BricksCenter
DaDaDa DaDaDa
January 31, 2021
21 Sports ... 1 Team ... WE ARE HOBART!
"Our greatest glory is not in falling, but in rising every time we fall."
The Brickies have faced their share of adversity this winter ... we all have ... and they've put in a lot of hard WORK WORK WORK to get back up every time they've fallen. It's been impressive because they've shown that they know how to keep going forward no matter what the circumstances. That is exactly the reason why I know their greatest glory is in front of them!
Yo Adrian ... it's time for BricksCenter!
Wrestling
“Going in one more round when you don’t think you can. That’s what makes all the difference in your life.” - Rocky Balboa
On Saturday, the Brickie grapplers were at Portage High School for the start of the 2020-2021 IHSAA Tournament Series. Two weeks removed from winning their 7th consecutive Northwest Crossroads Championship, Hobart was chasing a 2nd straight sectional crown with a lineup that did not resemble the one that was penciled in when the season began. Our boys have literally wrestled different kinds of adversity all year ... injuries, illness ... and still they've made us SO PROUD this winter because they continue to GO IN ONE MORE ROUND no matter what and give EVERYTHING THEY HAVE on the mat! A prime example of this BRICKIE PRIDE was on display at yesterday's sectional when sophomore Trevor Triana wrestled in the semifinals of the 145-lb weight class. Late in the 1st period, Trevor landed awkwardly on the mat and the match was paused for a possible injury. After being cleared by the trainer, Triana went right back in there against his outstanding opponent from Lake Station, whose record was 25-7 on the year. It was like watching Rocky Balboa & Apollo Creed go toe to toe ... the intensity was fierce and after 3 periods, the score remained 0-0. 1 minute of sudden victory ... still no score ... 30 second overtime ... nada. Exhausted, Triana went back out there ONE MORE ROUND, finally broke the 0-0 tie with an escape point, and then hung on with EVERYTHING HE HAD to withstand a late flurry and secure the WIN!! IT WAS INCREDIBLE!! Ultimately, Triana would fall in the finals to another outstanding opponent, but his effort and determination exemplified what our boys have shown all year on their journey down the #BRICKRODE ... it made all the difference!
The Brickies were FANTASTIC yesterday. Competing in 13 out of the 14 weight classes, Hobart pushed the host Indians to the limit! OUR BOYS SHINED and came away with 5 SECTIONAL CHAMPIONS (Trevor Schammert, Donovan Ruiz, Devin Wible, Jacob Simpson & Justin Sawyer) and 13 REGIONAL QUALIFIERS ... that's right, EVERY Brickie who wrestled was able to advance to next week! Portage also had 5 champions and 13 regional qualifiers. To say the competition was close would be an understatement. Ultimately, Portage was able to outdistance the Brickies by a mere 7 team points (267-260) and earn the crown. While the trophy may have stayed at Portage, our boys showed a tremendous amount of BRICKIE PRIDE, wrestled their butts off and should hold their heads high ... their greatest glory is ahead of them because they always RISE after getting knocked down and never give up!!
Here are 13 Brickies who advanced to next weekend's IHSAA REGIONAL:
106 lbs - junior Jayson Mejia - 3rd place
113 lbs - junior Trevor Schammert - SECTIONAL CHAMPION
120 lbs - junior Donovan Ruiz - SECTIONAL CHAMPION
126 lbs - sophomore Devin Wible - SECTIONAL CHAMPION
132 lbs - sophomore Jonny McGill - 2nd place
138 lbs - senior Connor Johnson - 3rd place
145 lbs - sophomore Trevor Triana - 2nd place
152 lbs - sophomore Gavin Miller-Lane - 3rd place
160 lbs - senior Tyler Turley - 2nd place
170 lbs - junior Jacob Simpson - SECTIONAL CHAMPION
182 lbs - sophomore Owen Gniadek - 3rd place
195 lbs - junior Justin Sawyer - SECTIONAL CHAMPION
285 lbs - junior Alex Pickett - 4th place
A few more highlights from Saturday:
Juniors Trevor Schammert and Jacob Simpson stayed UNDEFEATED on the year ... sophomore Devin Wible filled in for an injured Ruben Padilla and came out of nowhere to become a SECTIONAL CHAMPION ... sophomores Owen Gniadek & Jonny McGill both became REGIONAL QUALIFIERS on limited varsity experience ... like I said earlier, the Brickies were FANTASTIC!
Next week, Hobart hosts the IHSAA REGIONAL and the Brickies will have a contender in 13 out of the 14 weight classes. Top 4 places advance to the Semi-State @ East Chicago. DON'T STOP NOW BOYS!!
#BRICKRODE
Gymnastics
Well folks, the Lady Brickies are FOR REAL because they BELIEVE! After spending nearly the entire 2019-2020 season trying to reach a team score of 100+, our girls have accomplished that feat in each of their first two meets of the 2020-2021 year!! With 4 returning letterwinners and newcomer sophomore Sarah Romeo, this year's group is gonna fly now!
On Thursday, Hobart traveled to area powerhouse Valparaiso to square off with the 12-time state champion Lady Vikings and NCC rival Lowell. Call it a hat trick because our girls surpassed the century mark for the 3rd time in as many tries this winter by posting a 102.00!! Valparaiso showed why it has so many state titles by piling up 110.95 points, but Hobart vaulted past the Lady Red Devils, who finished with just 74.2! Junior Aisha Arias picked up right where she left off at her last competition by finishing in the top 4 in all 4 events to earn 3rd place in the all-around with a 35.9! Sophomore Haylie Skripac brought home 2nd place on the vault and finished 5th on bars and the floor on her way to 4th in the all-around with a 34.350. Sophomore Daeges Morgan was 6th on beam and classmate Sarah Romeo placed 7th on vault and 6th on beam to round out Hobart's podium placers.
Watching these girls battle is real exciting as they continue to gain more and more confidence with each competition! They clearly believe in who they are and we ... we believe ... we believe that ... we believe that they will win!!! The Lady Brickies will be at it again @ LaPorte on Thursday. LET'S GOOOOOO!!!
#STICKIT
Basketball
Girls
After a promising start and a 4-4 record through their 1st 8 games, the Lady Brickies fell on some hard times this winter. Hobart endured two pauses in activity, lost 7 of their next 9 games, and constantly faced a never-ending case of uncertainty surrounding what might occur each week. With how challenging this winter has been, a tough sectional draw and only two games remaining in the regular season could've pushed them over the edge. However, our girls have refused to give up and because of how well they've embraced the role of contender, bounced back in a BIG WAY this past week!!
Monday, Hobart traveled to LaCrosse to face the Lady Tigers. First quarter action was CRAZY as both teams came out firing and burned up the nets thanks to some hot shooting! LaCrosse led 20-16 after 8 minutes. In the 2nd quarter, the Hobart D-D-D-DEFENSE caged up the Lady Tigers ... limiting them to only 6 points! As the defense clamped down, the Hobart offense EXPLODED for 23 points in the period as 6 different Lady Brickies found the bottom of the net!! LaCrosse battled back in the 3rd to close the gap to only 4 points, 49-45, heading into the final quarter. Over the last 8 minutes, the Lady Brickies BATTLED and refused to give up ... outscoring the hosts 19-16 to earn the hard fought VICTORY 68-61!! Sophomore Asia Donald filled the stat sheet with 27 points, 15 rebounds and 9 steals ... barely missing out on a triple-double! Junior Amarea Donald also reached double figures in the points column with 12 and senior Lexi Williams added 9 to go along with her 9 rebounds and team-high 4 pass deflections!
On Friday night, the Lady Brickies headed over to Hammond to wrap up the regular season against the Lady Cats. The momentum gained with Monday's win clearly continued to pace Hobart on Friday as our girls raced past the hosts on their way to an easy 62-34 VICTORY!! Once again it was sophomore Asia Donald leading the charge as she poured in 30 points to lead all scorers!! Senior Lexi Williams scored 14 points as Hobart notched their 8th win of the season!!
The Lady Brickies finished the regular season with a record of 8-11 and will take their refuse to give up attitude into IHSAA SECTIONAL play next week over at Chesterton High School! Our girls drew a bye in the first round and will play the winner of Lowell and Class 4A #2-ranked Crown Point on Friday. GOOD LUCK LADIES!! WE GOT THIS!!
#SHEGOTGAME
Boys
The above quote from Rocky Balboa 100% describes our boys cagers this winter. This group of guys has faced it all ... delayed start, injuries, illness, pause in activities ... practiced for nearly two months before playing their 1st game ... and there's still a month left in the regular season! With 4 games over a 5-day period this past week, not only did the Brickies need to refuse to give up, but they had to rely heavily on heart and grit as their conditioning was put to the test!
Tuesday, Hobart played @ South Central in a game they were able to pick up in place of Boone Grove, which was postponed early and eventually cancelled. Trailing by as many as 11 midway through the 3rd quarter, our boys refused to give up, stormed back to take a brief lead, and trailed by just 1 point heading into the final period of play! Ultimately, the hosts were able to knock down just enough shots to keep the Brickies at bay and sent Hobart back to Lake County with a tough 62-54 loss. Senior Fabian Salazar-Bernal drilled 5 3's on his way to a team-high 15 points to go with 6 rebounds and 6 steals. Classmate Quinten White scored 13 and sophomore Keith Mullins added 9. Junior Miki Djankovich matched Salazar-Bernal's rebound total with 6 of his own to lead the team.
On Wednesday, the Brickies hosted Portage in non-conference action. If you like D-D-D-DEFENSE, you enjoyed this one as both squads were locked-in the entire game making it difficult for anyone to score. At the half, the Indians led just 16-9 ... CRAZY! Hobart closed the gap to 5, 24-19, entering the 4th to keep Portage within striking distance. Once again, our boys refused to give up and with 5:30 left in the game, tied the game at 24 on a short jumper by sophomore Keith Mullins after a nifty dish from junior Anthony Williams!! LET'S GO!!! Unfortunately, Portage was able to close the contest on an 12-0 run and left town with a hard fought 36-24 win. Williams led 7 different Brickie scorers with 7 points. Senior Fabian Salazar-Bernal pulled down a team-high 8 rebounds and was backed up by classmate Max Jancich and junior Miki Djankovich, who each grabbed 7.
Friday's home tilt with Hammond Morton was almost a rerun of the 1st two games of the week. The Governors jumped out to an early double-digit lead only to see our boys refuse to give up and fight their way all the way back into it ... cutting the lead to just 2 points early in the 4th quarter!! A few key baskets down the stretch by Morton enabled them to hold on for a tough 55-46 win.
With their gas tanks nearing "E", Hobart played their 4th game in 5 days against Illiana Christian on Saturday afternoon. The 8-3 Vikings were big, skilled and experienced at the varsity level. Their ability to hit from outside made things difficult on our boys for most of the contest, but once again ... Hobart refused to give up!! A flurry of D-D-D-DEFENSIVE intensity and some timely shooting in the 4th quarter closed the gap and gave the home fans hope in a comeback! Ultimately, the Brickies couldn't get over the hump and lost 59-44 in a game that was much more competitive than what the scoreboard showed.
Hobart is 2-7 on the year, but these guys keep getting up every time they fall. The effort and energy our boys play with is INCREDIBLE and they absolutely refuse to give up ... character traits that will serve them well as they play out the stretch and prepare for the post-season to start in 4 weeks. Only two games on the slate this week ... a Thursday night home contest against NCC foe KV and @ Calumet on Saturday. Lake County is ORANGE, which means 25% capacity at extracurricular events. If I were you, I'd get out and watch our boys play - you won't be disappointed!
#EYEOFTHETIGER
Check out the link below for the Girls IHSAA SECTIONAL bracket @ Chesterton High School
Swimming & Diving
There were no competitions this past week in the water, but the Brickie fish just keep swimming (& diving)! The girls IHSAA SECTIONAL gets underway this week over at Valparaiso High School.
- Thursday = preliminary swimming races
- Friday = diving competition
- Saturday = swimming finals
This is what the Lady Brickies have WORK WORK WORKed for all year! They've persevered this winter and given us all one of the best seasons in team history - including their BEST EVER finish in the Northwest Crossroads Conference!! Clearly, our girls can take a lot and keep moving forward ... that's how winning is done! GOOD LUCK LADIES!!
#BRICKIEPRIDE
Sports Schedule This Week
No Events Scheduled
Tuesday
No Events Scheduled
Wednesday
No Events Scheduled
Thursday
Girls Swimming @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Valparaiso High School)
Gymnastics @ LaPorte
Boys Basketball vs. Kankakee Valley *
Friday
Girls Diving @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Valparaiso High School)
Girls Basketball @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Chesterton High School)
Saturday
Wrestling @ IHSAA REGIONAL (Hosted by Hobart High School)
Girls Swimming @ IHSAA SECTIONAL FINALS (Hosted by Valparaiso)
Boys Basketball @ Calumet
Girls Basketball @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (if win on Friday)
* - NCC Opponent