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First of all, awesome work tigerguy!! If Menasha sneaks into division 3 after years of competiting in d2 and they are healthy they will be very tough to beat! Coach Korth and his staff do a great job and I am very anxious to see the bluejays in the postseason.
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Kimberly has a fantastic training facility. Not sure how it ranks among the rest of the state but it is the top of the line in the fox valley area.
North fondy's weight room looks awesome!
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With little chute being located in the heart of the fox valley association I would think they would play some of those teams?? I would love to see an annual battle between the bordering communities of little chute and kaukauna. Maybe a little chute vs. Appleton east?? Really I think little chute vs. any of the of the local fva schools would be cool because of the close proximity.
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This could potentially be a huge deal! Has anyone heard rumors about what the enrollment numbers would be for the division cut offs if the vote goes through?
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Does this mean that an assistant basketball coach can legally coach a skill session with his basketball players during the off season?
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I still think Wrightstown fits much better in the EVC in terms of the size of their school and the stability of their enrollment. On the other hand, a conference move would unfortunately end years of solid tradition for the tigers competing in the Olympian.
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That is one heck of a non-conference slate! The mustangs will really know what they are made of next year by wiaa tourney time. Do they know who they will play in the homestead tourney yet?
I also think the EVC will be tougher from top to bottom next year further preparing the mustangs and the rest of the conference for tourney play.
Xavier also usually plays a tough non-conference schedule. Does anybody know who the hawks will be playing for non-conference next year? Are any other EVC teams beefing up their non-league schedules?
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I think it could very well happen in the near future that the Wrightstown tigers will become members of the EVC. They seem to be a much better fit in terms of enrollment in the EVC versus the Olympian. Travel would be more of a challenge.
Green bay east and west would be much better off in a smaller conference. Would have a much better chance of being successful in the bay versus their current conference but I still think they would struggle.
Menasha has an awesome football staff that gets the most out of their teams but they really really struggle in just about everything else. For the sake of tradition I hope the bluejays stay in the fva but on the other hand I wish they would leave so they would have a better chance at being successful.
In terms of football would the proposed district plan help solve a lot of these issues?
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This past season was definitely and exciting one in the Eastern Valley Conference. I love basketball, and like a lot of you, I am already excited for next year. Here are some of my very early thoughts on next season.
Berlin – I would expect some improvement from Berlin this next year if the supporting cast around Toby Hegner can improve. I would expect that Toby himself will make major strides in his game and be a force next season after playing some top AAU ball this summer.
Clintonville – The Truckers showed improvement under the guidance of Coach Howe this past season. I really think they will miss Xavier Fletcher’s athleticism next year but I think they return enough solid socring in Ziemer, Brauer, and Schultz to be tough again in 2012-2013.
Fox Valley Lutheran – The Foxes had a nice season again in 2011-2012 proving that they are one of the best programs in the EVC. Coach Koepsell does a great job at FVL in my opinion. FVL loses many quality players to graduation including Jonathan Willman, who in my opinion, was one of the best players in the conference. Eisenmann, Skarban, and DeCoursin were also very good players and are graduating. FVL will have to build around Schwebs and Fuhrman next winter. I think Josh Knoepke has the potential to be a very good player at 6’7’’ and strong. Although FVL will have a hard time replacing the talented graduating seniors I look for them to be in the top half of the conference next year because they have a good program year after year.
Freedom – Losing Craig Schommer and Eric Sajdak will hurt the Irish but they do return some solid athletes in Bo Casper, Mike Waters and others. If Freedom’s athletes can raise their basketball skill level I think it could be another solid year for the Irish. As usual, the Irish were tough at the lower levels and some of those players will fill in and do a fine job on the varsity next year.
Little Chute – The Mustangs return all five of their starters and also had a JV team that was undefeated in conference play that will no doubt give the Mustangs some very solid depth next year. Lowe and Botz are the best 1-2 punch in the short history of the EVC. In my opinion, how far the Mustangs go next year will depend upon the development of the rest of the players on the team. I think the Mustangs have to be the favorite for the conference title next year but it won’t be easy as everyone in the EVC will be gunning to for them.
Ripon – The Tigers return their top three scorers in Bauman, Stangle, and Vander Galien. The returning trio is a great starting point for coach Dean VanderPlas as the Tigers look towards next year. This past year I thought Bauman was one of the best players in the EVC. The Tigers always play hardnosed basketball and I expect next year to be no different. I think the Tigers will possibly be the most improved team in the conference.
Waupaca – I believe, like Ripon, that Waupaca will be one of the most improved teams in the conference next year. Led by the return of Brando Vasquez and Nate Jenson the Comets will be a much tougher team to beat next year. I thought Brando was one of the most exciting players to watch in the EVC last year and he was only a freshman. If Brando works hard he could wind up being a great player for Coach Weber for years to come.
Winneconne – I did not think Winneconne was going to be as tough as they ended up being this past season. I thought that with the loss of Austin Ryf and company the Wolves would struggle to win games but I was wrong as they went 6-10 in conference and started really strong in EVC play. They also played some teams really tough in some of their losses. Coach Ryf did a really nice job this past year. Koth also had a very good season. Next year the wolves will be tough again with the powerful Dylan Hecker leading the way. Winneconne also returns a player that I love to watch in 5’7’’ Zach Horn. Although undersized I think Horn is going to be a tough matchup for teams next year because of his skill level, high energy and quickness.
Xavier – Coach Klarner did a very good job with the Hawks in his first season. Xavier will lose some good seniors to graduation but they will return some very solid players and their top three scorers in Matt Ferris, Brady Johnson and Seth Maertz. One of the players Xavier is losing, Bobby Ramlet, was the most underrated player in the conference in my opinion and Xavier will miss his physical presence inside. Xavier basketball was solid at the lower levels just like they always seems to be and I am sure some of those players will help fill the spots left by the seniors. I would expect Xavier to be able to challenge for a conference title in 2012-2013. On a side note, it seemed like Torchy Clark was not as tough of a place to play this past year (conference home losses to FVL, Freedom, Clintonville, and Little Chute) as it has been in the past but I am going to make a prediction that the Hawks will take back their home floor next season and go 7-1 or 8-0 at home in EVC play.
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In response to Mick J - Being from the Fox Valley, of course I do not love the new VFA. There is no doubt that we were spoiled for so many years having the FVA. While I would prefer the FVA to be intact as a football league, I do very much understand why the VFA had to happen. For nostalgia sake, I would love to see the old WVC back together but I know that is not possible due to the widening enrollment gaps between the likes of Antigo and Rhinelander compared to the big dogs, Spash and Rapids. Mick – the bottom line is that I understand why the VFA is in place and am not asking for it to be broken up.
Anyway, the reason for my posting - I had heard a few rumblings from people that the District Plan could be back on the table for as early as next season, but probably more likely for 2013. I had also heard that it may not look completely like the previous plan. There are a lot of people who are pretty knowledgeable here and I was wondering if anyone had heard anything.
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