The Nest is Back from the West… Can We Return in 16?

The Nest is Back from the West… Can We Return in 16?

After one of the most fun and interesting seasons in Lennox’s sports over the last ten years, the Oriole basketball team prepares for another hopefully successful season. This year, Lennox looks at how tough it will be to try and replace five impactful seniors in which two of them were starters.

This year’s team has an advantage that very few teams in the state have and that is the experience that is brought to the court. This year we bring back nine of the fifteen players from last year’s state tournament team along with having a total of ten seniors on this year’s varsity squad. I had a chance to talk to coach McVey about this advantage and he had this to say, “It is great having 10 seniors out.  That is very rare to have that many high quality veteran basketball players on a team.  They will play with pride every day.  Many of those seniors will go on to play college sports so we are blessed with tremendous athleticism and competitiveness in that class.”

With such a different and highly experienced team that we have, it brings up the question of what or who is going to be the Oriole’s biggest asset this season? McVey told me of a term called tougherness and he described this term to me and why it is the team’s strongest feature and asset this year. He said, “Our biggest asset is our togetherness and our toughness... Nebraska Head Coach Tim Miles calls it ‘tougherness’.  Our players have been through a lot together and have the will to prepare like champions and to overcome any obstacle that stands in our way.  We play team basketball and that will surely show in all phases of the game this year.”

So for a team coming off of a Region 4A championship, an undefeated region record, and a 2015 State “A” Tournament appearance, many people could wonder what our goal would be. Some people would say to repeat and go to state and improve like maybe winning the championship. Coach Paul McVey took the question a different way though. His goal for the 2015 and 2016 was as he said it, “Our goal is always to be the best team we can possibly be by striving for excellence each and every day.  It is our belief that when you "do the next right thing right" on a consistent basis, the scoreboard will take care of itself.”

Finally, we will take a look at the first game in Lennox vs a tough Sioux Falls Christian Charger team. Sioux Falls Christian finished one of the top teams in the regular season last year, however they fell to Madison in the Region 3A semifinal game. A lot of people will wonder how the Orioles will find a way to win and start off with a winning record. Coach McVey talks about what the keys to victory will be as he said, “Sioux Falls Christian has a lot of size, experience, and skill.  We will need to be tougher than them on defense and on the boards (rebounding) and we will need to attack their pressure and athleticism.  We should have a great crowd on hand in an unbelievable high school basketball environment.   We are looking forward to getting a nice flow on offense and having some fun moving the ball and knocking down shots to put ourselves in a position to win.  It will be all about our ‘tougherness’.”

Through the uses of our super experience, our tougherness, and our striving for excellence, the Lennox Orioles should have a very interesting and competitive season. If you were anywhere near the Lennox Orioles last year, you would’ve also realized that the Orioles have one of the top fan bases in the state. Not only did our cheerleaders with the help of our fans get the spirit of six award, but we were one of the loudest crowds at the state tournament. With a big game on Friday, I know that the bleachers will be full and loud. So come on out to the games Friday. It is a double header with girl’s varsity at 6:30 and the boy’s varsity at 8:00. I know it will be a game worth your while.

Have a good day and GOOOOOO Orioles!!!