North Nodaway Sports Teams Celebrated

North Nodaway’s winter and spring sports teams and cheer squads were celebrated Thursday at the Athletic Banquet.

Recognized from the Junior High Cheer Squad were Riley Volner, Sarah Chesnut, MacKenzie Titus, Alyssabeth Roderick, and Sarah Wray. Members of the Varsity Basketball Cheer Squad were Faith Adwell, Abigail Ferguson, and Karissa Oberhauser.

The Junior High Girls Basketball Squad was 6-8 and got better every single time after getting off to an 0-3 start. Players were Felicia Wyllie, Harley Leach, Lexi Harger, Saylor Brown, Sarah Wray, MacKenzie Titus, Elaina Renfro, Jacquelyn Cline, and Kelsey Barcus. Due to the new volleyball squad, there were three girls to start out with. Despite losing, the girls saved their best for last, when they forced overtime with a last second shot against Mound City and took them to double overtime before losing 12-10. Coach Sami Jackson recounted one game where she told Kelsey Barcus to guard one particular player tightly and she ran into the free throw lane where the other player was shooting, forgetting that was a violation.

The Varsity Girls Basketball Squad was 15-11, posting their best record in several years. They were fourth in the 275, behind only Mound City, East Atchison, and Jefferson. Team members were Karissa Oberhauser, Jadon Dobbins, Kandace Damgar, Emma Hart, Keagan O’Riley, Ashley Thompson, Audrey Trimble, Kristin Herndon, Linda Han, Alisha Davison, Veronica Ghedini, Taylor Combs, and Brittany Leach. For Coach Sami Jackson’s squad, the goal is always to be part of the game, whether they were playing or sitting on the bench. Brittany Leach, who didn’t play much in the varsity games, for instance, could always be counted on to be the team cheerleader.

The Hustle Award went to Kandace Damgar. She had 50 rebounds, third on the team. She was third in steals and third in tips as well. The Defensive Player of the Year was Kristin Herndon, who led the team with 73 steals and 90 tips and was second with 130 defensive boards. She was Second Team All-Conference and Second Team All-District. The Offensive Player of the Year was Ashley Thompson, who led the team in both points and boards and had 22 points while just playing half of the Nodaway-Holt game.

Audrey Trimble was the Most Improved Player. She had 71 steals, shot 72% from the line, and averaged 8.3 points per game. In the last 10 games, she averaged 11.2 points per game, shot 90% from the line, and had 35 steals. The Heart Award went to Alisha Davison, who was always a threat to go off from downtown and who was one of the hardest workers on the team.

The Junior High Boys finished winless, but still got better at the fundamentals throughout the season. Towards the end of the season, for instance, they finally learned how to break a full court press, forcing teams to back off. Team members were Matt Berg, Hunter Carlson, Keegan Keho, Damian Dailey, Jeremiah Dobbins, Cade Emery, Darron Bix, Andrew Wray, and Andrew Richards.

The High School Boys were 7-18. Members were Cole Bird, Lucas Alvarez, Arron Coleman, Cody Wood, Tyler Bix, Ryan Riley, Austin Bird, Wyatt O’Riley, Logan Keho, Karson Oberhauser, and Andrew Blackford. Highlights were a win over South Nodaway, a tough game against District Champion Mound City before losing by 15, and a 3 point loss to Quarterfinalist Worth County in which they led much of the game. Tyler Bix got the Hustle Award. Offensive Player of the Year went to Arron Coleman, who averaged 10.1 points per game and 7.3 boards per game. Cody Wood was the Defensive Player of the Year. Ryan Riley, who broke into the lineup with his shooting ability, was Move Improved. The Leadership Award went to Cole Bird, who was one of the rebounding leaders on the team. Arron Coleman was 2nd Team All-Conference.

The Baseball Team went 2-11 following their 13-2 loss to Platte Valley to end their season in districts. Like the basketball team, they were young and had growing pains. Team members were Lucas Alvarez, Arron Coleman, Tyler Bix, Logan Keho, Ryan Riley, Austin Bird, Drexel Richardson, Dalton Smyser, Karson Oberhauser, Dakota Wray, MaKayla Cross, and Cody Cline. They showed the ability to play some teams tough, including a 4-2 loss to conference runner-up East Atchison, a 5-3 loss to Platte Valley, and a 5-2 loss to King City. The team will return nearly everyone as only Lucas Alvarez will graduate.

Pitcher of the Year was Tyler Bix, who struck out 27 batters and had a 6.10 ERA to lead the team. Defensive Player of the Year was Karson Oberhauser, who was versatile and could play wherever he was asked to. Most Improved was Logan Keho. The Hustle Award went to Andrew Blackford, who was hit hard in the face and got a bloody nose during one practice, but insisted on staying in and practicing. Tyler Bix was named to the 1st Team All-275 Squad.

Senior of the Year Awards went to Alisha Davison and Cole Bird.