By Coach Ryan Miller '99

The Boys Basketball team was excited and grateful for the opportunity to get to play the 2020-2021 season coming off a previous sectional title and having the postseason cut-off early and summer basketball workouts shutdown as well. Everyone knew this season would have the potential to be challenging with the pandemic still impacting normal activities, including school and athletics. Fortunately, the season was played and had many bright spots. 

As anticipated, the team would encounter some bumps in the road in this unusual season. They began right from the start, with the first scrimmage and game being canceled. The Pioneers then went on to win their first three+ games before entering a gauntlet of games against top-tier programs that resulted in some tough losses. The team saw some tremendous play during the stretch, however, especially from senior forward Zack Johnson, who gave several dominant performances. The stretch of challenging games went through to the middle of January and was capped off with a win over a top tier 4A rival Jeffersonville team, ending on two free throws by sophomore Casey Kaelin within the last few seconds to seal the game.

Unfortunately, just as the Pioneers were beginning to hit their stride, the program was shut down for two weeks due to Covid related issues. Upon return in early February, the Pioneers had a difficult climb to get back to mid-season form as they faced battling through some tough losses, additional lost practices due to weeks of inclement weather, and injuries to key players. Ultimately, the team would overcome that stretch of adversity, and see the emergence of players stepping up in new ways.

The Pioneers played some top opponents very competitively taking a strong New Albany team (one that defeated all of the local 4A and 3A programs) to overtime and within a last second shot -- without the Pioneers' leading scorer and rebounder Johnson in the lineup. They also played a hard-fought game against 3A power North Harrison. Eventually, the team started to put the pieces back together with an end-of-the-regular-season victory vs. a quality Brownstown team. The team was playing good basketball heading into sectional play, where they won the first two rounds against Austin and a highly contested game vs. talented cross-town rival Clarksville. The Pioneers were led in that game by senior Nick Sexton with a great all-around defensive and offensive performance to help propel the Pioneers back into the sectional final for a rematch of last season's game vs. a Southwestern team that returned all of its key players from the prior season.

Despite a good effort and start to the game and the emergence of a tremendous student cheer section and the support of many Providence community fans who made the trip to Hanover, the Pioneers were unable to come up with the level of game play that would allow a repeat title. It was disappointing as the Pioneer team wanted to give the senior teammates and PHS community something to celebrate during this challenging year.

The varsity team finished the season 12-9, including two wins over eventual sectional champs. It was a season with some big wins, but some of the most important victories may have occurred off the court, as the younger Pioneers who will someday lead the team saw their teammates rally around one another and be there for each other in challenging times. The players' perseverance, positive attitudes and great effort were the things that made the coaches most proud to be a part of this team. The team bids farewell to five seniors - each of whom added something special to the team: Eli "Big Red" Watson (vocal leadership), Brennan "Finny" Finnegan (encouragement), David "Davey on the Spot" Wall (great effort), Nick "Johnny being Johnny" Sexton (fearless competitor), and Zack "Attack" Johnson (heart & soul). Beyond all of that, this team truly grew to become a family who had care and love for one another -- that was the best part of this season. It was hard earned by the boys.

Throughout this season, we also had three players garner Player of the Week Honors for Southern Indiana and greater Louisville area for their performances, including seniors Johnson and Sexton and sophomore Kaelin. This was a credit to them and their teammates to play well enough to get several big wins and garner a nomination (only four players were nominated each week across the entire Southern Indiana and Louisville region) and a testament to the supporters of the PHS basketball community who voted for them. Additionally, three Pioneers were named to the Southwestern Sectional No. 45 All-Tournament Team: Kaelin, Sexton, and junior Max Beatty.

Coach Miller would like to thank all of the players and their families, assistant coaches (who are so dedicated to our players, each other, and program), PHS leadership, and our PHS fans and supporters. It is a full community team effort ... WE, not me.

The JV team had yet another impressive season under the guidance of Coach Chris "CC" Carruthers. The team went 10-4 including nice wins over talented teams of Jeffersonville and New Albany. The PHS coaches were impressed with the next wave of Pioneers coming up with their great work ethic and effort, attentiveness/ basketball IQ, and competitive spirit.

The freshman team also had another strong season under Coach Kevin Ferree '95. The team went 14-3 with two tournament championships -- the holiday tourney and PHS End of Season Tourney. The season included wins against the frosh teams of good programs such as Silver Creek, New Albany, Jennings Co., and Seymour. The coaches were also very encouraged by this freshman group and look forward to their continued development.

Seniors Jeremy Gettelfinger and David Wall have both signed their letter of intent to play football with the NCAA Division-III Hanover College Panthers for the 2021-22 school year. Hanover College Head Football Coach Matt Theobald ’92 said he is looking forward to having Jeremy and David on his team.

Jeremy, a three-year starter on offense and defense for the Pioneers, was the team co-captain his senior season and the only player from a 2A school to be named to the Area 10 All-Star team.

 

“We are excited about his (Jeremy’s) work ethic, his desire, and his football skills,” Coach Theobald said. “As a coaching staff, we love his versatility to run and catch the football and make big tackles on defense.”

David, a three-year letterman for the Football and Boys Basketball teams, was also a co-captain of the Football team his senior season.

Of David, Coach Theobald said, “David shows the leadership, athletic ability, and the competitive drive we are looking for to continue our winning tradition here at Hanover. We look forward to David playing defensive end for us for the next four seasons and seeing him grow as a person and an athlete.”

With spring quickly approaching, the Football team is selling mulch. All orders are due by March 15. Download the order form here. Email Coach Daniel McDonald to place your order.

College-age alumni are needed to lead an upcoming Senior Retreat on March 29-April 1. If you are interested, please contact Mr. Scott Hutchins '91. at shutchins@providencehigh.net.

Sr. Ruth Ellen Doane, SP, taught math teacher at Providence from 1970-1977 and was assistant principal her last four years here. She passed away Feb. 5, 2021.

Classes with graduation years ending in 1 and 6 may be planning for their reunions this year, and some were held over from last year. If you don't see your class below and would like to help or need more information, contact Krissy (Beyl) Van Laan '05 at kvanlaan@providencehigh.net.

March 12: Third Quarter grades posted

March 19-26: Spring Break

April 2: Good Friday; early dismissal

April 4: Easter

April 9: Footloose debuts