EKL Season Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blue Valley Northwest (20-3)<br></strong>Lost to Wichita Northwest in the state tournament<br>Top player(s): Trevor Garlington, Andrew Babalola, [player_tooltip player_id='1530221' first='Ayden' last='McGibboney']<br>Other notables: Keaton Humphrey, Da'monta Stacker, [player_tooltip player_id='2205712' first='Elijah' last='Bwami'], Lincoln Elliot, [player_tooltip player_id='2205725' first='Tommy' last='Chapman'], [player_tooltip player_id='2205705' first='Aidan' last='Ihm'], [player_tooltip player_id='2205711' first='Dylan' last='Hotze']<br>Blue Valley Northwest is looking to continue their dominance after another state tournament appearance in 2024. The team should have a three headed monster in Garlington, Babalola, and McGibboney. Garlington leads all returners in scoring and assists. Babalola leads in rebounds. And McGibboney could shine in an expanded role this year. In addition to varsity returners Humphrey and Stacker, the team also has a wide selection of sophomores to promote from the JV squad Bwami, Elliot, Chapman, Ihm, Hotze).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. Thomas Aquinas (17-5)<br></strong>Lost to Shawnee Heights in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='1588381' first='London' last='Burton'], [player_tooltip player_id='1588390' first='Isaiah' last='Freeman']<br>Other notables: [player_tooltip player_id='1588390' first='Isaiah' last='Freeman'], Joe Loughman, Collin Smith, Joey Goodenow, [player_tooltip player_id='1274720' first='Brett' last='Yankovich'], Nic Sabers, Jimmy Gillett, Will Bertholf, [player_tooltip player_id='1911626' first='Ben' last='Renze'], Beren Gavin<br>Aquinas is ready to run it back after arguably their best season since 2017 last year. 2024 All-EKL selections Burton (2nd team) and Freeman (honorable mention) will lead one of the most experienced and deepest rosters in the EKL. This team will likely have three of the best players in the conference and a roster full of varsity-ready players from the start of the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blue Valley West (16-6)<br></strong>Lost to Mill Valley in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2393797' first='Tate' last='Nagy']<br>Other notables: Luke Goodale, Tyler Peterson, Brady Brungardt, Max Orr<br>Similar to Southwest, there is a lot of playing time up for grabs at Blue Valley West. Despite the loss of 8 seniors, West keep two key rotation pieces in Nagy and Goodale. Nagy was a season team All-EKL selection and Goodale shot nearly 45% from three last year. The rest of the minutes are up for grabs but the 6'7” Peterson should get some looks as well as sophomores Brady Brungardt and Max Orr.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blue Valley Southwest (14-8)<br></strong>Lost to Piper in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2327580' first='Eli' last='Mick']<br>Other notables: Baylor Rank, Josh Arterburn, Wesley Abraham, Austin Steele, Brooks Carlisle<br>Blue Valley Southwest had 8 seniors last year. The door is wide open for new players to take charge of this squad. Mick (ranked #47 in the class of 2027) leads all returners in points, assists, rebounds, and steals. Arterburn, Rank, Steele, Carlisle, and Abraham had limited minutes in 2024 but are likely to expand their roles this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blue Valley North (10-10)<br></strong>Lost to Mill Valley in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2321589' first='Des' last='Hinson'], Will Davis<br>Other notables: [player_tooltip player_id='2628356' first='CJ' last='Duson'], Alijah Shaw, Calem Yount, Brandon Pierceall, Jackson Reis<br>Blue Valley North had a pair of senior stars last year, and those shoes will likely be filled by Hinson and Davis, both of which were All-EKL honrable mentions in 2024. This team has a good balance of experience and young players with a lot of potential. A player to watch for a breakout season is Duson.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Blue Valley (9-12)<br></strong>Lost to Blue Valley West in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2234471' first='Enoch' last='Rodriguez'], [player_tooltip player_id='2623112' first='Parker' last='Seithel']<br>Other notables: [player_tooltip player_id='2467448' first='Kyle' last='Boggess'], Brendan Welsh, Adam Markes, Patrick Dennis, Sam Browne<br>Blue Valley had a large senior class last year, and a lot of minutes are up for grabs this year. All-EKL sophomores Rodriguez (2nd team) and Seithel (honorable mention) will lead the charge for the Tigers this year. The rest of the squad is harder to gauge, but there are a number of candidates for breakout seasons on this roster.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. James Academy (5-17)<br></strong>Lost to Shawnee Heights in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2328082' first='Emmitt' last='Peters']<br>Other notables: Jacob Fratzel, Frankie Menghini, Sam Niesen, Kade Kwapiszeski, [player_tooltip player_id='2423295' first='Evan' last='Dejmal'], Noah Hornback, Jake Kolich<br>Notes: young team last year, returning 6 of their 7 top players, might have 6 senior returners this year<br>St. James had a rough year with one of the youngest teams in the conference last year. However, they are returning 6 of their 7 top players, and could have as many as 6 seniors with varsity experience this year. Peters is entering his junior year after making the All-EKL 3rd team last year. Fratzel is likely for a breakout season and will likely be the top senior for his squad.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bishop Miege (3-16)<br></strong>Lost to Rock Creek in sub-state<br>Top player(s): [player_tooltip player_id='2205719' first='Liam' last='Tesmer']<br>Other notables: Wesley Walsh, Jayden McDaniel, Michael Blount, Luke Nelson<br>Miege's 2023-24 season was the program's first year below .500 since 2014. If history tells us anything, Miege should bounce back quickly. They have a solid young core and are likely to improve their win total this year. Tesmer was an All-EKL honorable mention as a freshman and should be a key piece of the program's future.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->