BricksCenter
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September 13, 2020
21 Sports ... 1 Team ... WE ARE HOBART!
The Brickies packed 17 varsity events into the last 5 days and the action was NONSTOP! The HIGHs, LOWs, and everything in between that collectively add up to create the drama, excitement and lasting images only sports can provide were present in large supply! I've said it before and I'll say it again ... BRICKIE ACTION IS FAAAANNNNTASTIC!!!
Those of you that have been in attendance know what I'm talking about! Those of you that have not ... we're just past the midway point of the fall season and there's still time! Post-season pIay will be here before we know it. If I were you, I'd try to get out and watch our SCOH student athletes compete ... high school or middle school ... to see what you've been missing ... you won't be disappointed!
Briiickieeeees ... what's your nuuuummmber??? #1 .. #1 .. #####1!
That's right ... it's time for BricksCenter!
Cross Country
Girls
On Tuesday, the Lady Brickies took a trip to New Prairie for the Cougar Kick-Off. The course at NP is LEGENDARY and always an adventure with named sections like "The Snake" and "Agony Hill". The course at New Prairie is also the site of the IHSAA Semi-state ... somewhere these girls hope to be running on in late October! Freshman Ella Hornak finished 2nd overall in a time of 21:44.2 and junior teammate Mikayla Fuentes (6th - 22:33.2) joined her in the top 10 as the Lady Brickies placed 2nd as a team!! Rounding out the top 7 for Hobart were senior Lilly Butler (13th, 23:43.2), freshman Adriana Arauz (15th, 23:49.5), junior Sydney Belk (17th, 23:59.9), freshman Addy Black (25th, 26:28.9) and freshman Kylee King (26th, 26:46.8).
Saturday @ Lowell High School, Hobart raced in the Bob Thomas Invitational, which has become one of the premier events in NWI. Thanks to COVID-19 restrictions, the Invite was split into multiple divisions this year to keep the total number of runners in each race to a minimum. Hobart competed in the Black Division and finished 2nd overall as a team behind champion Morgan Township! Once again, Hornak paced the Lady Brickies with a 7th place finish and a new PR of 21:16.2!! Next into the line was Fuentes in 10th place @ 21:56.5 ... followed by Belk (12th, 22:27.9), Butler (15th, 22:57.4), Arauz (17th, 23:31.3) ... sophomore Nevaeh Chavez making her Hobart debut (32nd, 26:15.2) ... and Black (36th, 26:38.2).
These girls are improving EVERY RACE!! With a senior, 2 juniors, a sophomore and 3 freshman finishing in the top 7 on Saturday ... I have no choice but to reference Timbuk 3 and their 80s one-hit-wonder "The Future's So Bright ... I Gotta Wear Shades"!!
Boys
On Tuesday, the Brickie Harriers joined the girls at New Prairie for the Cougar Kick-Off. This was a GREAT opportunity for our boys to get some experience on the IHSAA Semi-State course! After winning the Hobart Invite, senior Bruce Leipart extended his victory streak to 2-in-a-row as he cruised to 1st PLACE - crossing the finish line in 17:00.8! Freshman Ryan Mattel (7th, 18:39.1) and junior Joe Meagher (10th, 18:53.6) joined Bruce in the top 10 to lead Hobart to a 2nd place team finish! Completing the varsity roster for the Brickies on Tuesday were senior Mark Perez (17th, 19:16.9), sophomore Ryan Wein (24th, 20:25.3), freshman Owen Stankich (27th, 20:36.1) and junior Kaiden Click (29th, 20:37.1). Even though it was a long bus ride on a school night, the experience was worth it!
Saturday, the bus headed south and took our boys to Lowell for the prestigious Bob Thomas Invitational that features some of the very best teams from around NWI. The boys WERE AMAZING as they finished 3rd in the Black Division! Once again it was senior Bruce Leipart leading the Brickies with a 5th place finish overall in a time of 17:14.3! Coach A has got to be pleased seeing Mattel (- 32), Meagher (- 34), Perez (- 14), Click (- 47), Stankich (- 43), and Wein (- 22) drop a combined 192 seconds ... or an average of 32 seconds per runner from Tuesday to Saturday!! HOLY SCHNIKEYS that's a HUGE DROP!!! WAY TO GO BOYS!!!
Next weekend the boys and girls will both head back to New Prairie for THE LARGEST INVITATIONAL in Northern Indiana! The best of the best will be there so we'll get a potential preview of how the Brickies stack up against semi-state caliber competition! GOOD LUCK!
#PRIDEANDTRADITION
Girls Golf
Using the advice of one-handed former golf pro Chubbs Peterson, Happy Gilmore was able to overcome adversity, WIN the tournament, and save his grandma's house! (Hope I didn't give too much away there for those of you who have not seen the movie.) After the way the Lady Brickies have been playing, advice from Coach Roach has our girls doing the same ... except the whole "save grandma's house" thing ... and they have been FANTASTIC!!
Tuesday, 18 holes awaited at White Hawk Country Club in Crown Point for the Northwest Crossroads Conference Championship! This was the first time in conference history that the championship was played at a neutral site! Hobart entered the day seeded 4th in the NCC with a 2-3 regular season record. If the Lady Brickies could knock off one of the top 3, they would earn a share of 3rd place!
After a morning rain postponed play until 10 am, the Lady Brickies literally came out swinging! Led by senior Alivia Ahner with a 97, Hobart shot a team score of 449 - a terrific score for the challenging White Hawk course! Kankakee Valley, however, shot a 434 to best the Lady Brickies by 15 strokes for that coveted 3rd place finish. Hobart's 449 was good enough for 4th for the 2nd consecutive year after finishing in the cellar for too many years to count! Competing for Hobart on Tuesday were seniors Ahner and Claire Duca ... along with the junior trio of Brooke Blanchard, Morgan Sanchez, and Autumn Turley. Ahner's 97 was the 6th best score of the day, which earned her a 1st-TEAM ALL CONFERENCE spot!
CONGRATULATIONS to Coach Roach and the entire Lady Brickies golf team for another great finish at the NCC Championships!
Hobart is 10-8 on the season ... which is one "W" more than last season at this point! Friday, the Lady Brickies will travel to the Valparaiso Country Club for the IHSAA Sectional hosted by Valpo High School. GOOD LUCK LADIES!!
#TAPTAPTAPAROO
CONGRATULATIONS to senior Alivia Ahner for earning 1st Team All-Conference for Girls Golf!
Football
With no fans allowed entry this year due to COVID-19 restrictions, the stadium was eerily quiet throughout the contest ... except for when the Brickies hit BIG PLAYS on both sides of the ball en rout to a DOMINANT 38-0 VICTORY! It all started when senior Bobby "The Hitman" Babcock recovered a fumble with just under 5 minutes remaining in the first quarter. On the next play from scrimmage, senior quarterback Riley Johnston found junior receiver Miki Djankovich in the endzone from 30 yards out to give Hobart a 6-0 lead! Djankovich stayed on the field to boot the extra point to make it 7-0. After an Eagles 3 and out, the Brickies AGAIN hit on a big play when junior Marc Enslen found some room and scored on a 64-yard sprint! Another Djankovich point after made it 14-0 Brickies after 12 minutes of play.
Late in the 1st half, Johnston scored on a 13-yard quarterback keeper to make it 21-0 ... and when Culver fumbled the ensuing kickoff return, Djankovich connected on a 24-yard field goal to end the half! Brickies 24, Eagles 0
Hobart would tack on 2 more TDs before the final buzzer sounded and come home with a 38-0 win!
The junior duo of Enslen and Djankovich totaled 4 TDs on the night - 2 a piece - and the Brickie D-D-D-DEFENSE pitched a shutout for the 2nd consecutive week!! Talk about running into a BRICK WALL ... for the season, Hobart is only surrendering a stingy 8.3 points per game!! Anyone remember the "Monsters of the Midway"? These guys are the "BEASTS OF THE BRICKYARD"!!!
Hobart is 3-1 overall and should move up from #5 in the state rankings after Friday's THUMPING of the Eagles. Northwest Crossroads Conference play begins THIS WEEK with the Brickies traveling to face Lowell in The Inferno. BRICKIE UP!
#PLAY15
Junior Alex Pickett was featured in the NWI Times last week!
Soccer
Girls
The Lady Brickies were scheduled for 3 games this past week, but Mother Nature had other plans. One lightning postponement and 2 rainy days made for a messy week of soccer.
Tuesday night, the Lady Brickies traveled to face NCC foe Kankakee Valley. This one was 8 minutes into the first half when lightning caused a delay and ultimately a long drive home without a varsity game. Hobart will head back to DeMotte on Thursday, 9/24.
Thursday, a 3rd trip to Bishop Noll in 3 years was on deck. Thanks to some fortunate bounces of the ball, the Lady Warriors jumped out to a 3-0 halftime lead. Over the last 40 minutes, the Lady Brickies HAMMERED away at the Noll defense ... attacking with EVERYTHING THEY HAD! Unfortunately, the 3 goal deficit was too much to overcome and even though Hobart DOMINATED the 2nd half, our girls just couldn't find the back of the net enough and came home with a tough 4-2 loss. Seniors Arieyana Morgan and Samantha Paterson each scored goals for the Lady Brickies.
Saturday, Hobart hosted Chesterton in non-conference action. The highly touted Lady Trojans brought a lot of fire-power to H-town looking to run away from our girls. In a well-played game, Chesterton never could quite shake the Lady Brickies ... leading only 4-1 with a little over 20 minutes still remaining. Ultimately, the Lady Trojans tacked on 3 more goals to win 7-1, but our girls BATTLED for 40 minutes against one of the state's very best. Freshman Kaitlyn Roscoe, after playing goalie for half the JV game, scored on a ricochet shot in the 2nd half of the varsity contest and sophomore Rylee Cotton had an INCREDIBLE 17 SAVES!! WHOA!
The Lady Brickies are 2-4 as we approach the mid-season point. This is an important week for Hobart with two NCC match-ups ... STAY THE COURSE GIRLS - KEEP ON KEEPIN' ON!!
Boys
On Wednesday, our boys "futbol" players hosted Kankakee Valley in NCC action. This was also the Suicide Awareness Game where the Boys Soccer booster club made donations to local organizations who provide assistance to those in need of help. Prior to the game, our boys paid tribute the our #14 ... and once they game started, they proceeded to PLAY LIKE CHAMPIONS! In a close contest, the Brickies were more INTENSE, more ANIMATED and more TOGETHER than the Kougars! Those attributes added together to equal an emotional 2-0 WIN for the Brickies - their 1st NCC victory on the season! Scoring both goals for Hobart was freshman Luke Weinman!! Sophomore goalie Ryan Pimentel was FANTASTIC in protecting the net and senior Avione Lane was a WARRIOR all night ... assisting one of young Luke's goals!
Saturday featured a rematch of one of Hobart's jamboree opponents ... Portage. The two teams tied 0-0 after playing 40 minutes in the Jamboree. Saturday's contest was no different in terms of how HARD the two teams played and how truly AGGRESSIVE the players were attacking the net! Hobart scored early on an amazing shot from freshman Liam Deel ... Weinman providing the assist ... to make it 1-0! The scored remained 1-0 at the half as Portage was unable to put one in the net during the 1st 40 minutes of play. During the last 40 minutes, the Indians were finally able to sneak one into the net and the game ended in a 1-1 tie as no one was able to get one past either goalie the rest of the way. WHAT A GAME!! Even though the result wasn't a "W", it wasn't an "L" either ... our boys are playing better and better!
Hobart is 3-1-1 this season and 1-1 in NCC play. The boys will travel to Lowell in a BIG NCC match-up on Wednesday ... and then host Hanover Central for SENIOR NIGHT on Thursday ... before hitting the road again Saturday for a contest @ Michigan City. I suggest you come watch at least one of these if you can, these kids can play!
#WEAREONE
Boys Tennis
Hobart was scheduled to play 3-consecutive matches this past week, but wet courts forced a cancellation on Tuesday. Still, playing back-to-back on Wednesday & Thursday against some of the best competition we've seen would put our boys to the test!
Wednesday, Hobart traveled to Illiana Christian for the first ever meeting between the two schools! This one was a BATTLE! At #1 singles, senior Max Jancich dispatched his opponent in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 to get the Brickies on the board! Senior Carter Mohr (#2-singles) and junior Ethan Cover (#3-singles) each pushed their foe to the limit, but couldn't quite get over the proverbial hump and lost close matches. Both doubles teams ... #1 Chad Tomaga & Nick Kolopanis and #2 Jaydon Hence & Cameron Gonzalez ... forced a 3rd set tie-breaker by coming back and winning the 2nd set of their matches! Unfortunately, the Vikings found a way and held off the charging Brickies to earn the W at both spots and sent Hobart home with a heart-breaking loss 1-4.
On Thursday, the Brickies hosted #1-ranked Munster in conference play. This one did not end the way we hoped it would on the scoreboard; however, Hobart showed up and battled hard against the top-ranked Mustangs. Always a good experience - particularly for a young team - to face the BEST and see where we measure up a few weeks before sectional play begins. It was a good learning experience for our guys ... one that should help us down the road!
Hobart is 3-4 overall and 1-2 in Northwest Crossroads Conference play. These guys are getting BETTER and BETTER EVERY WEEK! The next week will challenge the Brickies' endurance with 3 matches in 4 days ... WE GOT THIS FELLAS! LET'S GO!!
#ACES
Volleyball
It was an EXHAUSTING week for our Lady Brickies on the hardcourt ... 3 consecutive matches on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday followed by a tournament @ Chesterton on Saturday meant the our girls would be put to the test. Good news? Hobart showed a great WORK WORK WORK ethic and plenty of collective growth as a team in persevering the challenging 5-day stretch!
On Tuesday, the Lady Brickies traveled south to face NCC rival Lowell. An improved Lady Red Devils squad combined with a 40-minute trek down I-65 added up to a rough 1st game for Hobart. The Lady Brickies regrouped and played much better the next two games, but ultimately it wasn't enough as Lowell sent our girls home with a 0-3 loss 9-25, 18-25, & 24-26.
Wednesday, Hobart hosted the Lady Vikings of Valparaiso. The Lady Vikes have eliminated Hobart from sectional play the last two years in a row and the Lady Brickies were looking for some payback. In spite of a TREMENDOUS effort, Hobart dropped the first game 13-25 & then lost a heart-breaking 2nd game 24-26 to fall behind 0-2. In the 3rd, our girls came out swinging (... not literally, but you get the idea) as they BATTLED with all they had! Unfortunately, Valparaiso had a counter for everything Hobart tried and won the game 16-25 to earn a hard fought 3-0 sweep.
On Thursday, state #5-ranked Munster visited the Friendly City. With more college prospects than you could shake a stick at, the Lady Mustangs were simply too much for Hobart playing their 3rd match in 3 days, winning in straight sets.
Saturday, the Chesterton Trojans Volleyball Invitational pitted the Lady Brickies against some unfamiliar foes, but volleyball is volleyball - serve, volley, set, etc ... and our girls know how to play! In the 1st of 4 matches on the day, Hobart beat up on the South Bend Clay Colonials 25-9 & 25-19. Next it was a rematch against Porter county neighbor Portage and the Lady Indians were able to keep Hobart off balance, handing the Lady Brickies a tough 13-25, 18-25 defeat. In the Championship/Place Ranking Round, Hobart faced Bishop Noll in the most exciting match of the day! The Lady Warriors took the first game 21-25. The 2nd was INTENSE and so closely played, extra points were needed to settle the score! In the end, it was Noll who would prevail 25-27, but WHAT AN EFFORT by our girls! After losing 2 in a row, Hobart found itself facing the Kokomo Lady Wildkats in the 4th and final match of the long day. Ok ... put yourself in our girls shoes ... you've now played 6 matches in 5 days and you are EXHAUSTED, but still have 1 more left. Think about the sheer WILL to pull things together one more time and put their best out there on the court. In a back-and-forth match, the Lady Brickies just didn't have enough left in the tank and lost a tough one 21-25, 17-25 to finish 1-3 on the day.
The Lady Brickies have faced some adversity over the last 2 weeks, but they are working hard and coming together as a team. Overall, the girls are 5-12 on the year and 0-4 in NCC play. This week is HUGE with matches against Illiana Christian and Andrean, ranked #20 in the state. YOU CAN DO IT LADIES!
#WEBELIEVE
CONGRATULATIONS to senior Jessica Fazekas for being named to the ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM @ Chesterton on Saturday!
Sports Schedule This Week
Boys Tennis @ Griffith
Girls Golf @ Boone Grove
Volleyball @ Illiana Christian
Tuesday
Girls Soccer vs. Lowell * (SENIOR NIGHT)
Volleyball vs. Andrean *
Wednesday
Girls Golf vs. Wheeler (SENIOR NIGHT)
Boys Tennis vs. Wheeler
Boys Soccer @ Lowell *
Thursday
Boys Soccer vs. Hanover Central (SENIOR NIGHT)
Boys Tennis vs. Andrean *
9th Football @ Lowell *
Friday
Girls Golf @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Valparaiso Country Club)
Football @ Lowell *
Saturday
Girls Cross Country @ New Prairie Invitational
Boys Cross Country @ New Prairie Invitational
Girls Soccer vs. Munster *
Boys Soccer @ Michigan City
JV Football vs. Lowell *
* = NCC Opponent