As winter settles in, the temperature drops, but the excitement for GHS’s winter sports season heats up. This season, athletes in basketball, swimming, wrestling and bowling are set to bring their A-game.

The boys’ basketball season has a fresh start, with new players and a new coach leading the way. Last year, the team faced an incredibly difficult loss when head coach, Brad Feeken passed away near the end of the season, leaving the players and coaches in shambles. Bill Heard stepped up, embracing the role of head coach, and led the team with determination and respect for Coach Feeken’s legacy.

“We’re inexperienced, but we are going to get there,” Heard said. “We think we’ll be competitive when it matters. Our program’s always been good at the end, so we’ll be good when it matters–that I’m sure of.”

This year there are three devoted seniors: Brody Bernal, Emmitt Dickes and Kalvin Janssen. While the team is young overall, the seniors are helping guide the group, bringing both leadership and experience to the court. The rest of the roster is made up of promising young players, eager to step up and contribute to the team’s success.

“I’m very confident in the team this year, so I feel like it will go really good this year,” sophomore Cael Horst said. “Maybe not as good as last year, but it definitely won’t go down. We can only go up from here.”

Last year, the team was stacked with seven seniors, making them a tough opponent for many schools. This season, GHS has moved down to Class B, meaning they will face a new set of teams and different challenges.

“The most important thing for us is communication, and just being able to play together, and just playing slow and being composed,” Bernal said. “We want to obviously win state, win districts, our sub-districts. Just win.”
The team has been focused on building chemistry, as many of the players have never been on the same court at the same time as one another. With this brand-new start, they have been working hard to develop trust and communication in the gym. Despite their inexperience, the team remains confident that with time and effort, they will find success.

“The process, it can be long,” Horst said. “But when games come by, it really shows the process that you’ve been through.”

This season, under Coach Heard’s guidance, the team is rallying together, committed to honoring the past while building a bright future ahead.

While the boys’ basketball team is embracing a fresh start, the girls’ basketball team is also entering the season with high expectations and a strong sense of perseverance. With returning players who have developed strong chemistry, the team is excited to take on the challenges ahead.

“We have a very young team this year, so I’m pretty optimistic that it will go good,” junior Kelsey Van Waart said. “We’ve got a pretty competitive group. Our culture is great. I’m excited to see what we can do.”

The team is composed of one senior, Addison Armitage, and five juniors. Led by head coach Makayla Doggett, the girls are currently 3-2 and looking to build momentum as the season progresses.

“I think it will be fun. I think it’ll just be a fun group to play with and to make it enjoyable,” junior Maggie Miller said. “I’m excited to see our potential, but I’m also just like excited to see the outcome of the season as well, and see where we can go.”

The girls have been focusing on improving both their offense and defense, with particular emphasis on sharpening their rebound attempts and applying a tougher press against their opponents. They also spend time each week watching the film of who they are going to play against. With each practice, they are building a stronger foundation to reach the goals that they have in store.

“I feel like our biggest goal would be to make it down to state and hopefully win state, that’s always our big goal,” junior Sarah Doble said. “I think personally my biggest goal is to win and to keep our team close like we are.”

The team has developed an unbreakable bond, spending quality time together both on and off the court. From team breakfasts to scavenger hunts, they have made a conscious effort to strengthen their relationships, which will create trust to carry them through the season.

While the girls’ basketball team is building chemistry and preparing for a successful season, the swimmers at GHS are diving into the season with courageousness and a strong sense of teamwork.

The boys’ and girls’ swim teams are combined with swimmers from GHS and Gretna East High School and are led by head coach Kari Meister. Under her leadership, both teams are focused on improving their skills and achieving new personal bests in the pool.

“It’s gone really good already. Like, everyone’s growing throughout the whole season and we just started a couple weeks ago,” junior Bailey Lauritsen said. “There’s a lot of people that are dropping a ton of time, so I just think that we’re doing really good this year, we’re doing better than we did last year.”

Last year, many swimmers from GHS and GEHS qualified for state and set new records, marking a standout season for the program. Their hard work and dedication paid off, showcasing the team’s talent and determination in the pool. This year, the team welcomed a strong influx of new swimmers, eager to build on that success.

“I’m really hoping that I will accomplish a lot,” freshman Mya Hallgren said. “Hopefully [I] drop a lot of time and continue to improve as the season goes on.”

Hallgren set a goal for herself to break the school’s 50-free record by the end of the swim season. The team has been focusing on improving their breath control, ensuring they don’t over-breathe during races, which can slow them down. They have also been working on the finer details, like improving their starts and minimizing any small inefficiencies that could cost valuable time.

“Even though we are Class B, we still have a ton of good swimmers and we’re still Class A level, so we’re trying to stay at state and having those times,” Lauritsen said. “The people, there’s a lot of really awesome people this year. The freshmen are really nice and the seniors are awesome and just a lot of the meets are really fun and meeting different teams.”

As the swim season progresses, both the boys’ and girls’ teams continue to grow stronger with each practice and meet. Whether it is breaking records, qualifying for state or simply improving personal goals, the swimmers are dedicated to putting in the time to achieve this.

While the swim team is making waves in the pool, the GHS wrestling team is gearing up for an intense season on the mat. Just like the swimmers, the wrestlers are focused on sharpening their skills and pushing themselves to new heights.

The boys’ wrestling team is led by head coach Tristan Towey, while the girls’ team is under the leadership of coach Kathleen Sackett. With a focus on both individual performance and team unity, the coaches are committed to helping their wrestlers throughout the season.

“I’m most excited that our team loves wrestling, and they love competing and being around each other,” Towey said. “This group is brought into our process, and I’m excited to see who steps up and makes those big leaps to lead our team.”

The boys’ wrestling team has three returning state qualifiers– Caleb Meckna, Adam Eusterwiemann and Jaden Peters. Each of these athletes brings valuable experience to the team, having proven themselves at the state level in the previous year.

“Our goal is to stay consistent, compete hard and put ourselves in a position to succeed,” Towey said. “Our priority is to focus on the process rather than the outcome. If we stay committed to working hard and supporting each other, the results will take care of themselves.”

The team is made up of zero seniors and just four juniors, making this a season of growth and opportunity for the underclassmen. For the four juniors, this is their first year on varsity. With a largely young roster, the team is focusing on building experience and developing the skills needed to compete at the highest level.

“My favorite part has been just being around all the guys and having fun together while also getting better at our craft,” Towey said. “It has also been a blast coaching with three of my best friends who I also wrestled with back in high school as well.”

The boys’ wrestling team is focused on honoring their skills and competing at a high level, while the girls’ wrestling team is also ready for a season of growth and success.

“Me personally, I guess not to get hurt and to make it through the season. Maybe make it to state,” junior Briann Schamp said. “I think our team will do good. I think some girls will actually make it to state.”

The girls’ wrestling team has been putting in the hours and working tirelessly to reach their full potential this season. With four returning wrestlers and a strong influx of new talent, the team is eager to hit the mat.
In addition to refining their foundational skills, the team has been working on mastering new wrestling moves. A new technique is the snap down into a double shot, a move designed to create quick takedowns and gain an advantage over opponents.

“This season, I think that there’s going to be a lot of chances to succeed,” sophomore Julia Hermeling said. “I’m hoping I will place at districts and work my way to state.”

With the combination of experienced wrestlers and new ones, the girls’ wrestling team is excited for a season of growth and accomplishments. The team is not only working hard to perfect their techniques but also building the mental toughness needed to compete at the highest level.

While the wrestling teams are preparing for a season of intense competition, the GHS bowling team is aiming for success in a different kind of arena. Led by head coach Jon Brown, along with assistant coaches Haley Walther and Jason Wendelin, both the boys’ and girls’ teams are focused on building off last year’s successes and continuing to improve.

“Expectations for both teams this season is to build upon personal successes of last year,” Brown said. “The boys’ team improved throughout the season from beginning to end with bowlers steadily improving their averages throughout the season.”

There are only two returning bowlers for the boys’ team and three returning seniors for the girls’, making this a season of growth for the new players. With such a young roster, both teams will rely on their experienced bowlers to lead by example while helping the newcomers.

“Challenges the boys’ team will face is finding new varsity competitors right away,” Brown said. “With only two returning varsity players, there is a lot of competition taking place. We will need a lot of young bowlers and bowlers new to the program this year to step up. For the girls, the same. We only have seven total bowlers out this year and four of them are freshmen.”

Both teams are focused on precision, strategy and consistency, the bowlers are preparing to roll their way to victories this season. With a unique blend of experience and fresh talent, the team is looking to make a statement.

As the winter season continues to unfold, the athletes at GHS are showing resilience, dedication and a relentless drive to succeed, regardless of the challenges each team faces. The athletes of GHS are determined to make their mark this season whether in a game, meet, match or practice, they will continue to strive for greatness together.