As the Lowellville Rocket Junior High basketball season starts, I had the chance to interview 8th graders Carter Hvisdak and Steven Yon, as well as 7th grader Kade Smith.
Steven is an 8th grader who plays point guard and shooting guard. Hisgoal this year is to earn a first-round bye and win the championship. Steven shared that favorite part of basketball is scrimmaging against the 7th grade team at practice. When I asked what role he plays in helping the team, he said, “I feel like emotions are a big part because some people have a very bad attitude, and I have to keep their morale high.”
Steven is especially looking forward to playing the McDonald Blue Devils because when they’ve played them before, their games were always competitive and he wants to prove to himself that they could beat them.
Carter Hvisdak is a point guard, shooting guard, and small forward. Carter expressed his hopes to continue playing basketball in the future, saying, “It depends on my height when I get into high school but I plan to go far.” He added, “My dream school is Duke University in North Carolina because they are a prestigious program and I have liked them since I was a kid.”
Carter said that he tries to model his game after Kyrie Irving because of his ball- handling and his way to attack the rim. Carter said he most improved on scoring and getting around the defense, and he wants to improve on his passing. Carter is mostly looking forward to playing the Campbell Red Devils because they lost to them last season and now we get to play them twice this year.
Kade Smith, a 7th grader, plays point guard, power forward, and center. Kade shared that the most difficult part of basketball is creating team chemistry and ball movement. He also touched on the difficulty in the transition from the 6th grade team to the 7th grade team. Kade said, “The pace is differently faster because people push the ball down the court faster.”
Kade is most looking forward to having a good record because everyone on his team has improved and they are constantly improving and working hard.
Good luck to the entire team on their upcoming season!
