Beresford Watchdogs: Season Review

<p>The Watchdogs played a challenging schedule this season against stiff competition. Beresford plays in Region 4A, arguably the best region in Class A, they also compete in the tough Big-East Conference. Ben Short was in his first season as the new head coach for Beresford. He has the reputation of being one of the better up-and-coming coaches in South Dakota. The Watchdogs did not pick up as many wins as they would have liked, however they still won some quality games. Beresford had 3 players named to the Big-East All-Conference Team. Look out for the Watchdogs, they have the potential to be a dark-horse next season. Read below for an in-depth look at the Watchdogs!</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/WatchDog-2.0.jpg"><img class="alignnone wp-image-1436986" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/WatchDog-2.0-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="137" height="137" /></a></p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Team Awards</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1265477" first="Tate" last="VanOtterloo"]</strong> - Most Valuable Player</p> <p><strong> Mason Heiberger</strong> - Junior Varsity MVP</p> <p><strong> Cooper Nelson</strong> - C-Team MVP</p> <p><strong> Peyton Peterson</strong> - Mr. Hustle</p> <p><strong> Jon Delay</strong> - Junior Varsity Mr. Hustle</p> <p><strong> Noah Colford</strong> - C-Team Mr. Hustle</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="1351868" first="Andrew" last="Atwood"]</strong> - Newcomer Of The Year</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="812215" first="Ashton" last="Tjaden"]</strong> - Rebound Leader</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="1351868" first="Andrew" last="Atwood"]</strong> - Sharpshooter</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="812215" first="Ashton" last="Tjaden"]</strong> - Defensive Player Of The Year</p> <p><strong> Malachi James</strong> - Most Improved</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="968203" first="Isaiah" last="Richards"]</strong> - Mr. Dimes</p> <p><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="1265477" first="Tate" last="VanOtterloo"]</strong> - Rim Protector</p> <p><strong> Aidan Hamm</strong> - Watchdog Practice Player Of The Year</p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>All-Conference Players</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1265477" first="Tate" last="VanOtterloo"]</strong> - 2nd team All-Conference</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="812215" first="Ashton" last="Tjaden"]</strong> - Honorable mention All-Conference</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1351868" first="Andrew" last="Atwood"]</strong> - Honorable mention All-Conference</p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Watchdog Talk with coach <em>Ben Short</em></strong></span></h4> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: What were some of the highlights of the season?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em>Finished the season 8-13. Our program had two big wins against Canton and Elk-Point Jefferson, respectively. Beating both our rivals in an exciting fashion. Beating Canton in overtime on their court in front of a packed crowd was an amazing experience for our guys. Also, beating a hot team in regard to EPJ was huge. Giving up a late lead and coming up with a big stop on the last possession of the game gave our guys momentum moving into the home stretch of our season.</em>"</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Which players improved the most for you this season?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em><strong>Jake</strong> <strong>Goblirsch</strong> (Jr.) improved dramatically from the beginning of the season to the end. A strong, athletic post player, his basketball IQ and grasp of the game grew every day. He is still very raw when it comes to basketball. His natural abilities give our coaching staff excitement going into this offseason as he can continue to improve and be an even bigger part of our identity for our program next season.</em>"</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Who was your biggest "impact player" this season?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em>Without a doubt, our biggest impact player was [player_tooltip player_id="1265477" first="Tate" last="VanOtterloo"]. One of the better players not only in our talented conference/region but in the entire state of South Dakota. He led the team averaging 17.5 points per game. He also led us in almost every other statistical category defensively. When Tate is in his groove, the basket seems huge and there is nothing teams can do, several games he led all scorers with over 30+ points. Against a very good Lennox team, he had 5 blocks. He can be elite on either end of the court.</em>"</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Who was your best shooter?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em>[player_tooltip player_id="1351868" first="Andrew" last="Atwood"] was our “go-to” guy when we needed a 3pt shot. Not only did he shoot the ball from deep at the highest percentage, but he also seemed to knock down shots when we needed it the most. Whether it was to stop a run by the other team or to get us going on offense.</em>" </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Who were your best practice players and why?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em>Two guys that stood out to us all season long were <strong>Mason Heiberger</strong> (Jr.) and <strong>Aidan Hamm</strong> (Fresh.). Their high energy every single day helped push others to compete at their best day in and day out. They are both leaders in the classroom as well. Having that high motor and high character were huge attributes to our team.</em>"</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Who were some of your key bench players?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em><strong>Peyton Peterson</strong> was our first guy off the bench, gave us lots of energy, high effort defense. His role changed about halfway through the season when our starting point guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="968203" first="Isaiah" last="Richards"]</strong> injured his ankle. Without any reservations, Peyton stepped into the starting position and helped lead us on and off the court.</em>" </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Can you make a few comments about the seniors that you are losing?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Short</span>: "<em>The Beresford program loses 8 seniors that dress varsity. These seniors not only contributed on the court in games but how we as a program attacked practices/workouts with positivity and a drive to get better every day. Having positive role models as a senior class has built us up for success in future years to come. They gave us a foundation of new excitement around our program, an excitement that has sparked motivation in a lot of our younger players to get better this offseason. The presence of our seniors will be missed, without a doubt, but what they were able to accomplish this past season will help motivate us for future years to come.</em>"</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>PHD: Who are some of your top players that will be back next season?</strong></p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1265477" first="Tate" last="VanOtterloo"]</strong> - Big East Conference 2nd Team All-Conference (17.5ppg, 4.2rebs, 1.7asts., 1.9stls, .7blks)</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1351868" first="Andrew" last="Atwood"]</strong> - Big East Conference Honorable Mention (10.6ppg, 4rebs, 1ast., 2stl, .1blks)</p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Scores/Schedule (8-13)</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>Dakota Valley</strong> <em>L</em> 14-60</p> <p><strong>Flandreau</strong> <em>L</em> 29-58</p> <p><strong>Baltic</strong> <em>W</em> 55-40</p> <p><strong>Sioux Valley</strong> <em>L</em> 61-77</p> <p><strong>Parker</strong> <em>W</em> 66-58</p> <p><strong>Garretson</strong> <em>L</em> 36-48</p> <p><strong>Parker</strong> <em>L</em> 50-60</p> <p><strong>Baltic</strong> <em>W</em> 60-34</p> <p><strong>McCook Central-Montrose</strong> <em>W</em> 61-54</p> <p><strong>Tri-Valley</strong> <em>L</em> 47-50</p> <p><strong>Canton</strong> <em>W</em> 71-68</p> <p><strong>Chester Area</strong> <em>L</em> 42-50</p> <p><strong>Vermillion</strong> <em>L</em> 31-67</p> <p><strong>Madison</strong> <em>L</em> 31-61</p> <p><strong>Alcester-Hudson </strong><em>W </em>71-35</p> <p><strong>Garretson</strong> <em>L</em> 27-59</p> <p><strong>Elk Point-Jefferson</strong> <em>W</em> 60-59</p> <p><strong>Lennox</strong> <em>L</em> 50-76</p> <p><strong>Wagner</strong> <em>W</em> 71-54</p> <p><strong>Tea Area</strong> <em>L</em> 43-81</p> <p><strong>Tea Area</strong> <em>L</em> 46-79</p> <p><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/WatchDog-2.0.jpg"><img class="alignnone wp-image-1436986" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/WatchDog-2.0-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="137" height="137" /></a></p>