Monday, March 10, 2025

Mustang Fall & Winter Athletes Honored for 2024-25 season

North Nodaway honored its fall and winter athletes for the 2024-25 season Monday at the athletic banquet. Honored were members of the football, basketball, cheer, volleyball, and cross-country teams as well as the flag corps and the color guard.

For the fall cheer squad, Nevaeh Smith was named MVP for her constant willingness to help other squad members. Katie Parman got the leadership award, while Monica Castillo was the most improved. The technical excellence award went to Lacy Riley, who has competed in dance competitions at the national level and it carried over to the cheer squad. 

The volleyball team set different goals for the team, including always having a positive attitude and improving their serve percentage. They did so, going from a 78.6% accuracy to an 84.12% accuracy.  In addition, each player set personal goals for themselves. A lot of these focused on improving communication. Squad members were Amy Richards, Nevaeh Halvin, Nevaeh Smith, Lacy Riley, Addalea Barcus, Lily Blane, Kila Miller, Piper Smith, Taccoa Moyer, and Lainey Turner. 

The newcomer award went to Nevaeh Smith, who came back after being injured in previous years. She was the best server on the squad with a 93% accuracy rate and was the leading hitter on the team. The offensive player of the year was Addalea Barcus, who led in attack percentage and in aces. She spoke her mind and was a good competitor. Most improved was Lainey Turner, who completely overhauled the way she played the game and still put up better numbers. The Mustang award went to Lacey Riley, who was always one of the first to practices and the last to leave. She led the team in assists and blocks. The character award went to Nevaeh Halvin, who always showed a good attitude and never gave up regardless of the scoreboard.

Addalea Barcus, Lily Blane, Nevash Halvin, Lacy Riley, and Lainey Turner were named to the Academic All-State squad. Barcus got an Outstanding Scholar award from MSHSAA.

Cross Country consisted of Owen Martin, Casey Wray, Jordan DeLeon, Draven Rader, and Trynzlee Ebrecht. The girls golden shoe award went to Casey Wray, who had the fastest time on the girls side. The boys golden shoe went to Owen Martin, who had the fastest time on the boys side. Martin was second in the 275 meet for the boys and Wray seventh for the girls. The goal was for Owen to eclipse the school record, and he came within 10 seconds of doing so. Trynzlee Ebrecht was named most improved for the girls. Draven Rader, who was always willing to help on the boys side, was named most improved. 

Draven Rader, Owen Martin, and Casey Wray were named to the Academic All-State squad. Both teams received the Scholastic Achievement award from MSHSAA. 

Nine girls came out for the winter guard and color guard for North Nodaway. They were Monica Castillo, Kaeali Edington, Amy Richards, Olivia Renfro, Aryianna Jimenez, Piper Smith, Katie Parman, Savannah Rucker, and Lainey Turner. The team spirit award went to Monica Castillo. The most improved was Kaeali Edington. The attitude award went to Savannah Rucker, who was always ready to go and happy to be there. The showmanship award went to Katie Parman. The resilience award went to Piper Smith. The team player award went to Aryianna Jimenez, who was always willing to help the other girls out. The rookie of the year went to Lainey Turner. The leadership award went to Olivia Renfro. The technical excellence award went to Amy Richards. 

The basketball cheer squad consisted of Aryianna Jimenez, Katie Parman, Olivia Renfro, Piper Smith, Nevaeh Smith, Monica Castillo, Savannah Rucker, Trynzlee Ebrecht, and Taccoa Moyer. The leadership award went to Katie Parman and Nevaeh Smith. The versatility award went to Olivia Renfro, who was able to fill in a lot of different roles during the year. The encouragement award went to Aryianna Jimenez. The loud and proud award went to Monica Castillo. The energy award went to Trynzlee Ebrecht, who was always ready to go, even at 7 in the morning. The best smile went to Taccoa Moyer. The helper award went to Savannah Rucker. The most improved award went to Piper Smith, who was always willing to cheer, even during tournaments.

The girls basketball team consisted of Addalea Barcus, Lacy Riley, Lily Blane, Taccoa Moyer, Trynzlee Ebrecht, Jackie Wray, and Mya Hansen. The record and scoreboard did not reflect the team's effort; they played many teams tough and were always well-prepared even against the top teams. 

The offensive award was one of the toughest ones for coach Sami Jackson to pick. The goal was for at least five girls to score every night. But Lily Blane played nearly every minute that the Mustangs played in, got them into their offense, and still got 6.5 points per game and 1.5 assists per game. 

The defensive player of the year went to Jackie Wray. She kept the Mustangs in countless games; she only averaged one block per game, but altered many more shots, even against good teams. She was able to emerge as a force on defense this year when she cut down on her fouls from last year and stayed on the floor. Nothing got to her, even when the game got physical. 

The most improved went to Mya Hansen. She didn't play much last year, but played extended minutes this year, averaging 5 points per game, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 3 rebounds per game. During the Platte Valley Invitational, the Mustangs had to play three games in four nights. Her play was instrumental in them winning consolation. 

The hustle award went to Addalea Barcus. Most players have to be pushed to hustle more; for her, Sami had the opposite problem, trying to reign her in. Over the course of the season, Addalea learned when to pick it up and when to play it safe. 

The Mustang award went to Lacy Riley. She was always showing a positive attitude and always encouraging players, helping keep the team focused. Even after a bad game, she would always look coach Jackson in the eye when she was talking to the team afterwards.

The boys basketball team consisted of Mason Casner, Owen Martin, Blaine Clements, Trevin Wyllie, Jordan DeLeon, Kaeden Nave, Draven Rader, Jeremiah Sparks, Aiden James, Ridge Clements, Weston Alexander, Draven Rowland, and Robbie Forney. The boys hoped to build off their 15 win season the year before, but injuries and illnesses meant the team had its whole roster together for 6 of their 22 games.  They had an excellent summer and were hoping for good things this year, but then Owen Martin was injured, followed by 1 1/2 months of sickness. When they did have their team together, they played well, including an overtime loss to Platte Valley, a one point loss to Stanberry, and wins over Tri-County, NEN (twice), DeKalb, and East Harrison.

The offensive award went to Mason Casner, who averaged 10+ points per game, and the team could light up the scoreboard when he was on. Defensive MVP went to Owen Martin, who always picked up the ball in backcourt and guarded the other team's best player. He led the team in steals and tips.

The most improved award went to Jordan DeLeon. He broke into the starting lineup this year and had over ten double-doubles. He had as many as 20+ points in a game and as many as 14 rebounds. 

The leadership award went to Trevin Wyllie. Battling sickness and injuries all year, he kept the Mustangs in the game against North Harrison in the first game of the year and in the Stewartsville/Osborn game with a 23 point outburst. He was the biggest cheerleader for the squad whether he was on the floor or on the bench. After an injury that he was expected to return in one week from turned out to be much more serious than initially believed, the Mustangs struggled to close out the season. The goal for the team will be to rediscover the hunger that propelled them to 15 wins the year before. 

Mason Casner was recognized for winning honorable mention in the Highway 275, which is always loaded. 

Five athletes were recognized for playing all four years in certain sports. Mason Casner was recognized for basketball and football, Owen Martin for basketball, Amy Richards for color guard and winter guard, Katie Parman for football and basketball cheer, and Olivia Renfro for basketball cheer. 

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