|
No team has a bigger challenge in the first round of the state tournament than coach Craig Schnitzler's Kenesaw team.
The eighth-seeded Blue Devils (14-7) face No. 1-ranked and top seeded Fremont Bergan (24-0) in a Class D-2 first-round game at 9 a.m. Thursday at Lincoln East High School.
Bergan, featuring Iowa State recruit Wes Eikmeier, advanced to the C-2 state semifinals a year ago before losing to eventual state champion Ponca. This year, Hastings St. Cecilia and Boys Town have been the only teams to stay within 10 points of the Knights.
Schnitzler knows the kind of challenge his team faces against Eikmeier, who averages 30.5 points per game, and his teammates.
"It will be a big challenge for our kids," Schnitzler said. "But we take what we can get and we'll play hard."
Schnitzler said bench play will be a key for the Blue Devils.
"We feel like we're in good shape," Schnitzler said. "Hopefully our depth will help because Bergan will put a lot of pressure on us. Our bench will play a key role. We have to handle their pressure and limit mistakes."
Kenesaw qualified for state with a 49-40 victory over Exeter-Milligan in a district final game. Schnitzler said the Blue Devils have played tough defense during the post season.
"It's been solid the last three games," Schnitzler said. "We've turned it up a notch defensively, especially in our man-to-man. The kids responded and have done a nice job contesting shots and taking away things our opponents want to do."
This will be Kenesaw's first state tournament appearance since 1992. The Blue Devils were beaten by Shelton in postseason play a year ago.
"We had a good season last year," Schnitzler said. "We didn't finish things against a good team in Shelton. This year we've gotten better every week. January was a tough month for us. There are a lot of good teams in our conference. At times we played well and at other times we didn't.
"But we kept fighting and continued to work to get better. That got us to this point."
The Blue Devils are led offensively by senior Trevor Stickels at 14.3 points per game while senior Taylor Jacobitz averages 9.4 a game.
Senior Evan Bender, who averages 9.3 per game, has been in double figures the past three games.
"He was big for us (last week) against Exeter-Milligan," Schnitzler said of Bender. "Our shots weren't falling from the perimeter. We went inside and just fed off of that. We shot better from the perimeter as the game went along. We got a good inside-outside game going."
Schnitzler said the four seniors, which includes center Kirk Marble, have been big for the Blue Devils this season. He said the seniors have been a big key in getting Kenesaw back to the state tournament.
"It's been a long dry spell," Schnitzler said. "These kids have worked hard. The four seniors have been at it for four years and every year we've gotten better. They are a huge part of it. It's a great honor for them to finish their senior season off this way."
Kenesaw (14-7)
Player H Y PPG RPG
Trevor Stickels 6-0 Sr. 14.3 6.1
Matthew Cline 5-9 Jr. 2.1 0.8
Ethan Volzke 5-8 Sr. 4.1 1.7
Aaron Cammack 6-0 So. 2.2 0.9
Brandon Stevens 6-1 Jr. 4.3 1.7
Evan Bender 6-3 Jr. 9.3 6.1
Brennan Burling 5-3 Jr. 0.6 0.4
Taylor Jacobitz 6-1 Sr. 9.4 2.4
Dustin Mayfield 5-8 Jr. 0.0 0.4
Jeremiah Shurigar 6-1 So. 3.0 3.5
Broderick Rossow 6-1 So. 2.3 1.3
Kirk Marble 6-3 Sr. 3.5 3.9
Daniel Fischer 5-11 Jr. 0.9 0.9
Kade Clark 6-1 Fr. 2.3 2-0
Head coach: Craig Schnitzler
Assistant coaches: Tom Budnick, Christian Kroos
Conference: Fort Kearny
NSAA enrollment: 81
State appearances: 18
Most recent: 1992
State runner-up years: E/1921
Want to comment on this article?
Register on our forums and post your thoughts.
It's free and easy to do!
independentforums.com
|
