By Staff
Snow has fallen, one holiday has passed and we are officially in the month of December. Seems like just yesterday I was at one of the local baseball fields complaining that it was too hot outside.
This season change has not only brought different weather to us, but it's the time for a new sports season.
The winter season, which consists of wrestling, boy's basketball, volleyball and competitive cheer, is officially under way.
Wrestling began this week and volleyball and basketball don't begin until next week.
So, who's going to impress us this season? I have started on some preview stories and will continue to run them just to give everyone a heads up on what we can expect this season.
What do I think of the teams? Well, I haven't had a chance to see any of them in action yet, but from what I've heard and from players that are returning, I have a pretty good idea of what we can expect this winter.
Lets start with wrestling. The sport I never understood, but now enjoy watching and completely understand!
I had a chance to see Buchanan's wrestling squad Tuesday evening at Meet the Team night, not in action though.
They were loud, as all wrestler's are, and head coach Frank Mucha said he has about 38 solid wrestler's out this year, 16 of them returning letter winners.
The Bucks opened their season Wednesday night and pretty much blew their opponents away. I think we can see a very good season from the Buchanan wrestling team.
On to Niles. I have to congratulate head coach Bob Galvin on getting his 400th - actually 401st - win Thursday evening.
The Vikings also opened their season with two wins Thursday night.
After losing only five starters last season, this should also be a very good year for Niles, which returns a lot of talent.
The Brandywine wrestling squad also has quite a few of returning wrestler's. I have not talked to coach Rex Pomranka yet, nor have I seen the Bobcats in action, but I feel they will be able to bring something to the table.
All in all wrestling in this area should be very competitive this season.
Bump, set, spike….
Niles is returning seven players from last year's team. The Vikes were pretty young last year, but after a season of experience and building skills, Niles should be a team to look out for.
Buchanan looks that way as well. They have a strong, talented squad returning which will make them pretty competitive in the Lakeland Conference.
Brandywine had a very good season last year and even with the loss of some very talented athletes, the Bobcats return much talent.
Volleyball? I think we are also set for a competitive season. All squads are returning some strong talent.
Dribble, dribble, shoot, shoot…
Basketball. Well, I'm not really sure how this season will look for area teams. I haven't had a chance to see or hear much about any of them, except Buchanan.
Sure, they had a very successful season last year and have some talent this year. The problem? They are young, inexperienced and have no height. Hopefully they are a very quick team!
Niles will return probably the most talent out of the three schools.
Not sure how they will be height wise, but they do have some good athletes returning.
Brandywine, well they really struggled last season. But with a new coach, they may be able to have a more improved record this season. I know they also have some good talent back.
Well, as you can see it's a little to early to tell exactly how all the teams will do. But the winter sports season should be packed with some good competition. Good luck to all teams!
Part of being a champ is acting like a champ. You have to learn how to win and not run away when you lose. Everyone has bad stretches and real successes. Either way, you have to be careful not to lose your confidence or get to confident.
– Nancy Kerrigan