Region 4 Run Through

Beresford. Logan Busch puts up big numbers on the inside and five guys from last year’s team are back including three starters…We are big on their sophomore bunch that is big and talented led by Jonah Larson and Seth Huot…The Watchdogs put things together in the middle of the year winning three in a row but just win things looked improved, they lost seven straight to close out the season…Busch has such a nice touch that at a listed 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds last season he was listed as a power forward/shooting guard…Canton. Very good returning players in Alex DeJong, Jake Peterson, and Sam Peterson return but the question is will this team have the talent to take another step. They bring back all but one guy from the rotation…Junior Ian Vlk put up nine a contest while Dejong and Jake Peterson scored about seven a night last season…Christian Beachler is a three point shooter to watch, he is a sophomore…Sam Peterson is one of the top free throw shooters in the region hitting over 80 percent of his attempts. Jake is nearly as good at 75 percent…Lost their first eight games of the season last year but won seven of their last nine which is why people are so excited about this being a good year potentially…Vlk is the top returning scorer and a lead guard that we need to watch a bit closer Dakota Valley. An incredibly young team from a year ago (four upperclassmen total) is led by Tyler Johnson and Robert Rosenquist. They have some decent size up from with junior John Prochello at 6-foot-6 and some others in the sophomore class…Won a third of their games last season…Rosenquist put up 17.5 points per game while Prochello scored 11.1 a night (along with 5.5 rebounds a contest). John scored on 59 percent of his attempts….Johnson scored just over ten points a game with 6.2 assists, and five rebounds a night…The Panthers lost their last five games of the season after a stretch of beating Elk-Point Jefferson and Vermillion the weak before the streak started. They were good but not experienced…Won only two games at home last year… Elk Point-Jefferson. Two starters return in Aaron Koupal and Michael Murphy plus Connor Henze and Preston Fejfar did a lot form them last year as well…Should improve from .500 to four games over the average mark or better….They went 10-12 a year ago with half of their wins coming on their own floor…They seemed to grow up in February winning five of six before a late season skid…A listing that we saw that caught our attention a year ago was a 6-foot-5, 200 pound freshman named Alex Grashoff. What type of player and contributor he will be remains to be seen but that is size that catches the eye… Lennox. A State tournament team a year ago that went 15-10…Bring back three starters and six guys from last year’s rotation…Jacob Hinker made all state tournament as well as all state for Class A…Collin McEntee, John Oldenkamp, Tyler Leisinger, as well as Hinker all started games a year ago…We really like the sophomore guards that are coming up and should provide depth behind previously mentioned players…Hinker averaged 18 points a game last season shooting an impressive 47 percent from the floor, 36 percent at the arc, 66 percent at the foul line. Hinker also grabbed 10.8 rebounds a game while Oldenkamp, who is 5-foot-10, grabbed 6.5 a game…People forget that early in the year they lost five games by double figures before coming together when they needed to… Tea Area. Lost two seniors to graduation, that is it. Ethan Friedel is all state caliber, Cole Sabers is a nice lead guard, and Tea has all over their bench returning…Watch out for Jake Friedrich who is a sophomore post with a lot of potential…Good home team winning six of the nine games…Won three straight games to start the season but then dropped six straight before winning three of four. Very streaky last season… Vermillion. Return all but one player from last year’s rotation…Cooper Williams started for the Dakota Schoolers 16U team while Jeremiah Johnson was also a very key piece. Both were honored after fantastic seasons a year ago…The Tanagers faced a tough early schedule losing to Lennox, SF Roosevelt, Try Valley, and an out of state…Only had two seniors a year ago although one of them was 6-foot-6. Biggest men returning are the thin Roshaude Harper at 6-foot-5 and Jacob Manger at 6-foot-4 and both are seniors this year… <h2>Region Power Rankings</h2><ol> <li>Lennox</li> <li>Tea Area</li> <li>Dakota Valley</li> <li>Vermillion</li> <li>Elk Point-Jefferson</li> <li>Canton</li> <li>Beresford</li> </ol> <h2>Preseason All Region Team</h2>First Team Ethan Friedel, Tea Area Jacob Hinker, Lennox Logan Busch, Beresford Cooper Williams, Vermillion Tyler Johnson, Dakota Valley Second Team Jeremiah Johnson, Vermilion Michael Murphy, Elk-Point Jefferson John Oldenkamp, Lennox Robert Rosenquist, Dakota Valley Collin McEntee, Lennox Third Team John Prochello, Dakota Valley Alex DeJong, Canton Connor Henze, Elk-Point Jefferson Cole Sabers, Tea Area Jake Friedrich, Tea Area Ian Vlk. Canton