 upset of second-ranked IUPUI Monday evening. Grace moved into the title matchup with its 78-69 victory over Franklin. Grace, after a slow start (8-5), has won 16 of its last 17 games. The impressive string of wins also includes an active 10-game winning streak. Offensively, Grace is led by senior Joe Graham. The New Haven, Ind., product averages 18.5 points and 8.4 rebounds an outing. Still, the Lancers have three others averaging in double-digits. Both Ben Teske and Worth Packer average 11.8 points a game. Teske normally pulls down 6.6 rebounds a game, while Packer averages 5.1 boards. Former Penn standout, Paul Zeltwanger rounds out the Lancers in double-digits with a 10.8 scoring norm. He is the team's best percentage shooter, both from the fielcfand stripe. Scoring wise, the Lancers are netting 75.2 points a game, compared to the opponent’s 65.4 clip “We’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season,” admitted Kessler. “The guys realized what it meant to be a good basketball team. They’ve put it together, so to speak.” It will be interesting to see whether Kessler’s dream comes true.
Wawasee girls' gymnastics team will participate in its own sectional Saturday, beginning at 10 a m. The Warriors, 11-3, are expected torchallenge for.the championship with Concord and Warsaw. The All Northern Lakes Conference girls’ basketball team was announced last week and two Wawasee Warriors earned a spot on the first team. Seniors Kelly Brooks and Ann Vitaniemi were unanimous selections to the first unit, while Lai Reed was voted to the second team. Other unanimous players on the first unit included Bremen’s Kim Hickman and Beth Feldman, Warsaw’s Brenda Kachlik and Stacy Grow, Concord’s Heidi Copsey, and Goshen’s Jan Kolb. Others nominated to the unit were North Wood’s Jo Miller and Deena Jones. Those players making the second squad included, besides Reed, Tami Miller, Concord; Nicole Demien, Plymouth; Brenda Snyder, Bremen; Michelle Haack, Plymouth; Angie Johnson, Warsaw; Sonja Stegelmann, Goshen; Nicole Ryman, Warsaw; Christy Wesolek, North Wood; Lisa Hahn, North Wood; and Reed. " ' If Wawasee High School honored players and coaches from the 1977 boys’ sectional championship team during halftime of the Warriors’ home finale against Bremen. Wawasee High School Athletic Director, Hal Traviolia, was pleas* ed with the turnout of former players and coaches. The present Warriors will search for another sectional title Wednesday evening when they battle Warsaw. Wawasee enters the contest with a 16-4 mark, while the Tigers hold an 11-9 record. ■ Grace College men’s basketball team is within one game of advancing to the NAIA national basketball tournament in Kansas City, Mo. If the Lancers, ranked number one in Indiana, defeat the third-rated -Taylor University Trsjans, then they will advance to the championship round. No Grace team has advanced to the finals round fiances Ci‘y The Lancers presently have a 24-6 record.
Steffen, who had suffered from ! a broken collarbone after a r snowmobile accident earlier in the season, was hindered by a brace during the contest and shot one of six from the field. However, according to the Wawasee coach, that will soon change. “Fred will play better the next game,” Goshert dead ' panned. Admitting that they’ve always struggled against Bremen, Goshert also conceded the pressure of a 16-4 season. “The I hog is off our back — now we can play a lot freer,” he remarked. Nathan Rhoades helped celebrate his final regular season game with 10 points, while seniors James Braggs, Mike i Eastman, and Mangas also ' witnessed their last regular I games in a Wawasee uniform. Junior Joe Bennett led the : Lions with 18 points, while Chris Snyder followed with nine. Both teams shot even from the field (Wawasee 17-45; Bremen 17-41), but the Warriors went to the charity stripe more often (25-33 to 18-24) to account for the seven extra points.
The junior varsity made it a clean sweep for Wawasee, pounding out a 43-39 overtime win. With the win, the varsity Warriors tied Warsaw for second place in the Northern Lakes Conference (5-2). Seventh-ranked Concord won the league title with a 6-1 mark. Hoping to add to a six game winning streak, the Green and Gold open sectional play tonight against 11-9 Warsaw. The opening game at Triton is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Mangas will be aiming for se-
Hr IB If ** HBBJ M ¥ * Eh* . PACKER SCORES — Former Wawasee standout Worth Packer, 51. scores over two Marion College defenders during Grace College’s second-round NAIA District 21 victory over the Titans. The Lancers. 24-6, play Taylor University tonight for the right to represent the district in the national finals in Kansas City, Mo. Packer scored 17 points in the Lancer victory. (Photo by Mark Weinstein)
<si Serving as the guest panelist this week is Tim Caldwell. The Wawasee High School swim coach has had a great season coaching — both the boys’ and girls’ swim teams. Caldwell is hoping his ‘season’ will continue this week with a perfect score among his picks. However, this will conclude Caldwell's season in this space. As was noted last week, this is scheduled to be the final week of predictions. A final decision will be made following Wawasee’s final sectional game. Games on tap this week for the group of prognosticators are games from the Triton and Elkhart Sectionals. The games include Wawasee versus Warsaw, the WHS/WCHS winner against Rochester, Tippecanoe Valley versus Triton, and the Triton Sectional champion. The Elkhart Sectional games include Central versus Jimtowm. Northridge against Concord, Goshen versus Penn, and North Wood versus Memorial. Second round games are the winner of Central/Jimtown against the winner of the Northridge/Concord clash. The winner ofik? Goshen/Penn against NorthWood/Penn winner, then the sectional champion. MARK WEINSTEIN (.792) — Wawasee, Wawasee, Tippecanoe Valley, Wawasee, Elkhart Central, Concord, Penn. Memorial, Concord. Penn, and Concord. DERK KUHN (.792) —Wawasee. Wawasee. TVHS. Wawasee. Central, Northridge, Penn, North Wood, Northridge, North Wood. North Wood. . MARK HUFFMAN (.730) —Wawasee. Wawasee. TVHS. Wawasee, Central, Concord, Penn. North Wood. Concord, Penn. Concord. *TIM CALDWELL (.723) —Wawasee. Wawasee. TVHS, Wawasee. Central, Concord, Penn, North Wood, Concord, Penn. Concord. HOMER MILLER (.715) —Warsaw, Warsaw. TVHS. Warsaw. Central, Concord, Penn, Memorial. Concord. Penn. Concord. *oejß>W¥ O«irsx
cond place on the Wawasee career Scoring list during that contest. John Hamilton (‘72) currently holds that spot with 1,028 points, while all-time leader Jeff Long (‘B2) would be within reach if the Warriors get past Warsaw. Long tallied 1,053 points during his four year career. Mangas was absent at the beginning of the December 12 game against the Tigers due to a sprained ankle, but showed up midway through the contest and hit a 13-foot jumper in the end for a 63-62 win.