Mitchell Kernels - Season Rewind

It was a year for the record books in Mitchell! The Kernels won 19 games and they concluded the season with a Runner-Up finish at State. Mitchell had a balanced squad and an unselfish group of players. They lose 7 seniors that will be missed greatly. However, the Kernels bring back a large amount of talent and they will be tough again next year!   See below for stats, player comments, and a Q&A session with coach Kreutzfeldt.   Team: Mitchell   Mascot: Kernels   Head Coach: Ryker Kreutzfeldt   Class: AA   Conference: Eastern South Dakota (ESD)   Record: 19-5   Playoffs: 2nd place at State   All-State Players: [player_tooltip player_id='963805' first='Dylan' last='Soulek'], [player_tooltip player_id='1625212' first='Steele' last='Morgan']   Wins Against: Huron (x2), Campbell County (WY), Thunder Basin (WY), Yankton, Brookings, Roosevelt, RC Stevens, RC Central, Sturgis, Spearfish, Aberdeen Central, Pierre (x2), Watertown (x2), O'Gorman, Brandon Valley, Lincoln.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/SeaonReview-.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/SeaonReview-.jpg?w=865" alt="" class="wp-image-1842251" /></a></figure>   Stat Leaders   [player_tooltip player_id='963805' first='Dylan' last='Soulek'] (2023) |6'3 G| - 12.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 4.6 apg, 45.8 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='1625212' first='Steele' last='Morgan'] (2023) |6'5 F| - 11.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 53.1 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='1466940' first='Colton' last='Smith'] (2026) |6'5 F| - 9.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 67.1 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='1625209' first='Markus' last='Talley'] (2025) |6'1 G| - 8.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.3 apg, 45.5 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='963764' first='Charlie' last='McCardle'] (2023) |6'1 F| - 6.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.3 apg, 47 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='1555389' first='Gavin' last='Soukup'] (2024) |6'2 G| - 5.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 1.7 apg, 37.7 FG%   [player_tooltip player_id='1661116' first='Aiden' last='Myers'] (2023) |6'1 G| - 5.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2 apg, 42.3 FG%   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/kernals-crop-1125x739-1684162352.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/kernals-crop-1125x739-1684162352.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1956562" width="800" height="525" /></a></figure>   Player Comments from coach Kreutzfeldt   [player_tooltip player_id='963805' first='Dylan' last='Soulek'] - "Dylan had a great year. Through his 4 years as a Kernel, he has improved his offensive versatility an incredible amount. He ended his career as a great shooter, extreme athlete, and an extremely intelligent passer. Defensively, Dylan drew a ton of tough assignments and always did a great job."   [player_tooltip player_id='1625212' first='Steele' last='Morgan'] - "Steele put a ton of time in this off-season and improved his perimeter shooting a ton. I was always impressed with Steele's ability to score in the post when undersized. He is so cerebral in the post and never forces anything. He was a constant for us throughout the year."   [player_tooltip player_id='1625209' first='Markus' last='Talley'] - "Markus just kept getting better as the year went on. Early in the year, he struggled with being passive. By the end of the year, Markus was looking to score every time he touched it. Markus ended the year playing his best basketball in the State Tournament. We are lucky to have him for 2 more years!"   Q&A with Ryker Kreutzfeldt   PHD: How would you sum up the season for your squad?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "Obviously, it's disappointing to come up one game short of our end goal. However, we will be able to look back at the year and really be proud of how far we came. Before the year we felt like we had a pretty good crew coming in but I was really surprised at how quickly they learned to play together and how well everyone accepted their roles. We had great players but more importantly, we had great teammates all year long."   PHD: What were some of the highlights on the hardwood that stick out?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "It's always fun to accomplish the goals that we set at the beginning of the year. A few of those were winning the ESD, making the State Tournament, make it to Friday night at the State Tournament. Other than that, I just think the style that this team played where everyone played so unselfishly was really fun to coach and watch. Throughout the year, it was always someone different who led our team in scoring, and that made us unique."   PHD: How did your team overcome adversity?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "I always think that you learn more about your team after losses. Specifically, after our loss at Sioux Falls Lincoln. I was pleasantly surprised at how our guys came together and decided that we were going to use that loss to make us better rather than pouting or blaming each other."    PHD: What are a few things your team improved on over the course of the season?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "Defensively we got a lot better as the year went on. We started the year really struggling to guard on and off the ball. Once our guys were convinced that we can't win consistently that way they made a change in mentality and we really became more of a defensive-minded team by the end of the year."   PHD: Who are a couple of role players that stood out to you?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "[player_tooltip player_id='1555389' first='Gavin' last='Soukup'], [player_tooltip player_id='1466940' first='Colton' last='Smith'], AJ Siemsen, Gavyn Erickson."   PHD: Can you talk about your seniors and what will be missed?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "This group of seniors was a special group for me as they were the first team that I ever coached back when they were in 7th grade. We are really going to miss their dedication to the program - every single one of them was all in! Their leadership throughout the year was something that made my job easier. We had 7 seniors who were all great leaders. It feels as though this is what every coach says at the end of the year, but it couldn't be more true about this group. They were a special crew."   PHD" Who are some up-and-comers to look out for in the future?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "[player_tooltip player_id='1466940' first='Colton' last='Smith'], [player_tooltip player_id='1625209' first='Markus' last='Talley'], [player_tooltip player_id='1555389' first='Gavin' last='Soukup'], [player_tooltip player_id='1956672' first='Peyton' last='Mandel']."   PHD: I know it's early, but what are the plans for the offseason?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "We plan on taking a big trip to one of the Division 1 schools. Then we will play in the Pentagon Summer League as well as in various team camps through the summer."   PHD: Did any of your players receive postseason awards?    Coach Kreutzfeldt: "[player_tooltip player_id='963805' first='Dylan' last='Soulek'] - All-State Tournament Team, All-ESD, All-State 2nd Team."   "[player_tooltip player_id='1625212' first='Steele' last='Morgan'] - All-State Tournament Team, All-ESD, All-State 2nd Team."   PHD: Did any of your seniors play in any All-Star games?   Coach Kreutzfeldt: "Dylan and Steele both played in the 3-Class Shootout. Dylan also played in the All-Star game at the Pentagon."   Congrats to the Kernels on a historic season!   <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/03/SD-1.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/03/SD-1.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-1399487" /></a></figure>

It was a year for the record books in Mitchell! The Kernels won 19 games and they concluded the season with a Runner-Up finish at State. Mitchell had a balanced squad and an unselfish group of players. They lose 7 seniors that will be missed greatly. However, the Kernels bring back a large amount of talent and they will be tough again next year!