Pioneer Valley Conference-Early thoughts and predictions

[redskinwitness]

Thought I would start a new thread. Anything new that we should look at with any of these teams as football begins to wind down? Injuries from other sports that could possibly affect any of these teams or additions that could help them? The one I can think of is Nixon from Central, will he be able to help Tolzda's first edition in Woodsfield? How do you think things are starting to shape up? Basketball season officially starts in like three weeks and I can't wait. I'm tired of watching cross country meets.

[redskinwitness]

Will Central's new gym be opened for the start of the season? Our Redskins open up with the Seminoles on November 30th.

[PvcBball]

No, unfortunately Nixon wont be playing any basketball this year. But MCs new gym will be able to be played in this season. The High School moves in to the school actually October 22nd.

[Jakefromstatefarm]

Fort Frye and River should be battling it out for the top spot, and Trail could sneak their way up their as well. I could honestly see Caldwell up their around the 3 spot if they can pick up a few wins over the likes of FF and the rest. We all know what Weichman brings to the table, it's the addition/improvement of the others around him that will determine how far they go. They'll be lacking experience, but they should field a good mix of size, speed, and athleticism.

[EasternDspy]

Sleeper player is Seth Legrean 6-4 Sophmore Fort Frye he has improved so much.He already had a nice outside game and now he adds the 2 hand dunk.If he can get stronger and add a post defender he can be real good. Also Tyler Norris Sr who just started playing Bball last year has put in work in offseason.

[redskinwitness]

Lagrean is a very nice athlete, though he is only around 6'2. He will help them out a ton. I really feel like this league will be three levels....River/Fort at the top battling it out. Trail/Shenandoah/Caldwell in the next level....and Central/Frontier bringing up the rear. I also think that as bad as the league is in football it will be really strong in basketball. Most of these teams with the exception of Caldwell are upper class dominated. Should be an exciting winter for the league.

Jakefromstatefarm....my son plays for the Redskins, I like their potential and their improvement over the last year. Every time they played this summer they improved. We have a committed coach and a solid base for the program now. I think they will surprise some this winter, they will have ups and downs I'm sure considering how young they are but it should be fun to watch them improve. Next year could be huge for them.

[EasternDspy]

Trail is up there and I like them better then River but not by much.Beaver,Roe,Starr and the big kid from JV # 5 and add Layne Starr they will be tough.

[chickem hawk 38]

i dont understand your reasoning in this. river beat them last year once at trail and the other trail was down by 10 at the half, price got sick spent some time on the bench in the second and they end up loosing. but trail lost 2 good players in patterson and larrick. river lost no one. i dont know how you like them better

Trail is up there and I like them better then River but not by much.Beaver,Roe,Starr and the big kid from JV # 5 and add Layne Starr they will be tough.

[EasternDspy]

#5 forget his name is better then Larrick and I think Lane Starr steps in well for Patterson.Starr,Starr,Beaver,Roe,#5 is a pretty talented group.Its not all about returning stats or players.Heaven for bid players get better or get a better roll with the squad.

[tphelps]

You don't think the river kids got any better during the offseason?

[redskinwitness]

He doesn't want to give River any credit because they are a threat to unseat his beloved Cadets. Spy bleeds the colors of the Cadets, he lives his athletic dreams through them and he has reason to be optimistic again this winter. They will be a very good basketball team.
However, I don't agree that Trail will be better than River or Fort, they have really good guard play but Patterson and Larrick gave them size to match up with River's big kids. They will miss that. I think Trail will also have a really nice team but in my honest opinion I don't think they will match up well with the Pilots. I think they match up much better with Fort Frye. I saw River this summer, they are going to be tough. I really believe that even whichever teams end up at the bottom of this league will be able to compete on a nightly basis, there will be no easy wins for anyone.

[EasternDspy]

Someone please find #5 from Trails JVs name...Also just not as high on Larrick as all of you he had no touch.With Trail returning all the scoring they have to be thought of with the likes of River and Fort Frye.

[redskinwitness]

You are right, Larrick wasn't a very good offensive basketball player, but he was big (6'7) and strong and played a role. He rebounded and defended, set screens and still got them around 10 points a game. Not everyone is a star, great teams have great role players. Considering you watch as much Fort basketball as anyone I'm sure you understand that. The kid from Trail that you are talking about is Toland, he is long, skinny and not very strong. He has good potential but the two River big kids will physically push him all over the floor. They couldn't do that to Larrick or Patterson. Trail will still score points, their back court is going to be tough but they will not be nearly as strong along the front lines.

[EasternDspy]

He looked about 6'4/6'3 200 to me.I'm just basing this on one good JV gameat FF where he might of had a trip dub.Need to see more on him.

[redskinwitness]

I agree that he has a lot of potential but I would have guessed him to be in the 6'4 180 lb range a year ago. He was not very physical but had good touch. I really believe the biggest asset for River will not be their excellent perimeter play but the muscle under the bucket. If you look league wide there is some really good guard play on pretty much every team but there are very few post players with size, length and strength. I still feel like River and Fort are above everyone else and the next 3 or 4 are a toss up with Trail and Shenandoah having the most returning in that group. I think Central/Caldwell/Frontier will all be much better too.

[J8fusl]

BT has the same core they had last year when many people picked them to finish 1st. they played below their potential. so to pick them above river or FF is not a big stretch. Though my predictions are:
with my head:
1. River
2. FF
3. BT
4. Shenandoah
5. Caldwell
6. MC
7. Frontier

With My Gut:
1. FF- Split with River but sweep Trail, Trail and River Split also.
2. River
3. BT
4. Caldwell- Young teams tend to take beayings on the road, but in rivalry games and home games they play above potential.
5. Shenandoah- Due to what i said above i could see Caldwell sweeping them and finishing with same record. Tie breaker CHS
6. MC- A new coach will improve moral, but they did not show me much last year
7. Frontier- Athletic but undisciplined and not well coached

[MC Noles SportsFan]

Sleeper player is Seth Legrean 6-4 Sophmore Fort Frye he has improved so much.He already had a nice outside game and now he adds the 2 hand dunk.

So this 2 hand dunk will add how many points to his average?

[EasternDspy]

1.Fort Frye(10-1) Shon Smith has a big Sr year and Chandler Lang shows what he can do. 2.Buckeye Trail(9-3) The starting lineup of Beaver,Roe,Toland,Starr,and Starr is really good.I like Trail as a district hopeful. 2.River(9-3) really talented big and deep.I would love to see the bigs get more physical. 4.Shenandoah (7-5) Could be better then most think if Leister improves. Hurst,Neuhart,Bond,Leister,Farnsworth. 5.Frontier (6-6) They return almost the whole team they just don't have a good ball handler. Salazar,Merckle,Jefferson,Eddy,and Drew Schneider. 6.Caldwell (4-8)I like the coach and Weichman is a stud.They are a year away. 7.Monroe Central- I like Levi Browns defense and that's about it(0-12).

[PvcBball]

7.Monroe Central- I like Levi Browns defense and that's about it(0-12).

If you think Monroe Central goes 0-12 in league play you're dead wrong.

[EasternDspy]

Well inlight us on Monroe Central?