Last season was a great year for the Rockets. They had a record of 14-9 and were League Champions, with a conference record of 12-2. This year, the Rockets will try to repeat what they did last year and then some, with the help of key returning players, Liam Bartlett and Drew Modelski. I had the chance to interview them and ask them some questions about their game and how they think this year will go.
Junior Drew Modelski talked about his goals for this year. He said, “I would like to have a winning record, and if I get the chance, I would like to dunk on somebody.”
He talked about the pressure of being a returning player. He said, “There is zero pressure. We are underlooked this year because of the senior talent we lost last year.”
At the end of last year’s season, Lowelllville’s coaching job opened up, and Mr. Matsisi applied and received the position. Drew commented on what he thinks about the new coach.
He said, “He is very intelligent when it comes to basketball.”
In the three years he has played high school basketball, Drew has had a different coach every year so he talked about what he expected from this coach as opposed to his last ones.
He said, “ I expect him to work more with the whole team instead of just the varsity.”
Drew Modelski lettered in basketball last year, so he was in rotation at the varsity level as a sophomore. I was curious about his best aspect of basketball. He said, “My athleticism. I spend a lot of time in the gym during the off-season.”
Another key player was senior Liam Bartlett. His goals were pretty set this year with a confident answer of “I want to win the league again.”
This is Liam’s senior year so the pressure is on. Liam said, “It’s my last chance to come out and play so that puts a lot of pressure on me.”
Liam’s perspective on the new coach is clear as he said, “He seems like a nice guy, he has had a lot of success in the past with a lot of teams, so I’m sure he’ll do the same with us.”
Jayden Coon is a freshman coming off a promising 8th-grade season with the hopes of playing varsity this year. I started by asking about his goals for the season. He said, “I wish to play harder on defense and to attack the rim this year.”
Knowing that Jayden is a freshman He talked about the pressure that’s on him. He replied, “If I don’t play well I’d easily sit out because of my age.”
Jayden is not nervous about the upcoming season. “I’ve trained all over the summer to be able to compete with upperclassmen.”
Jayden talked about the strong points of his game. He said, “My shooting and I.Q of the game.”
This season the Rockets hope to win the league for the third year in a row. A lot of our players are working hard this preseason. Some of them are already participating in open gyms to get a jump on the competition. Good Luck to our Rockets.
