Chasing the Dream: Redskins’ star hoping AAU success turns into a chance to play college ball

She's the slender blonde with the hard to pronounce, and even harder to forget, last name, and she's hoping a wicked curve ball and foregoing the life of an average teenager will pay off with a college scholarship.

Megan Schwartzengraber (shwarts-n-gray-ber) is a Camden-Frontier pitching star who posted a 0.95 ERA with 175 strikeouts in 94 1/2 innings as a sophomore, but she has taken major strides this summer toward becoming more than just a small-town high school athlete who never quite made it at the college level.

She is a starting pitcher on the Indiana Shockwave, the top Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) program in the Hoosier State, and a team that just finished fourth out of 164 squads at 16-U American Softball Association (ASA) Nationals in Sioux Falls, S.D.

She has already received a handful of letters of interest from college coaches and softball is basically her full-time job with the entire Schwartzengraber family dedicating their time and money to the cause.

Megan said there is plenty of pressure being in her shoes, but she realized at the age of 10 or 11 that softball was going to be a key part of her future and she was willing to sacrifice for success.

"You step on the field and all you see is college coaches, you barely see your parents," she said about competing in national tournaments that are littered with scouts. "At nationals, our first game, I saw coaches from Michigan, Central (Michigan), Eastern (Michigan), (Michigan) State and it was kind of scary. At the beginning it plays games with your head, but then you have to block it out and focus."

She blocked it out well enough to help guide her team to the national semifinals, where the Shockwave fell a run short to the eventual champion.

While she has to give up some afternoons by the pool and decline invites to weekend slumber parties, she said she is thankful to just have the opportunity to be seen and known for playing the sport she can't get enough of.

"It was a great experience with 164 teams and I got to go somewhere I wasn't familiar with. There was tons of excitement and you never expected people to just go crazy about softball I guess," she said. "I knew we were good because we won all the Indiana tournaments. Once we got fourth at nationals I was just like 'man, we're really good I guess.'"

The Shockwave played 10 games at nationals and a normal weekend includes five to seven tournament contests.

She has traveled to Colorado and Illinois, as well as all over Indiana this summer, but the back roads of Hillsdale County have turned out to be the right place to hone her skills during the school year.

The Schwartzengraber's live in Angola, Ind., but Megan's mom, Dawn, has taught at C-F for 12 years. Megan came to C-F for a day in eighth grade and never left — now is she is a fixture and asset to the athletic community.

She has been part of a dynamic one-two punch with Morgan Warfield as the Redskins have won back-to-back district titles, something that remains Schwartzengraber's proudest moments, even with all the highlights of AAU ball.

"I think winning districts for Camden is a great experience because not a lot of people think of Camden as a place for softball district champs. I think if we keep going people will finally start realizing Camden is actually there," she said. "We still have people who say we're not that great, but we beat them every time. It's just like c'mon, show a little respect."

Head coach Melissa Warfield said earlier this year that Morgan and Megan feed off each other and Schwartzengraber agrees.

"We try and not make it a competition. We just try and help each other. If one is struggling the other one needs to be there for each other and we work really well as a team together," Megan said. "Morgan and I are pretty intense. I think it helps that we're intense because we can try and help get everybody else to that level, where they're like 'OK, we want to win.'"

Dawn said the opportunity to play right away has helped her daughter develop quickly and the district is a great place to be a student.

She admitted there are some cons though, such as the lack of notoriety children get with little media coverage, and the fact that not every athlete has the same drive because there are not even tryouts to make the team.

Whatever C-F lacks though has been made up in miles driven, dollars spent and tough love from parents if you ask Megan.

"My parents are a huge part. If they hadn't pushed me when I was younger then I probably wouldn't be here today," she said, noting there have been plenty of times where she wanted to toss in the towel and they kept her going. "We always just let her do what she wanted to do," Dawn said. "We give up a lot to go to all these places and she has no chance to have a job, so in return we just ask that she plays ball and dedicates herself 100 percent."

Dawn said she and her husband Troy let their daughter make a lot of her own decisions, but they are strict on forcing her to take one month a year off from all activities related to softball.

"We've always said that she needs to take a break so she doesn't burn herself out. Too many parents push too hard where their kid begins to not even like the sport and we don't want to do that," Dawn said.

Megan said amazingly she continues to avoid injury and her body feels great, other than some soreness from time to time.

What she's more concerned with is keeping a steady stream of college letters coming to her mailbox.

She said she received her first letter, which was from a D-I program, early this summer, but she is not letting any accolades or praise go to her head.

"The first one I got was a Division I letter, so it was like 'oh wow', but of course it was in Baton Rouge, La., so I was like hmm, maybe. I'd go Division I, but if I can go somewhere small and play a lot that's my goal," she said. "I've got a few (letters) that have said they are interested in seeing me play summer ball...and I'm with a program called NCSA online which gives coaches all my stats and have a video and stuff. College coaches leave me comments telling me they're interested."

Megan's parents are elated by the success she is having and they admit they hope a college scholarship is some of the fruit of this intense labor of love.

"In the end a scholarship is what we're hoping for and education is first. She could possibly play D-I but we want what is best for her all the way around, because her future is not softball in the long run," Dawn said.

Some people might chuckle at the thought of an SCAA softball player making it at the highest collegiate level, but it's been done before, a fact Schwartzengraber takes comfort in.

"And a few years ago, Kelsey Greene (a Burr Oak High School graduate) went to Eastern (Michigan)," she said. "That was a big thing, I was really excited after that because it made me realize I could do this."

Schwartzengraber has six pitches that she uses, a number comparable to most college pitchers, but she admits she has a lot of things to clean up on some of her weaker pitches.

She will not blow people away with the speed of her fastball, and she said it's sometimes hard to watch scouts looking at girls who throw harder, but she's not too concerned — she's got skills of her own to offer.

"From what I've seen velocity won't really get you by," she said. "The movement of the ball is what will really get them because they're not going to expect it when what they think is a fastball is actually a curve on the outside corner."

She's not afraid to let people know that she's especially good at doing that when she's on top of her game.

"(My curve) looks like it's coming right down the middle and all of a sudden it will curve and people will whiff."

She said she still has plenty of work to do when it comes to hitting pitches on the outside of the plate and she still vividly remembers dropping a routine fly-ball during outfield duty earlier this summer. She's not going to just wait for some breakthrough in those areas though, she's going to tackle the problems.

In the near future she is going to start making the drive to South Bend, Ind. to work on hitting and pitching with a Notre Dame coach, someone who an AAU teammate already trains with.

For Megan the name of the game is creating the best opportunity she can for herself and everyone involved is all in on this venture.

"I do feel like I'm missing out on a lot of things at this age but that's the risk I'm willing to take if I want to play college softball," she said.

Megan said she is slowly learning that her parents really do know best and Dawn firmly believes this journey is the adventure of a lifetime.

"The time commitment is tremendous, you give up everything," she said. "But you finally sit back and realize it was worth the time, money and not seeing your husband for two weeks, because you are letting your daughter have the opportunity to be seen by coaches from the likes of Michigan and UCLA."

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Jetting on to JCC: Hillsdale's MacDonald signs letter of intent to play college hoops

[caption id="attachment_513" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Left to right, JCC assistant basketball coach Brian Woodhurst, Hillsdale senior and the newest JCC Jet Kyle MacDonald, and head coach Steve Finamore."][/caption]

On April 30 Kyle MacDonald took the first step toward what he calls "an opportunity to create his own legacy".

The Hillsdale High School senior sharp-shooter officially signed his letter of intent to play basketball under scholarship for Jackson Community College after drawing interest from the Jets' coaching staff following his participation in numerous open gym sessions.

MacDonald said his mother, Amy Manifold, called the coaching staff about potential opportunities that might be available, he started playing pick up ball with players from Albion, Holly,  Jackson High and East Jackson among other schools, with plenty of eyes watching — and needless to say, he impressed.

Hillsdale High School head basketball coach Brad Felix said he received a call from JCC head coach Steve Finamore a few weeks ago and Finamore was excited about the prospect of having MacDonald on his roster.

“Their head coach said they were in dire need of a spot-up shooter, and that kid definitely knows how to shoot. It’s nice because no one has been talking about Kyle at all,” Felix said. “Of all my guys on the team last year he is the only one with an offer right now, who would have thought that? I’m really happy for him and he’s a good kid.”

MacDonald said he actually garnered some interest from Hillsdale College prior to his junior season, but he spent much of that year buried on the bench and it wasn't until the end of the 2008 season that things really started to come together for him.

That's when MacDonald started lifting weights, becoming a gym rat and really focusing on the sport he didn't start playing competitively until eighth-grade.

"Everything started to change when I started hitting the weights, and got stronger," he said, noting that people like teammate Scott Lantis and Hornet football coach Marc Lemerand had a major impact on his training techniques. "Plus coach told me I had to get better at my ball handling and defense, and this season he told me I'd play about 27 minutes a game, and I did and I had a lot better season."

MacDonald averaged 6.5 points per game as a senior, fourth on the team, and hit 32 3-pointers at a 28.1 percent clip. He also averaged 1.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game playing 25 minutes per game in a starting role, just a year removed from playing six to eight minutes per contest.

Manifold said she was glad to see her son finally get an opportunity, especially after he had played so well for the Lenawee Magic, an AAU team, during the summer.

"In AAU games during the summer he would play better and I think he plays better with people he doesn't know as well, for whatever reason," she said. "He scored 30-some points at an AAU game last summer and (former Hornets star) Tyler (Laser) was there, and he told Kyle he was going to go far and he had a future."

MacDonald does have a future to look forward to indeed, but not only on the hardwood. He is planning on going into dentistry, something he can start taking classes for the next two years at JCC. The scholarship he was awarded will cover the cost of tuition and books and MacDonald has yet to decide whether not he will live near campus or commute for his first year.

One thing he is sure of though is that becoming a Jet was the perfect choice for him.

"The coaches are awesome and I'm really excited to play for them.  They told me that now that I've made it, I've got to keep going because they can take the scholarship back at any time. I like that though, because I need to set goals and I like being pushed so I can get better," he said. "I've always wanted to play college basketball, for a long time...I'll probably play a little two-guard and some point (guard) for them."

Manifold has typical motherly feelings about her son's newest adventure.

"I really just want what's best for Kyle. And JCC is close, the costs are a little lower and I'm happy if he's happy. He's going into dentistry school and that can take anywhere from 10-12 years so I think this is a good place for him to start," she said. "The atmosphere is nice there and the coaches are great. They were really easy to work with and I like them a lot."

The 5-11 MacDonald is one of three guards signed for the incoming freshmen class, along with Anthony Wade of Jackson High and Patrick Williams from Holly. Nick Schaefer, a point guard from Hanover-Horton, is another notable name on the Jets' roster.

Manifold said she is excited to see her son play college basketball, and glad he will have a fresh start, where "politics" don't come into play like they sometimes do in high school.

MacDonald, once a scrawny, scraggly-haired kid with glasses, and now a well-built young man with contacts, although the hair hasn't changed, couldn't agree more.

"Maybe it's a chance to kind of create my own legacy and show people what I can do," he said. "I guess I can kind of just come out of my shell."

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Still on the market: Gabriele mulling college options, hoping scholarship offers are still to come

[caption id="attachment_438" align="alignright" width="154" caption="Despite being named an all-state selection in three sports. Hillsdale High's Mitchell Gabriele is still waiting for a scholarship offer."][/caption]

By RJ Walters / Daily News Sports Editor

As published in the Hillsdale Daily News on April 24, 2009
Mitchell Gabriele is much more polished and perceptive than average 18-year-olds because of the lessons he has learned in sports.

But nothing could have prepared him for what he calls a “bumpy road” on the recruiting trail, one that has forced him to look at his destiny in life as one dictated by forces beyond his control.

With his 12th and final season as a Hornet quickly evaporating, Gabriele figured spring baseball would be a time to enjoy some final malarkey with his high school teammates and possibly make a deep run in the state tourney before heading off to play college ball, but instead he is still sending out tapes and e-mails, trying to figure out why no one is offering him a scholarship.

All part of the game

For a kid who relishes having the ball in his hands with the game on the line it couldn’t be more frustrating, but the things he has taken to heart the past few years have prepared him for this.

For one, he learned through athletics that his über-competitive drive can get the best of him sometimes and considering the consequences before taking action is a wise option.

He has also learned waiting his turn, behind the likes of Tyler Laser and CJ Hinkle among others, was especially fruitful — for when it was his turn to take the reigns he already knew what to expect.

In just a few shorts years Gabriele has experienced being part of a state championship baseball team and he’s also digested the feeling of going 2-for-22 in his final high school basketball game; he’s been thrown out of a high school contest, hit the game-winning 3-pointer, scored dozens of important touchdowns and come up just short enough times to keep him hungry.

Most impressively though, he has learned the commitment it takes to be one of the best athletes in the state at every sport he plays, to the point he was able to reach a goal he set for himself prior to high school — being named an all-state performer in baseball, basketball and football.

But nothing, not volunteering in the community, getting hassled about whose homeruns went farther by his older brother Marco, or the priceless advice he’s received from high school coaches and parents could have prepared him for this question: “Why has no college or university offered him an athletic scholarship, a chance to take his skills to the next level?”

The answer seems to be mysterious, and somewhat baffling — something Gabriele’s closest confidants, teachers and family members just can’t figure out.

Where is the love?

The cupboard is not empty, it is just not stocked the way Gabriele envisioned it.
The Ferris State football program invited him for an official workout, only to call him and tell him they would be glad to have him walk on, but they wouldn't be offering him “preferred” status.
And on April 19 Gabriele went to an official basketball workout at Grand Valley, one of Division II’s most heralded sports schools, but as his father John Gabriele said, “It sounds like he felt good about the workout, but you never know exactly what they’re expecting and what they are looking for.”

Gabriele said Division III Adrian has offered him a chance to play basketball and football as a Bulldog next fall, which he’s honored by, but he still thinks he’s a D-II talent who has proven worthy of a scholarship at a higher level.

Gabriele, who led the Jackson area in points per game on the hardwood this season, and led the Hornets to another state playoff berth in football in his first and only year as the quarterback, said maybe he is just getting overlooked because he’s from a small school recruiters haven’t heard of.

Or maybe coaches and scouts think he’s too small to play quarterback or not quick enough for college basketball.

Or maybe there is no reasonable explanation at all, as Hornets basketball coach Brad Felix insists.

“I’ve reached out to a number of coaches, in fact I’m calling Albion’s coach tonight,” Felix said several weeks ago. “I’m not trying to push him on them, but probably just calling for the same reason you would, to figure out what’s the deal here.”

Felix said the lack of interest and phone calls regarding Gabriele had him wondering if he somehow had misread the senior’s ability or potential. But after a season in which Gabriele was named County Player of the Year by the HDN, a Jackson Citizen Patriot Dream-Team selection, and an honorable mention all-state representative by the AP, Felix said he is confident he is talking up a consummate talent when he talks to prospective schools.

“Statistically speaking, other than points per game, he put up numbers….(21.3 points,4.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 3.2 steals per game, to be exact) I don’t know if you can compare them totally to Tyler Laser, but assist wise he’s the best I’ve coached and he was still doing (all that). And he couldn’t be more competitive, he’s a great competitor,” Felix said. “His basketball IQ is the best I’ve had, he’s the best quarterback I’ve ever coached. He’s not the best player I’ve coached, there’s a little bit of a difference, but I’ve even told Mitchell this — he’s the best player I’ve coached as far as he knows what I want him to know.”

Maybe those intangibles are what caught the attention of Grand Valley, but Gabriele thinks it’s odd that the Lakers are the only one giving him a look.
“It’s so unbelievable, because Grand Valley is the top of the GLIAC pretty much every year and they ask me to come for a workout….but it’s kind of weird,” he said. “Because the top in Division II is (interested) and I sent out like 19 or 20 tapes for a whole bunch of Division II and some small Division I (schools) and they’re the only ones who have responded for basketball.”
Gabriele said he also received a small amount of interest from Central Michigan University for football and he sent them some video clips, but he never heard back from them, and expects his 6-foot frame is at least two or three inches from ideal.

He may a bit on the small side, but his numbers aren't. In the 2008 football campaign he completed better than 60 percent of his passes for more than 1,500 yards and 21 touchdowns, while also running for over 800 yards and 18 scores.

John Gabriele, who played football and baseball at Hillsdale College in his younger years, said this isn’t the script he thought Mitchell’s senior year would follow, but his son has stayed strong.

“I just thought Mitchell’s senior year was going to determine whether he was more suited for football, basketball or baseball,” he said. “But he’s a pretty strong kid as far as mentally, so he bounces around pretty good and he always seems to land on his feet.”

Why not a Charger?

In the next few months Gabriele will land his feet on a college campus he’ll call home, but it won’t be at Hillsdale College.

This has perplexed Felix and Gabriele himself, but upon closer inspection it appears grades, not Gabriele’s completion percentage or assist-to-turnover ratio is the reason he won’t be donning Charger blue, like teammate and close friend Scott Lantis, who has committed to play baseball at the college.
Gabriele said being shunned by the college he grew up near stings, be he is not bitter, and thinks it is a privilege to play at there given their academic and athletic record, not a right.

“It kind of hurts, being the local kid and all and not having the eyes on you from your local college…they don’t see something in me like Ferris did, but it happens,” he said.

Gabriele also said he is proud of many of his fellow county athletes who have suited up for the Chargers in various sports the past few years, but he thinks he is at least as talented as most of them.

“Hey look at me, I’m standing over here,” he said. “It’s hard to get into that school though…but you know it’s a possibility I could transfer to a school that’s bigger like (Hillsdale) if I do go to Adrian, but it’s hard.”

It’s so hard to get into Hillsdale College, whose 2008 freshman class entered with average GPAs of 3.73 and composite ACT scores of 28, that Hillsdale College men’s basketball coach John Tharp said he regularly has to turn potential recruits aside simply because they don’t meet the lofty admissions requirements.

Tharp is prohibited by NCAA rules and regulations to comment specifically on Gabriele’s situation because he is an unsigned recruit, but he did shed some light on what types of academic standards he is expected to uphold.

“Right now we’re really kind of looking at 25 (on) ACTs, it’s kind of our base for recruiting kids at. Kids who maybe have a lower ACT score than that better have a particularly high GPA,” he said. “If it’s a 25 (on the ACT) they may have a little lower GPA, but it’s kind of how we have to do things.”

Gabriele scored a 20 on his ACT and carries a 3.6 GPA.

Tharp added that Jeff Lantis, the college’s head of admissions is “an absolutely wonderful man, who does his job extremely well” and the athletic department has the trust of the admissions office to only bring in students that meet their stringent criteria.

John Gabriele said he is surprised his son’s academic resumé isn't quite good enough for the college, but the family has decided to just accept Hillsdale's decision.

“I’m a little disappointed…but we don’t have much control over that and what is, is,” he said. “We’ve just pretty much accepted it. It’s discouraging, but we’ve accepted it.”

Felix said he understands the college has a status quo to uphold, but he still thinks something is fishy based on previous experiences with recruits.

“As far as Hillsdale is concerned, they kind of gave me the grade issue, but he’s got a good GPA and 20 (on the ACT) and I know when we were pushing Tyler (Laser) around that would’ve got him anywhere. So I’m not sure about that reasoning right now,” he said. “All of it seems kind of weird to me. I respect coach Tharp and think he respects me, so I’m not going to say he’s feeding me anything because I don’t think so, but there is something strange about it all.
Gabriele’s athletic partner-in-crime the last three years, Scott Lantis, said it is an interesting situation, but one he is in a tough position to comment on.

As Gabriele said though, if he is set on being a Charger at some point in his college career, transferring is a possibility, much like current Hillsdale College forward Luke Laser did. Laser played under Felix in high school and went to Saginaw Valley State to play hoops before Tharp brought him in as a transfer.

Gabriele has been a regular at Charger basketball games the last few years and he said he's confident he is a GLIAC-caliber guard, although he admits he has plenty of room to improve as well.

“Of course like anybody who has a lot of improving to do right out of high school I would have the same. Everyone does — if you’re Michael Jordan or you’re Mitchell Gabriele, you have a lot to learn.”

Just letting it all happen

Though this question-filled, pressure-packed saga has worn on Gabriele at times, the enlightening part is it has given him perspective on the challenges ahead.

At this point he knows he wants to go into pre-med and play college athletics at the highest level possible, but little else.

But Felix and Hornets head football coach Marc Lemerand have helped him see this situation through lenses filled with life experiences and faithful hope.

“Like Coach Lem told me when I talked to him about it: ‘Mitchell, like my mom told me one time, everything will happen for a reason, everything will be fine if you just let them happen,” Gabriele said. “So I’m letting them happen and I did get a phone call from Grand Valley, which is letting it happen, and hopefully other doors will open.”

Felix is of the same mindset.

“Really I’m just a little disheartened and hope he gets the chance he deserves,” he said. “But you try and go with the philosophy that everything happens for a reason and hopefully the Lord will shine down on you and if He doesn’t right now then He must have another path or other plans down the road for you.”

As of right now, those other plans could include Gabriele enrolling at Adrian College, something he has started to warm up to the past few months.

He said he would rather play one sport at the Division II level than two at D-III, but he “loved” his visit to Adrian and said he was blown away by the facilities and locker rooms, comparing them to some Division I schools he’s seen.

“I know Adrian is Division III and that’s something I was kind of iffy about doing, but they’re going to let me play basketball and football there, so that’s a big possibility,” he said. “I know every college feels ‘we’re going to build a family here’, but they really do. It was the first program that sent me stuff from kids who have played football and went on to bigger and better things and are like heads of corporations and stuff now. They send me stuff that tries to put it all in perspective and show me the true meaning in life.”

Gabriele said the Bulldogs graduated their starting QB from last season and are willing to give him a chance at the spot if the coaching staff thinks it’s his best position, and that is an endearing prospect for Gabriele because he said he still “wants the ball in his hands”.

At the end of the day all Gabriele really wants is a chance — a chance to prove he is better than the naysayers think and an opportunity to prove he was one bona-fide prospect who slipped too far under the radar somehow.

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Is K-Mac JCC bound?

[caption id="attachment_434" align="alignright" width="197" caption="Hillsdale senior Kyle MacDonald has been offered a scholarship to play basketball at Jackson Community College.By RJ Walters / Daily News Sports Editor"][/caption]

By RJ Walters / Daily News Sports Edtor

As published in the Hillsdale Daily News on April 23, 2009

A Hillsdale senior has been offered a scholarship to play college basketball, and surprisingly his last name isn't Gabriele.
A feel-good story involving plenty of weight lifting and shooting drills, and a shaggy-haired kid who shoots 3-pointers as if they were free-throws just got better, as Hillsdale guard Kyle MacDonald was offered a scholarship to play basketball at Jackson Community College late last week.
While MacDonald has not officially accepted the offer yet, and several calls to him were not returned, Hillsdale High School varsity basketball coach Brad Felix said he has talked with MacDonald and expects him to commit to JCC in the near future.

"Their head coach said they were in dire need of a spot-up shooter, and that kid definitely knows how to shoot. It's nice because no one has been talking about Kyle at all," Felix said. "Of all my guys on the team last year he is the only one with an offer right now, who would have thought that? I'm really happy for him and he's a good kid."

Felix said MacDonald had been going to JCC open-gym sessions and caught the attention of Jets' coaches in the process. One of the coaches gave Felix a call early last week, and a few days later he was told MacDonald had been offered a spot on the roster.

MacDonald averaged 6.5 points per game as a senior, fourth on the team, and hit 32 3-pointers at a 28.1 percent clip. He also averaged 1.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game playing 25 minutes per game in a starting role, just a year removed from playing six to eight minutes per contest.

Felix said MacDonald's career really took a turn in the right direction when he became more committed to weight lifting at the end of his junior season, and started becoming more of an all-around player, rather than just a long-range threat.

"I kind of put (Scott) Lantis in charge of him because kids come in and are sometimes intimidated right away. As a captain, I told Scotty to help us get Kyle in the weight room," he said. "And Scotty latched onto him and he got Kyle into the weight room and I think that was a turning point, at the end of his junior year. Kyle started to gain confidence and earn the respect of his teammates a little more, so he kind of became one of the guys."

Lantis said he had nothing to do with Mac's transformation, it was more of the fact he became a gym rat and came into his own over the summer.

"Seriously, other than Tyler Laser, I don't think I've ever seen a kid in the gym more than Mac. The joke was that we all said he must've had a loft up in the weight room as much as he was there," Lantis said.

Felix said only a year ago he was putting MacDonald into the game for a few minutes to see if he could get into a shooting rhythm and if he couldn't he would pull him. But now Felix said his defense is a selling point, he handles the ball well and most importantly he makes very few mistakes.

"He's really a feel-good story," Felix said. "He went the normal route, playing on the freshman (team) as a freshman and JV as a sophomore, and really at the end of his junior year he just started to grow up real quick."

According to the JCC athletics Web site the Jets were 8-14 last season, barring results from their final five games which weren't posted.

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Chargers volleyball adds a commitment for 2010

[caption id="attachment_343" align="alignright" width="221" caption="Milan junior outside hitter Bekah Draves has commited to play for Hillsdale College starting in 2010. Photo courtesy of MonroeNews.com."][/caption]

The Ann Arbor News and Monroe News have both reported that Milan junior volleyball star Bekah Draves, a 6-1 outside hitter, has commited to play volleyball for Chris and Stephanie Gravel beginning in the fall of 2010.

Per the Monroe News: Draves earned All-Huron League and Monroe County All-Region honors this past season while averaging 8.2 kills, 3.0 digs and leading the Big Reds with 76 aces. She also was named MVP of Milan's inaugural girls tennis team last spring.

She has been playing volleyball since the third grade. In the fifth grade, she began playing on school teams coached by her mother, Karen, at Ann Arbor St. Paul.

The family moved to Milan just before the start of Bekah's freshman year. Her older sister, Sarah, an Ypsilanti High School graduate, was a standout volleyball player at the University of Michigan.

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Tharp talks about incoming recruiting class for men's hoops

[caption id="attachment_311" align="alignright" width="181" caption="Chris Casterline, a guard out of Centreville High School, was late addition to the Hillsdale College men's basketball team's incoming recruiting class. "][/caption]

By RJ Walters / Daily News Sports Editor

As published in the Hillsdale Daily News on March 26, 2009

To remain competitive in the GLIAC every night, year-to-year there can be no lull in recruiting, regardless of the sport.

Hillsdale men's basketball coach John Tharp understands that to a tee and he said he's bringing in some size, athleticism and toughness in his second recruiting class as the Chargers' head coach.

Anthony Manno (Dearborn Divine Child), Tony Nelson (Jenison), Nick Washburn (Seymour High School/Mahomet, Ill.), and Chris Casterline (Centreville) will all join the men's basketball team as incoming freshmen for the 2009-10 season.

With the graduation of Tony Gugino, Keith MacKenzie, Travis Worst and Chris Skaggs several key holes need to be plugged, meaning this group of freshmen could potentially make waves, although the sophomore class and several redshirt freshmen from last season will compete for minutes as well.

Tharp said there is plenty of time between now and next season to figure out which players fit in where.

“Everything will be determined by how guys walk in, in the fall. We’ll rely on some of our experienced guys for certain, but we will have a lot of sophomores and a lot of freshman who are ready to contribute," he said. "I imagine it will take most of the fall for things to shake out and then we’ll figure out if anyone is red-shirting and what our rotation is going to look like.”

Washburn might be the most highly touted of the recruits, and he may not even be playing Division II basketball if not for an injury suffered in May 2008.

The 6-9, 240 pound post presence was receiving calls from D-I schools until he broke the venicular bone in his foot, causing him to be sidelined for two months, including most of the summer, when coaches are blazing the recruiting trail.

Nonetheless, he is extremely pleased to be a Charger, according to comments he made to IlliniHQ.com, an Illinois sports Web site, in December.

"I get along with the coaches really well," Washburn said in a Dec. 2 article. "They're just great coaches. I saw a couple games. I like their style of play. I got along with the players really well...it just seemed like the right fit for me."

Washburn said he appreciated the Hillsdale coaching staff's honesty and candor, traits he said not all schools had.

"There was another school that put on a petty front," Washburn said. "Then I figured out after I made a commitment (to them) I called the coaches and I got a complete different side of the story from them and really kind of jerkish comments about other programs. It was almost a surprise to me."

Washburn played for the Illinois Wolves AAU team with players who are going on to play at Wisconsin and Illinois according to Tharp and he earned a 4.02 GPA in high school.

Tharp said Washburn's  foot is fully healed, but unfortunately his senior season was cut short in January when a nerve in his shoulder was crushed, forcing him into a 10-hour surgery to treat the injury.

Nonetheless Tharp said he expects the big man to possibly grow another inch and he didn't try to hide his excitement in landing him.

"He’s got a big frame, a different body type than a guy like Tony (Gugino) and we think his by his sophomore or junior year we’re gonna really like what he brings to the floor.”

What Washburn brings in size, Tharp said Manno brings in toughness.

Manno played in one of the toughest leagues in the state, the Detroit Catholic League. He was a McDonald's All-American nominee, and helped lead his team to a first-place finish in the Catholic League as a junior in 2007-08. Manno also earned All-State, All-Catholic and All-City honors throughout his career.

“That kid is a warrior, that’s the definition of him. He’s strong and relentless," Tharp said. "Yeah he has some things to work on, but every night you know what you’re going to get…and in practice he’s the kind of guy who will push his teammates a step further, the kind of guy you wish all your players were.”

Tharp said he has a tireless work ethic and shoots 400-500 shots a day on his own time.

He is also a 4.0 student, who led his AAU team in scoring, pouring in 24 points per game.

Nelson, the younger brother of Hillsdale College football alum Derek Nelson, is a 6-9 wingman who drew interest from big-time programs early in his high school career.

“His sophomore year he was looked at by Washington State I know, and some mid-majors," Tharp said. "But he played with a ton of talent on his AAU team, so it was hard to stand out and the past few seasons he’s had some young guards on his high school team, so he hasn’t always gotten the ball in the greatest spots or positions.”

He was one of the state's top 3-point shooters as a junior at Jenison High School and was named All-Conference. He averaged more than 10 points and 10 rebounds per game in his last two seasons.

Tharp said he Nelson is "as skilled a 6-9 kid as we're going to get here" and he likes how Nelson can handle the ball well, find teammates wide open and even stroke an occasional 3-pointer.

Casterline distinguished himself as a college-caliber point guard at Centreville High School when he set the school record with 163 assists as a junior in 2007-08, and had more than 300 assists total in his final two seasons.

He also swiped 136 steals in his final two seasons, ranking among the 10 best in the state in that category. Casterline is another 4.0 student who is the president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Chapter of his high school. He plans to study medicine at Hillsdale College, and has worked at several mission trips through his high school years.

“He comes from a great family and is a pure point guard," Tharp said. "He makes his teammates better and knows how to distribute and protect the ball.”
The Chargers are already getting into individual workouts and have said farewell to the 2009 senior class, something that is never easy to come to grips with, Tharp said.

“We met the Thursday before spring break and had a meeting as a team and after the first part of it we said goodbye to the seniors, they walked out the door one last time and that was it," he said. "After all the battles they went through with our guys…after counting on them and being able to call timeouts and just draw things up to get the ball Tony when we needed..it’s just kind of a “wow” experience, but we’re excited to get into individual workouts and see what we’ve got.”

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It's "official" (wink, wink), Chargers football to sign one of state's best running backs

A Walters 'n Words exclusive blog entry

The whispers of many Charger faithful are apparently ringing true, or at least as true as they can officially be until National Signing Day on Feb. 4.

According to Jane Bos of the Grand Rapids Press the Associated Press Division 3-4 Football Player of the Year, running back Joe Glendening has made up his mind and he plans to commit to Hillsdale in just a few weeks.

Glendening set an East Grand Rapids school record for most rushing yards in a season with 2,598. He eclipsed the previous mark of 2,507 set in 2003 by Kevin Grady Jr., who now is at Michigan.

During the playoff run, Glendening also rushed for a school-record 398 yards against Mount Pleasant, and he tied Grady's state record for most career touchdowns at the state finals with seven.

"I think Joe is the best player in the state of Michigan," EGR coach Peter Stuursma said after the championship game where Glendening rushed for 175 yards and three touchdowns, according to Bos' story.

On ESPN.com he is ranked the 203rd best athlete available in 2009 recruiting class and it says he has been considering Ball State and Central Michigan, the top two MAC schools from this past season. He is given a scouts rating of 65, but that is in comparison to D-I studs, not GLIAC or D-II standards.

All I know is that Chargers; head coach Keith Otterbein and his staff are in the process of stirring up something special. They have gone from middle-of-the-pack to on the cusp of playoff contention in a few short seasons, so what's next?  Instead of getting 3-4 impact players per class like when he first got here he's now getting 7-10 guys a year who can have a similar impact.

The fact is Vinnie Panizzi is the Chargers' starting halfback this coming season, I don't have to tell anyone that, but Glendeling provides an assurance that when Panzzi leaves there will be someone in the backfield to keep defenses off balance.

So far Grand Rapids has provided Hillsdale with the likes of Jared Veldheer, Tom Korte and Troy Weatherhead among others and if Grand Valley can get D-I talent, why not Hillsdale, a school that continues to thrust itself into the regional and national spotlight?

I am no kind of scouting expert and of course great high school backs look unstoppable on their YouTube videos, but it's okay to get excited about the prospects of Glendeling commiting on Feb. 4 because it is proof of progress and one less great Michigander who takes the unfortunate route of being a Laker, or Wolverine (sigh) for that matter.

Also of note is something I found from a Detroit Free Press article that ran in December. He has a 3.76 weighted grade-point average and has volunteered as a tutor and literacy outreach mentor for younger students in his school system as well as for the East Grand Rapids High Youth Development wellness program. Sounds like a Charger, looks like a Charger on film.Could be the perfect fit.

If you want a tad bit more on this high school sensation, here you go. This is what scouts have to say on ESPN.com. Enjoy.

Glendening is not going to blow you away with great size and speed measurables on paper, but he is a solid football player who may get recruited on either side of the ball in college. Has just marginal size, but is well-defined, wiry and plays bigger on film. On offense, he shows good urgency out of his stance and squares up quickly hitting the downhill seam. Most productive as a one-cut and go north-south runner. Runs with a low center of gravity as an in-line back. Lowers his shoulders through traffic and can pick up the tough yards. Keeps his legs churning on contact and can push the pile. Shows a bit of lateral shiftiness making the first defender miss through the hole and doesn't gear down much when cutting in space. However, top-end speed is good in second level but not great for a lighter 175-pound runner. Built more like a scatback but he lacks the fluidity, movement skills and foot-speed that project high in that type of role in college. More of a downhill runner but we have concerns about current yards after contact transferring to the next level. Struggles at times breaking initial contact and with balance. Lacks good pick and dart zone running skills. A bit straight-lined and has difficulty decisively hitting the small cutback creases. Skill set and physical tools may be better suited on defense in a Bandit/Rover type role. Transitions quickly out of his pedal breaking underneath and makes solid contact as tackler. His ability to mirror and match up with quicker D-I skill players on the perimeter is a concern. Struggles getting off blocks when running the alley and taking proper pursuit angles. Lacks the speed and hips at this time to project high as a corner and the size and physicality to play down in the box as a safety. That said, Glendening is well-rounded, instinctive football player who could find a role on either side of the ball at the mid-major level and add quality depth on special teams.

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