YOUNG BULLDOGS BASKETBALL TEAM LOOKS TO SURPRISE THIS SEASONThe Boiling Springs Bulldogs basketball team will enter the 2019 basketball season with a lot of unknowns as the team returns only three varsity players from last year's team that went 15-9 and went to the 5A playoffs, an impressive feat for any team coming out of Region II-5A, a region considered to be one of the toughest in the state. While the Bulldogs will be young this season Bulldogs coach Hal McManus believes this could be an exciting team to watch. "It's going to be exciting because if you watch us in early games you're going to see improvement every time we set foot on the court," said McManus who enters his fifth season with the Bulldogs. "I think the ceiling is really high for this group because they want to be better and are working hard to do that." The Bulldogs saw the team graduate seven seniors and all five starters from last year's team including Zach Baldinelli who was named to the North-South All Star game and finished his Boiling Springs career with over 1,000 career points. They also lose Trayson Fowler and Chance Guest who both were starters and have gone on to play college athletics this season. While the Bulldogs are losing a lot of experience from last year's team they will be returning junior Corey Johnson, sophomore Trey McManus, and senior Cameron Bockstiegel who all got some quality playing time on last year's playoff team. They will also look to get an added boost from senior transfers Tijaveious Rice and Jordan Askew. Coach McManus says that while the seniors from last year's team are gone their impact is still being felt through the leadership they showed towards the returning players. "I like where we're at right now and a lot of it has to do with how these guys conduct practice," said McManus. "Those guys that graduated last year were leaders and the returning guys got to see that last year and now they're stepping up and leading themselves. They've been very vocal and helping the new guys understand what we're trying to do." Coach McManus said with dynamic of the teaming the changing with so many young players it's going to force him to change a little bit too in the way that he coaches. "The last three years have spoiled me with the guys we've had because they'd been in the program so long they pretty much knew what we were doing when we walked into the gym but now we're doing a lot more teaching," said McManus. "I think it's going to make us all better though and I think it's going to make me a better coach because I know I'm going to have explain things better, probably better than I did last year." One thing about the Bulldogs that won't change is the tenacity that the Bulldogs basketball team brings into every game that has been known to frustrate teams in the past and will be a key attribute for the young team this season. "Coach gets after us in practice about the little things like boxing out and playing good defense," said Johnson. "With our team this year being young and slightly undersized it's going to be key for us to do those things well during the games." "We're hoping to be a frustrating team again this season," said McManus. "We want to get other teams out of their comfort zone." Boiling Springs will also be entering another season of play in Region II-5A which was the home of three of the final four teams in the 5A upper state playoffs last season. "I believe that we play in the toughest region in the state," said McManus. "It's proven by the success of the region in the playoffs last year and I believe this year won't be any different. Our region will once again prove to be the best in the state from top to bottom." Before region play starts though the Bulldogs will be playing in some holiday tournaments and after going on the road last season for tournaments where the Bulldogs won the Easley Invitational and the Bobcat Classic in Bluffton, the Bulldogs will be staying a little closer to home this season for the holiday tournaments. While the tournaments are closer to home they won't be lacking in quality competition as they will participate in the Impact Sports Invitational at Spartanburg Christian Academy from November 25-27 and The Roundball Classic in Chesnee from December 27-28 and 30th. One big difference this season for the Bulldogs is that they will be playing their first season in their brand new 2,500 seat basketball arena. The arena is part of the brand new Boiling Springs High School building project that was just finished prior to the start of the 2019-2020 school year and the excitement about the new home for Bulldogs basketball program is obvious when talking with everyone around the school. "We are very proud of our new facilities," said McManus. "I hope that everyone will get a chance to come out and support the Bulldogs and enjoy the atmosphere in our new gym." While the 2019-2020 season will see a lot of new for the Boiling Springs basketball program it is a team that is working hard and could give teams a lot of trouble this season. "Our players have worked extremely hard during the summer and fall," said McManus. "I am looking forward to all their hard work paying off on the court." 'DEFENSE WINS GAMES' IS MOTTO FOR LADY BULLDOGS BASKETBALLAfter finishing last season with a 15-9 record and falling to Clover in the 5A playoffs the Boiling Springs girls basketball team will be in a rebuilding effort in the 2019-2020 season as they attempt to replace four key seniors from last year's team who were all three year starters. "We graduated four seniors who all started a long time for us and we'll be looking to replace them this season," said Bulldogs head coach Dwayne Lytle. "Over the summer and fall workout seasons the team has put in hard work to uphold the standard created for the program." Even after some very productive seasons in the last few years the Bulldogs were selected to finish sixth in the region this upcoming season and they're using that as motivation. "We were picked to finish sixth this year and that has given the ladies an edge to work harder than normal," said Lytle. The Bulldogs will be leaning on returners Arissa Edwards, who was named All-Region last season, and D'Marria Glenn while also looking to get some key contributions from a new player to the varsity team in Meghan Scharpenberg. With the experience from last season gone the Bulldogs have adopted a new motto for this season which is 'Defense Wins Games' and Coach Lytle says that people will see that in how they attack on defense this season. "Fans should expect to see the Lady Bulldogs getting after it on defense this season," said Lytle. "High energy, pressuring the ball, and causing turnovers will be what teams will see from us this year." Boiling Springs will start their season on December 2nd when they host fellow district school Chesnee. The Bulldogs will once again participate in the holiday tournament 'The Battle at the Border' tournament at Landrum on December 27, 28, and 30th. BULLDOGS WRESTLING LOOKS TO IMPROVE ON LAST SEASONThe Boiling Springs wrestling program will enter the 2019-2020 season coming off a 15-10 season that saw them finish fourth in the region and make a trip to the 5A playoffs but the Bulldogs will look to improve on last year's performance this season. "We will have more upperclassmen in the lineup than we've had the past couple of years," said Bulldogs head coach Lee Thomas. "So we look for this year to be much more productive than the last two years have been." The Bulldogs will be returning nine starters from last year's team including Matthew Sanders who was named both All-Region and All-State. Sanders will be looked at to help lead the Bulldogs team along with fellow returners Ethan Westall, Jordan Reid, and Drayton Wines while they will also look to get key contributions from newcomers Moffette Graves and Kevin Korzazde. Boiling Springs will kick off their new season on December 4th when they host a home meet against Broome, Clover, and Crest (NC). BOILING SPRINGS BASKETBALL WILL DEBUT BRAND NEW ARENAWhen a new season comes along teams are used to seeing new faces but it's rare that a team gets a new home and that's just what the Boiling Springs basketball team will get when the 2019-2020 basketball season tips off. The new arena is part of the multi-million dollar investment that was made by Spartanburg County District Two to build a brand new Boiling Springs High School.
The new arena has a seating capacity of 2,500 in the main event gym area along with an auxiliary gym where teams can warm up prior to games or can allow more than one team to practice at a time. The facility also has multiple locker rooms allowing each team their own locker room during the season which is just a few of the many perks of the new facility. Boiling Springs basketball coach and athletic director Hal McManus says the facility is like a dream come true and say that after looking at the blueprints the last few years it's great to see it completed. "When I came here seven years ago I never expected to be seeing a new arena and I think whenever you go to a new school you never expect to see a new place," said McManus. "We've got to see it being built brick by brick and it has been an amazing process. When I walk in here every morning and see that gym floor I get excited because I know our kids, coaches and community have a facility that they can truly be proud of and it shows people that our district is giving our kids everything they need to be successful." The first basketball game at the new facility will be on December 2nd when the Bulldogs basketball teams host their fellow district school the Chesnee Eagles. Comments are closed.
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