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CVC boys' basketball hopes high for season
(by Steve Novak - December 03, 2008)
CVC boys' basketball hopes high for season
By STEVE NOVAK
The Chagrin Valley Conference boys' basketball season is right around the corner. Here's a look at the area teams:
Kenston
For Kenston coach Josh Jakacki, a 15-6 record in 2007-08 didn't come without a price. As often occurs with a team owning a better than .500 mark, the team is heavily laden with seniors.
Jakacki lost six players to graduation, including regulars John Behm, Cory Barton, Dreadless Stubbs, Chris Meyer and Pat Moore.
He has several returning players, but most only saw infrequent playing time on a varsity floor. An exception to the players without solid varsity time is 6-foot-3 senior forward Scott Cardwell. He was named to the All-Chagrin Valley Conference honorable-mention team.
Projected starters include Nick Gardner, Cal Cumpstone, Peter Horn and Brian Marein.
Gardner is a 6-foot-2 senior forward. Cumpstone, at 6-foot-1, is a senior who will play at guard. Horn, a 6-foot-4 senior is also one of the guard prospects. Marein stands 6-foot-3, and this senior is in the running for the other forward position.
Other team members include 6-foot-1 junior Pat Behm, 5-foot-9 junior Pat Cozzens, 5-foot-9 junior Dan Scortino, 5-foot-11 junior Jeff Caitlin, 6-foot senior Tyler Beasley, 5-foot-9 sophomore Justin Brownlow and 6-foot-7 freshman Eric Trung.
Jakacki admits it is going to take some time before his largely untested team starts to get some real varsity experience under its belt. But he's already optimistic and pleased with the team's competitive attitude.
"Most of our guys are working really hard," he said. "But there's a difference of competence at the high school level because of our youth. But day by day, I'm getting to see more confidence in the kids. It's a joy to see the kids when it does click. So, because of our lack of experience, I think we'll struggle early on."
The Bombers open the season on Dec. 9 against Maple Heights. Four days later, they begin Chagrin Valley Conference play against visiting West Geauga.
Orange
Orange lost six players to graduation, with one of the notable losses being Dan Turner. Last year, Turner averaged 16 points per game.
Among the returning players is Perry Freed. He's a 5-foot-7 junior and coach Bob Wright has tabbed him as the team's point guard.
Other returnees with a lot of varsity time under their belts include Mitchell Munsel, Bryce Cylar, Lacey Clark and Terence Marshall.
Munsel is 6-foot this season, and Wright said he'll rely on him a lot for his outside shooting prowess.
Cylar is a 6-foot-2 junior, and Wright said he'll be one of the team's primary rebounders.
Clark is a 6-foot junior guard, and he's known for his ability to drive to the hoop.
Marshall is a 6-foot-4 junior, and he averaged close to 10 points per game last season.
Marshall Crum is a transfer student new to the Orange team this year. Now a junior, Crum stands 6-foot-4 and played last season at Lorain Southview. Wright said he averaged more than 10 points each contest last year in the Lake Erie League.
Orange finished the 2007-2008 season with a 7-14 record. Wright said he feels that he has a good mix of players, and he sees them filling roles in categories that range from ball handling to outside shooting to rebounding.
"We have a host of young, talented kids. Plus, there's the ones we brought into our system," Wright said. "We've got the big-guy transfer (Marshall Crum). But most of these guys have played a lot together in the past.
"I see us better, but I don't want to give any numbers, and jinx us," Wright said.
The Lions open the season with a Dec. 6 game against Beachwood. Then they go on the road with a Dec. 9 independent contest against Gilmour.
West Geauga
For West Geauga head coach Frank Vosicky, the 2007-2008 season is something he would like to build upon, rather than to forget entirely.
In talking about his team's 3-17 season record, Vosicky said that his present team is largely composed of the same core players who were on the team last season.
Vosicky said that he's pleased with the attitude of his players, especially their determination and willingness to accept the idea of a new beginning.
"What I like most about this year is that the team is willing to do anything to get rid of last year," he said. "They are willing to try anything we do offensively and to carry it through to conclusion. "
Vosicky only lost three players through graduation. Four players who saw considerable playing time last year are expected to be prime candidates to be starters.
Among the four is a senior, Blake Vedder, who is 2 inches taller than last season. That makes him now 7 feet, 2 inches tall. Last season, Vedder averaged four points and four rebounds.
The other three likely starters for the Wolverines are Louis Link, a 6-foot-2 senior forward, Gino Notarian, a 5-foot-11 senior guard, and Tyler Flowers, a 5-foot-9 junior guard. Link averaged about eight points per game last season, while Notarian and Flowers were good for about five points each game.
Other members of the team include Greg Polan, a 5-foot-9 senior forward, Kevin Ritz, a 6--foot-1 senior forward, Mike Hanzlick, a 6-foot-4 forward and center and Andrew Shernesky, a 6-foot-3 senior forward.
Vosicky said he's convinced that it's going to be important for his players to realize that it's a new season, that they have a year of experience behind them and that there is more than enough potential in their combined talents.
"We need them to see that the talent is there," he said. "We just need to get more repetition in what we do in order to gain confidence."
The Wolverines open the season with a Dec. 6 game at Mayfield. Two more road games with Painesville Riverside and Kenston follow before they finally have their home opener against Orange.
Chagrin Falls
For Chagrin Falls, it has come to the time for the bench players to spend more time on the floor.
Coach Dave Bargar lost six of the players on his 2007-2008 team to senior graduation. That includes the team's outside shooter, Spencer Stevenson, who averaged nearly 14 points per game last season.
There's a load of players returning who have had varsity experience, however. Many of them, however, had to come into the game at crucial points in the contest.
Juniors on the team this year include Sean Keuenzig, Dan Mignoga and Matt Diles. Kuenzig is a 5-foot-11 point guard, Mignogna is a 6-foot-1 forward and Diles is a 6-foot-5 center.
Some of the seniors on this year's team are Zak Kratche and Billy Caster. Kratche, at 6-foot-3, is slated to be one of the forwards. Caster, at 6-foot-2, will also see a lot of playing time at a forward spot.
Senior Brody Snell is a 5-foot-11 guard for the Tigers who will see a lot of minutes in the lineup. Another 6--foot-5 player is junior Connor Clegg.
Bargar said others in his lineup include 5-foot-6 guard Pat Stacker, 6-foot forward Cam Turner, 5-foot-10 guard Cory Stack and 6-foot-1 forward Pat Nadeau. A sophomore, Sam Schiferl, is also one of the candidates to play forward.
The Tigers finished with a 10-10 season record last year, and Bargar said he feels good about the composition of this year's team being based around players who have seen spot duty in the past.
"We're pretty confident. I'm cautiously optimistic," Bargar said. "We'll be using kids this year who were not the main guys last season. But they always played roles. This summer (practice games), though, they really did the job."
The Tigers open the season Dec. 10 at Independence and have their home opener Dec. 13 Aurora.
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