Guest Contributor: Brad McCormack, Director of Athletics
I asked each coach to share some highlights from this past season and what we can expect in the future. I am happy to share those. But, first, let’s honor the following athletes:
ALL-CONFERENCE/SCHOLAR-ATHLETE
The following student-athletes have been recognized by the TCC:
Note: basketball is the only winter sport recognized by the league
Boys
Izaak Angel: All-TCC 2nd Team
Dillin Kowalewski: Sportsmanship Award
Girls
Paige Everard: All-TCC Honorable Mention
Abbie Kurtz: Sportsmanship Award
Scholar-Athletes (Varsity athletes in 10th-12th grade with a 3.5 GPA or above)
Alaini Dines
Eveliina Taylor
Abbie Kurtz
Catherine Romine
Rylee Phillips
Paige Everard
Kiara Johnson
Izaak Angel
Dillin Kowalewski
Kevin LaMont
Carter Stefanovski
Simeon Sechrist
Gareth Romine
BOWLING
Coach: Carrie Betz
The bowling season was a tremendous success this year, as we started the season with 21 bowlers (the most participants in the school’s history). Boys bowling was packed with veterans, including seniors Walker Bachman (captain), Vincent Ellison, Dylan Vershum, Jared Robertson, Quinlan Kelly, Wyatt Percha, Max Burchi, Todd Cloutier, and Nolan Langer; juniors Aidan Jaski-Keuhnel, and Kohl Majeski; and sophomore Drew Zolenski. The girls bowling team was packed with newbies, including freshmen Ellie Foote, Darla Hand, Kayla Bachman, Emily Driver, Jade Phillips, Donna Duncan, and senior Hannah Terry. We started with bowling averages in the 50s and completed the year with personal records in the high 200s.
Senior Dylan Vershum finished the season with a near miss to States by 3 pins and was voted as the team’s Most Valuable Player. Todd Cloutier and Ellie Foote stood out due to their dedication and effort throughout the season and were selected by Coach Betz as the team’s most improved players. All of the bowlers improved their averages and enjoyed the sport that they can play for a lifetime.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Coach: Casey Livingston
The boys came into the season looking to end their TCC career with a successful season. The team set the tone for the season by starting hot with two road wins. The team benefitted from senior leadership — there were five seniors on the roster and three of them in the starting lineup. The team experienced ups and downs during the season, but night in and night out the boys played their hearts out leaving nothing on the floor. The team finished 4th in the TCC with a record of 5-9, and finished the season 9-12 after falling to Ann Arbor Greenhills in the District semi-finals.
The graduating seniors (Izaak Angel, Carter Stefanovski, Kevin LaMont, Simeon Sechrist, and Dillin Kowalewski) will certainly be missed, but they have helped set a terrific foundation that will help the team be successful in the new league.
A few season highlights:
4-2 in non-conference play
Undefeated in overtime play
Swept both Whiteford and Sand Creek (4-0)
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Coach: Nick Livingston
Despite the team’s record, this season was extremely successful and program moved forward down its path of development.
The team was a mix of upperclassmen and underclassmen. The only senior, Kiara Johnson, was a great leader for the team this season. She was the captain of the team and it showed in every game. Kiara always demonstrated extremely high character on the court and she played her best no matter what the score.
The games at Britton Deerfield and at Clarenceville were season highlights, where the girls took huge steps forward in their development. These two games really showed what the team is capable of right now and where it could go in the future.
The biggest highlight of the season was playing at the Crisler Center. The girls really enjoyed the incredible experience. Coach Livingston is looking forward to the future of this program and where it can go in the coming years with a great junior class coming back (Paige Everard, Eve Taylor, Catherine Romine, Rylee Phillips, Alissa Lund) as well as some really great talent in the grades below them.
WRESTLING
Coach: Chris Emery
The wrestling season started off with Coach Emery being hired to lead the Trojans. It was definitely a growing year but with a new program that is always expected. A strong bond was formed between the athletes and the new coaching staff. The team is now focused on recruiting more kids to join wrestling and fundraising to provide opportunities for wrestlers to attend camps this summer.
Three wrestlers earned their varsity letter this year: Stasu Reisner, Logan Kurth, and Nelson Bartram. The entire team had an outstanding GPA, with no wrestler below a 3.3.
The kids have a very strong bond and we are excited to see this team grow together over the years and become a strong program in the state’s small schools division.
COMPETITIVE CHEER
Coach: Macayla Komor
In her first season, Coach Komor did a wonderful job rebuilding the cheer program. Our varsity team consisted of Samantha Ogden, Autumn Curl, Emme Cloutier, Olivia Arcalas, Jamie Meadows, Abbigail Fraga, and team manager Jena Babcock. Emme and Olivia competed in competitive cheer for the first time and improved drastically over the course of the season.
Scoring was a true team effort. Abbi and Autumn stunted all of round 3 in every competition and Olivia scored a lot of points with her tumbling and flying abilities.
The team had some terrific scores during the season. Their highest round 1 (191.3) and 2 (162.7) scores came from the Pinckney Blackout Meet. Their highest 3rd round score was 257.2 at the District Finals. The highest overall of 601.0 was also at the District Final. Over the course of the season, the team competed in 9 competitions. Their top two finishes were 2nd at the Lincoln Splitter Invitational and 6th at the District Finals. Their District finish is one place better than last year and two places away from qualifying for Regionals.
Next season, competitive cheer will be a league sport and the athletes are very excited to build on the success they had this season.
SWIMMING
Coach: Eileen Noble
Whitmore Lake is part of a three-team cooperative with Father Gabriel Richard and Ann Arbor Greenhills for swimming. This winter, we had four outstanding student-athletes compete on the team — senior Jordan Craven and freshmen Lindsay Francis, Lily Wilson, and Jackson Ellinger.
All four swimmers had a terrific season based on their season goals. Both Lindsay and Jackson qualified to compete in the Catholic League Championships (as part of the cooperative we compete in the Catholic League for swimming).
With young, talented swimmers the future of the program is bright.
Congratulations to all our athletes for their accomplishments this season. The effort these students put into extracurricular activity is also noteworthy. Their commitment, along with the dedication of our collective coaching staff, is the foundation of the success we are aiming for next year.
Go Trojans!
Brad McCormack
Director of Athletics
Future is looking bright for WL!