Winning After MidKnight
The area in which the changes will
have their biggest effect in the future comes not at the Varsity level but for
the JV girls basketball team which will see various players send three or four
years under the administration of Knights varsity head coach Amy Poffenbarger.
With Poffenbarger in charge of the
Varsity level, the coaching duties will turn to a familiar face in Middletown basketball
history as Ron Engle will take over the coaching duties hoping to lead a talented
team of sophomores and freshmen this season.
Engle takes over a team that while
good last year showed periods of stagnation and confusion in various facets of
the game over the past two years producing crops of players to the Varsity
level that seemed to lack direction on the style of basketball that they were
supposed to be playing.
Any questioning of the credentials
that Engle has from the curious bystander is going to be dispelled pretty
quickly. All you have to do is walk into Knights Arena and look down at the
scorer’s table and take a quick look at the sign which emblazons the court
which unsurprisingly is named after him.
Engle after all was the architect of
some of the brightest moments in the Middletown boys basketball program history,
leading the Knights to 337 wins, 11 Monocacy Valley Athletic League titles,
four state tournaments, and 22 years in which the team excelled.
Engle also has a good level of
familiarity in the girls basketball team as he was an assistant coach to the
previous varsity coach, William Miskell for 7 years including being on the 2006
team that won a Class 2A State Championship.
The Knights have a small squad, with
only 9 players suiting up for the team this year, but don’t let the size fool
you – this Middletown team is dangerous and will surprise some people this
season.
The Knights will lead be a trio of
talented sophomores at the top, with the rest of the position battles being
open for competition heading into the Knight’s final preseason game – a tri-scrimmage
against the North Carroll High School Panthers and the Linganore High School
Lancers.
Middletown sophomores Kristyn Staley
and Morgan Weaver will provide a 1-2 punch on offense for the Knights, as both
proved themselves as capable scorers during their freshmen season.
Throughout the turmoil that was last
year, both Staley and Weaver showed promise adjusting to high school basketball
rather quickly and giving themselves, along with Morgan’s twin Peyton,
excellent statistics and a definite shot at making the Varsity squad this year.
Peyton Weaver was the only one of
those three to make the Varsity squad, giving both Morgan Weaver and Staley something
to prove this year as now their goal becomes leading the Knights JV team this
season and searching for a call-up to Varsity when the JV season ends.
Both Staley and Morgan Weaver showed
deft scoring touches at various times last year using their speed, skill, and
smarts to captain a Middletown offense that when it was on worked like a well
oiled machine.
Complementing Staley and Weaver at the
guard position is sophomore forward Helen Holt. Last year, Holt showed promise
at times while trying to develop more of a physical inside premise.
The chances of Holt blossoming this
year into a legitimate post player are high this year as Engle has succeeded at
developing strong post players on the boy’s basketball teams he coached over
the years, a skill which should develop over to the JV team.
The tri-scrimmage will be a good
opportunity for Middletown as they will look to remove the blemishes heading
into their season opener on Friday against Brunswick.
And with some help from the coach in
Middletown basketball with the most career wins their season may just be an
unexpected change.
No comments:
Post a Comment