Boys’ Basketball
The Griffins are poised to start their first varsity season in ‘16-17.
Head coach Rich Beyers is itching to get going. Father McGivney opens the season in the Wesclin/Lebanon Thanksgiving Tournament on Nov. 25.
“Our expectations are going to be high,” Beyers said. “That’s the standard we want to set at Father McGivney ... I’m sure there will be a little bit of a learning curve and we will take our licks, but we basically played a varsity schedule over the summer.”
The Griffins were successful on the JV level last season and enjoyed a positive summer of basketball, playing teams from Class 1A, 2A and 3A. Father McGivney will be cast in 1A for its first season of varsity basketball.
Junior Logan Shewmake (6-5) will be a focal point for the Griffins, posing an inside and outside scoring threat, as well as a solid rebounder.
Beyers also pointed to fellow juniors Alex Loeffler and Dan Jones as key players. At 6-5, Loeffler will play in the post while Jones will work as the point guard.
Beyers admitted Father McGivney will concentrate on one aspect of the game and looks to perfect that.
“The most important thing to me is defense,” he said. “To be a talented offensive player you’ve got to put in a lot of extra time, but to play defense it’s all about heart so that’s one thing I think every single kid on our team can do and contribute on the defensive end.”
The Griffins open the season at the Wesclin/Lebanon Thanksgiving Tournament at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 25 vs. Nashville at Wesclin High. They will play an independent schedule, but the season will include the Jacksonville Showcase on Dec. 17, the Vandalia Holiday Tournament and the Pinckneyville Shootout among other single games.
Girls’ Basketball
The Father McGivney girls’ basketball team will also be embarking on its first varsity season. The Griffins are under the direction of head coach Jeff Oller.
They opened the season this week at the Dupo Cat Classic.
“We’re really just trying to do our best to set the tone for the program,” Oller said. “We want to compete and they’ve been working really hard in practice to prepare. We’re focusing on defense and rebounding a great deal, just hammering down the fundamentals to start with.”
Oller pointed to senior point guard Rachel Kassing, who has been with the program since its start, junior Kara Mosby and sophomore Faith Robbins as players Father McGivney will lean on throughout the season.
Playing an independent schedule, the Griffins will play a slew of Class 1A and 2A programs, including their home opener on Nov. 22 vs. Vandalia. They will pick up the competitive Carrollton Tournament in January.
“The main thing this year is just being competitive,” Oller said. “We’re more focused on the process. We talk about setting the tone, working on process and hoping that creates a good product. We’re building the program, yes for this year, but also the future.”
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