Park Region Conference Showcase Preview
On Saturday December 16th, the Park Region Conference will all gather in Wadena for a day-long showcase of their conference. It will feature all 8 teams, with 4 games, starting at 1 pm. Below is a glimpse at each game.
1:00 pm – Sebeka vs. Bertha-Hewitt
Bertha-Hewitt enters the game with a 1-3 record, with their only victory thus far coming against Underwood by a score of 62-54. Two players to watch for the Bears will be seniors Luke Follmer and Brett Jansen. Each player netted 14 points in a loss last week to Parkers Prairie.
Sebeka is currently 3-0, with a conference game at Henning on Thursday awaiting them prior to Saturday’s event. James Clark is averaging nearly 20 PPG, 8 REB, and 6 AST for the Trojans through three games, while Jack Lillquist has contributed 13 PPG and 8.7 REB.
3:00 pm – Verndale vs. Menahga
The Verndale Pirates have started the season 1-2, notching their first win last night by a score of 61-54 in a conference matchup with Pillager. Key players for Verndale will be a pair of senior guards, Owen Korfe and Luke Weniger.
Menahga won 51-45 in their opener against Goodridge-Grygla-Gatzke, but have since lost 3 straight to fall to 1-3. Keep an eye on sophomore guard, Tristan Aho, who poured in 28 in a loss to Pillager last Thursday.
5:00 pm – Pillager vs. New York Mills
Pillager has begun the year 2-3, and sit at 1-1 in the conference. They have a balanced attack, with four players averaging close to double-figures in scoring. A trio of seniors in Braeden Wangsness, Tanner Swenson, and Josh Doss lead the team, and sophomore Spencer Schaefer is also a player to watch.
The Eagles of New York Mills have opened up the season with a pair of losses, to both Norman County East and Norman County West. They’ll look to get on track Friday at Underwood prior to the showcase. Two players to watch for the Eagles are senior Ethan Hendrickx and junior Brady Bauck.
7:00 pm – Henning vs. Wadena-Deer Creek
Henning opened the season with two losses, but rebounded last Thursday and Friday with back-to-back victories against Underwood and Ashby to bring their record to 2-2. They’ll face off with Sebeka on Thursday. The Hornets only have one senior on the roster, but keep an eye on junior guard Sam Fisher and junior forward Adam Lange.
The host Wolverines are sitting at 2-1 to open the season, with a home game vs. Royalton ahead of them before the showcase. They are 1-0 in the conference after a 60-42 victory over Bertha-Hewitt yesterday. A name to remember is senior guard, Noah Ross, who exploded for 36 points in a win last Friday against Staples-Motley. In their opener against Long Prairie-Grey Eagle, they had three other players score in double figures; seniors Ryan Anderson and Jonathan Pantages, and sophomore Bereket Loer.
NHR will have post-game wrap-ups and summaries of the showcase upon completion of the games.