November 15, 2017 at 2:17 p.m.
Winter practice notebook
Winter practice notebook
There are a host of returning athletes for the Hodag boys' basketball, wrestling and Nordic ski teams this winter and the coaches agree having kids who are used to how things operate makes life easier during what can be a chaotic first few days of practice.
"The routine is nice," RHS wrestling coach Paul Ellenbecker said. "Once you get a routine and some stuff established, a program, I think things kind of run themselves. We've got things rolling pretty good."
Some other notes from the first day of practice:
Hodag hoops hits ground running
The Rhinelander High School boys' basketball team will likely enter the 2017-18 season with a chip on its shoulder after seeing its four-year run atop the Great Northern Conference come to an end last winter.
Coach Derek Lemmens said that attitude was evident among the players in the offseason and a renewed commitment to the game, along with a host of returning varsity players had this year's squad more than ready for the first day of practice.
"I think this is as ready as we've ever been," Lemmens said. "I think guys put in a lot of time in the offseason. I think this fall we had really good commitment, whether it was in the weight room or gym time. I think the guys have really hit the ground running here."
Continuity helps. Just like in years past, the Hodags are using two-a-day practice sessions during the first week of the season, which is as much about conditioning as it is about basketball 101.
"You've got to be in shape if you want to play basketball," Lemmens said. "It's really important. We just want to make sure what we do this first week really sets the tone for the rest of the year."
While the Hodags may tweak some off its offensive and defensive schemes this year based on personnel, Lemmens said the squad will not stray far away from what it does thanks to a senior-laden roster led by first-team All-GNC selection Owen White.
"We just have to get good at what we do. We're just going over the basic stuff, nothing too fancy, just taking care of the basics and then we'll build from there," he said. "There's a lot of experience here. There's a lot of things that (allow us) to kind of move at a fast pace. At the same time, I've got to be careful. Sometimes you think you can go faster and then we don't do a good job covering the really key skills. We've got to make sure we push with out going too fast."
As in years past, the Hodags have divided their varsity and JV in the evenly-matched green and white squads that practice against each other. Those squads will get on the court for a simulated game at 7 p.m. Friday at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium. The public is encouraged to attend.
The Hodags will open their season Nov. 24 at reigning three-time WIAA Division 1 state champion Stevens Point.
Quality over quantity for Hodag wrestlers
On the RHS wrestling team's Facebook page, there is a link to a YouTube clip of a scene from the movie "300."
Coach Paul Ellenbecker believes his Hodags will need that Spartan mentality this year. While overall numbers are down, Ellenbercker said the overall talent inside the wrestling room - which includes three returning state qualifiers - is perhaps as good as it has even been.
"The kids we have we're excited about. We're super excited about how they are going to compete this year," he said.
Ellenbecker said he only has 18 out for the sport right now, just four more than a full lineup. Even then, they Hodags may have to get creative to fill all 14 weight classes at points during the season unless they get some more athletes to come out.
"We struggle to find the kids - as much fun as we try to make it and as supportive as we can be - we struggle to get the 20, 30, 40 kids like a lot of schools do," he said, citing the physical and mental demands of the sport as part of the reason for the low turnout. "We'll keep recruiting, see what happens and prepare the kids that do come out and get them ready to wrestle."
The Hodags open the season with a home dual against Crandon Nov. 30, which is a precursor to a tough non-conference schedule during the month of December. While the tendency may be for some coaches to cram in an effort to prepare for a strong early schedule, Ellenbecker said the Hodags are taking the exact opposite approach.
"We look at it more like a marathon," he said, noting that the team's practices will range between 75 and 90 minutes a night. "The point right now is to get into wrestling shape a little bit. We're not expecting our guys to be middle-of-the-year trained in two weeks. We want to get better as the season goes along."
Nordic ski program continues to build
The last three years have been a clear rebuilding effort for the Rhinelander High School Nordic ski programs.
While the team continues to build its numbers and improve the infrastructure it needs to be successful, coach Charil Reis was clear at the end of last season that she wanted to see some of that hard work manifest into results this year. She held true to that objective as practice began Monday.
"I have some very specific goals in mind and I want them to know what they can reach for and can obtain - and maybe what they are not able to obtain," she said, reiterating her want to see at least one Hodag boy and one Hodag girl place in the top 25 at the Wisconsin Nordic Ski League state championships come February. "I'd like for them to push themselves harder this year and look for those results to happen."
Reis said the high school squad has 17 skiers out, a record in her four years on the job. Not only does the team have increased numbers, but those numbers have increased experience.
"I only have two new skiers that I know of, who I'll have to teach how to ski and we have a plan for that this year that should bring them up to speed relatively quickly," she said.
A big reason for the increased numbers and experience is the feeder program from the middle school level. While the high school and middle school programs have worked together over the past few seasons, Reis said she expects even greater unison from the squads this year.
Reis said improved facilities at the Cedric A. Vig Outdoor Classroom will help achieve that goal. More than five acres of land at CAVOC were "disturbed," as she described it, over the last nine months to widen existing trails and create a new start/finish area near the entrance of the school property.
"We'll be able to work together a lot and everyone will be training on hills consistently," Reis said. "Because the middle schoolers and the high schoolers will be able to train side-by-side - and maybe even mix ranks a little bit, push each other a little bit - I think they will have better results."
CAVOC will be the team's primary training grounds following the Thanksgiving holiday and the new starting area will allow beginners to get their ski legs on relatively flat ground while the rest of the trail system will provide the experienced skiers the hilly terrain they need to prepare for competition.
While there's a little snow on the trails right now, more is needed to form a solid base. Reis said the team will stick around Rhinelander High School for dry land training through next week.
"We're just kind of regrouping, going through our core exercises and our circuits and getting ready to put the skis on and climb some hills," she said.
Trail conditions permitting, the Hodags' first race of the season will take place Dec. 19 at Minocqua Winter Park.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.