Bruner
By MARK BRUNER
Guest Opinion
Spring sports are here! Brown County High School Athletics is excited for our spring sport teams to use this space to showcase the incredible achievements of all our students, coaches and programs. Check out our website for Brown County High School Athletics at Browncountyathletics.com for updates throughout the season.
Start dates for Spring Athletics: Track and field, Feb. 13; Baseball, March 13; Softball, March 6; Boys’ golf, March 13; Girls’ tennis, March 13
Girls tennis: We had a great season in 2022 and are looking forward to the girls ‘23 Eagles Tennis.
Last year, we finished the season as WIC Conference Co-Champions with a season record of 12-8. Although we lost three of our seven varsity starters to graduation, we return this spring with an experienced group of players at all positions.
We are fortunate to have our No. 1 and No. 2 singles players juniors Anna Stogsdill and Anna Tipton, returning. Senior Katie Tipton will be returning at No. 1 doubles and will be joined by junior Londyn Koester after missing her junior year due to injuries.
Competing for our open singles and doubles positions will be juniors Julia Burt, Cady Kemp and Ava Kelly as well as senior Hannah deWeerdt. Other experienced players competing for varsity and top JV spots are juniors Atheena Doughty, Ashlynn Mercer, Jacqlynn Eastridge and Jenna Patterson.
Rounding out this season’s roster are sophomores Isabelle Crone, Lydian Harrison, Ella Jackson, Sopine Mathis and freshmen Sophie Gordon, Brooklyn Hubbard and Michala Smith.
Girls track and field: The team has a roster size of 14 this year which is up from the 13 that competed last year. The Eagles are led by four returning seniors — Hadley Gradolf, Alli Majors, Xyleigh Thompson and Lizzie Roush — each of whom are expected to make substantial contributions to the team this year.
Hadley Gradolf finished her season last year at the state meet coming in at 23rd in the 3200m run. Xyleigh Majors was a regional qualifier in the high jump and finished in tenth place (one height away from fifth).
Alli Majors was one place away from making it to the Sectional Finals in the 100m hurdles. Roush was only two spots out of the finals in the shot put.
All of these girls are anxious to improve on where they left off in the 2022 season and have something to prove.
Returning sophomores and juniors to the team this year include Livie Austin, Megan Cumberledge and Madalyn Purlee in the distance events, Clare Endris in the throws and Iris Ford in the sprint events.
Newcomers to the team this year include five fabulous freshmen — Sadie Hiatt, Alana Johnson, Jovi Nabors, Morgan Osborn and Kalyani Schilling.
This season is yet another opportunity for the Eagles to show that they are “small but mighty” on the track when they take on the powerhouses of Columbus North and Bloomington North/South in head-to-head competitions.
What they lack in numbers they make up for in heart and love for the sport. Action starts Friday night at the University of Indianapolis ARC — inside the bubble. Come out and support us in the closest athletic event to a three-ring circus — an indoor track meet! They are full of excitement and there are events to watch everywhere you look.
Boys track and field: The 2023 track and field competition season is quickly approaching. The Eagles started official practice on Feb. 13 after a good conditioning period during the winter. A strong senior distance duo brings a lot of experience to the team this season.
Seniors Chase Austin and Rafe Silbaugh both had strong postseasons last year. Austin qualified for the 2022 State Championships in the 1600 where he finished 21st in a time of 4:24. Silbaugh was an individual regional qualifier in the 800 where he finished ninth overall. Both Austin and Silbaugh were also part of the regional qualifying 4×800 and 4×400 relays.
Juniors Cord Smith and Charlie Webb will add depth to the distance as will sophomores Case Smith and Kai Koester.
Another area of depth for the Eagles is in the throws. Senior Wyatt Barnett will look to improve his shot put best of 44’1.75. Junior Wyatt Sutter returns with a best discus throw of 119’5. Both Barnett and Sutter will compete in both the discus and shot put. Sophomore Jackson Daugherty will add depth to the throws group.
The sprint group is coming along. Senior Ethan Spiece is recovering from an off-season procedure and will look to hopefully return mid-season. Fellow senior Garrett Braden will help in the 100 and 200, as will sophomore Jacob Finley. Freshman Ethan Williams finished fourth in the 400 in the junior high WIC meet and should contribute to the long sprints.
In the jumps, Braden looks to improve on his best of 10 feet in the pole vault. Finley, Williams and Eli Webb are getting early work done in the long jump, and Case Smith will look to score some points for the Eagles in the high jump.
The Eagles competed at Indiana University on March 8 in a meet hosted by Bloomington North. This meet will serve as qualifiers for the Hoosier State Relays on Saturday, March 25. The top 24 athletes in each event across the state will qualify for the HSR meet, which is commonly known as Indoor State. The outdoor schedule will look very similar to the 2022 season. Home meets will be with Martinsville/Edgewood on Thursday, April 6, Talon Relays on Saturday, April 22, and a meet with Columbus East on Tuesday, May 2. WIC will be at Northview on Thursday, May 11 and the sectional and regional competitions will again be held at Bloomington North. The boys state meet will be Friday, June 2 at Indiana University.
Boys golf: Because we return four golfers who saw significant action last season, there is certainly reason for us to be optimistic about the 2023 season.
Junior Clay Austin, who anchored the No. 3 position for our team last season with a nine-hole average of 51.3, will be joined by sophomore Wesley Arndt (55.3), senior Bradley Arndt (57.8) and sophomore Liam Cassiday (58.7) to form the nucleus of the Eagle line up.
One challenge we have again this season is adding some players to our roster, preferably players with some experience or background in golf. For us to be more competitive this season, those nine hole averages from last season will need to improve markedly.
Clay, Wesley, Bradley and Liam all work at Salt Creek Golf Retreat, have all played a lot of golf since last season ended in June, and are prepared to post some lower numbers this spring.
Our schedule is pretty much the same as last year with the exception of one new event, the Artesian Classic hosted by Martinsville High School at Foxcliff Golf Course on Saturday, April 22.
Our other three regular season 18-hole events include the Mustang Invitational at Cascades Golf Course on Saturday, April 15; the WIC Championship at Cascades Golf Course on Saturday, May 13; and the New Castle Invitational at Westwood Golf Club on Saturday, May 20. We open the season Thursday, April 6 with a match against Hauser at Otter Creek Golf Course, and will not play our first home match until Monday, April 17 when we host Brownstown Central.
Softball: The Lady Eagles are entering the 2023 season with some familiar faces. Having only two seniors graduate in 2022, the core of this team still remains.
Savannah Oden and Abigail Watson are both returning seniors who play a significant role in leadership within this team. Oden provides a strong bat and reliability behind the plate catching. Watson is also a strong first baseman with a dependable arm on the mound. Returning juniors are Lexie Austin (shortstop), Ally Hash (third base) and Lynsey Summers (LF).
Sophomores Ava Sanders (pitcher) and Aryn Fish (second base) will also be returning.
There is an experienced group of freshmen who will be joining the team this year, providing more depth and opportunity for the team. Considering the returning players along with the new players, these girls will be able to accomplish many goals this season.
Jonathan Sanders will be entering his first season as varsity head coach with excitement and faith. Having coached alongside these girls for many years, he has confidence in what they are capable of. He is ready to work with the team and take them to their full potential this spring.
Baseball: Brown County baseball is back! As we look ahead to this spring sports season there is a fire in the dugout as we look forward to building upon the foundations we started last season.
With 16 returning athletes, all juniors or sophomores, the baseball team is ready to take strides. With a year of more experience across the board and strong leadership with our junior class the baseball team is excited to see what noise we can make this year. Being able to witness the overall confidence with what a year develops and the addition of key staff members, the sky’s the limit.
Our first day starts March 13 and we’re ready to hit the bases running!
Mark Bruner is the athletic director for Brown County High School. Email comments to [email protected].
