Shelby County Athletic League (SCAL) Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The SCAL is well-known in Dayton for being one of the better small school leagues in the area and last year was no different. The 2022 campaign saw 2 teams advance to District Finals (Botkins, Jackson Center) while having one team make a Regional Final appearance (Botkins). The league is notorious for sending teams to the District/Regional tournaments and this year will likely be much of the same.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Contenders</span></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Jackson Center- </em>As long as Scott Elchert is the coach for the Tigers, they are going to be considered a favorite in Division IV. Last season's team had a “down” year and yet they still were in the DIstrict FInals before losing to a very good Catholic Central team. Overall the Tigers have 2 of their top 3 back and will be the early favorites in the league. <strong>Jace Mullenhour</strong>(Sr) returns in the backcourt and is a scrappy scoring threat on the perimeter. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='976077' first='Camdyn' last='Reese']</strong> (Sr) has been a focal point since his freshman year and brings size and physicality at 6'4. With a leader in both the frontcourt and backcourt, I think Jackson Center is well on their way to a SCAL title and potentially another District Final appearance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Fort Loramie</em>- The Redskins faced some challenges last year and were only a few games above .500. Mainly heavy on their juniors, Loramie didn't look like previous teams that ran through the league. After this brief stint, the Redskins look ready to start back up near the top of the league. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='867944' first='Caleb' last='Maurer']</strong> (Sr) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1195018' first='Ethan' last='Keiser']</strong> (Sr) return after solid AAU seasons and form a nice 1-2 punch in the backcourt. The Redskins have tradition on their side and will certainly give Jackson Center some competition near the top of the league.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Botkins</em>- What a run it's been for the Trojans. First, winning the 2021 Division IV state championship. Second, a 2022 SCAL title and District championship team. An appearance in the Regional Finals ultimately ended the Trojans season as they fell to eventual Division IV Runner-Up Tri-Village. Looking ahead to this season, the Trojans will be down 2 of their top 3, who both were crucial parts of the state title team and 25-3 team last year. All eyes will fall on <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1165701' first='Carter' last='Pleiman']</strong> (Sr) as the senior looks to keep the ball rolling with Botkins and their postseason success. Repeating the previous feats will be hard to do. But Botkins plays good, defensive basketball that led by Pleiman, could surprise some teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Predicted Order of Finish</span></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true,"start":1} --> <ol start="1"><li>1. <strong><em>Jackson Center</em></strong>- Return top frontcourt and backcourt player from District Runner-Up team. Too good of a program to pick against senior led team and coach Elchert.</li><li>2. <strong><em>Fort Loramie</em></strong>- Have arguably the best scoring threat in the league in [player_tooltip player_id='867944' first='Caleb' last='Maurer'] back. Should be improved from last year with their experienced backcourt.</li><li>3. <strong><em>Botkins</em></strong>- Lose several guys that have built the program to where it is. Have the best defensive player in the league (Pleiman) but not the same depth as previous years to stay in the hunt.</li><li>4. <strong><em>Russia</em></strong>- Raiders surprised a lot of people with their finish (15-10) and return almost everyone. Top guys back are non-seniors in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2138693' first='Hayden' last='Quinter']</strong> (Jr) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2385576' first='Braylon' last='Cordonnier']</strong> (So) and likely a year away from hitting their full potential.</li><li>5. <strong><em>Anna</em></strong>- Rockets lose one of the best players in recent program history (McKane Finkenbine) and didn't have any other guys that could score like he did. Still a well coached team that will compete night in and night out.</li><li>6. <strong><em>Houston</em></strong>- Move up to Division III after spending some time in Division IV. Will look to rebound from 3 win season a year ago.</li><li>7. <strong><em>Fairlawn</em></strong>- Struggled immensely a season ago and lost their best player. </li></ol> <!-- /wp:list -->