The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
The dust has settled a little, since the end of our season and I've had some time to reflect on what we were able to accomplish and our successes. I understand that most people will look at our final record 1-31 and say that we had a terrible season. I do NOT see it that way or feel that way at all. Our season was full of successes that just didn't show up on the scoreboard or in the wins column, but we most definitely had many and built a solid foundation to build our Program on and become what I know we can become.
We ended our season with 19 guys on our roster, which is several more than West Central has had for several years. Despite our record, those 19 guys showed up every day, eager and willing to work hard and get better. They NEVER gave up or quit, which would have been easy for them to do. They continued to play hard, compete, and got better as the season went on. We went from playing 10-12 minutes of solid, fundamental basketball to playing 20+ minutes of solid, fundamental basketball, every game we were a part of. Unfortunately, the game is 32 minutes long and we just couldn't get out of our own way at times. Our mistakes often snowballed on us, into several in a row, instead of just one or two, here and there, but we got better at taking control of that as the season went on. Our inexperience at the Varsity level, the speed and physicality of the Varsity game, and the skill sets required to compete at the Varsity level was something that we struggled with all season, but again, definitely improved on. We went from being the team that everybody couldn't wait to play, to the team that Coaches had some reservations about playing, as we got better. We became competitive!
We will lose three Seniors (Isiah Stephson, Noah Lenahan, and Daniel Ruiz) to Graduation, but the 16 guys that return now have a taste of what it takes to compete and what our expectations are going forward. Inexperience at the Varsity level will NOT be an issue next season. The foundation has been laid and it's time to continue building. I'm excited about the incoming Freshmen group, as we just finished a 4 week, Spring/Second Season of Future Heat Basketball, with them and our current 7th graders. Our JH Coaches (Trey Goff and Bryce Bigger) did a nice job with both groups this past season. All of our Coaches did a GREAT job this past season, from our Kindergarten thru HS groups. We have so many GOOD people doing GOOD things and doing things right. Coach Ross Parcel, Coach Andy Lumbeck, and myself are excited about Heat Basketball and the direction our Program is heading. The community is excited about Heat Basketball and the support has been off the charts! It's a process and there's a lot of work to do, but we are all working together and going in the same direction. If you haven't heard about us and what's going on at West Central...you will!
I can't wait to get back in the gym this summer and get to work with these guys! And I think they're excited too. However, I will patiently wait and root for our guys as they compete with Coach Parcel and West Central Heat Baseball and for some as they compete for West Central Track! We are West Central Heat!
Coach D