TERRE HAUTE —
Jake Newton had a long time between playing in competitive basketball games, a span of about 18 months, and used the frustration from that long dry spell to produce a stellar freshman season for Lincoln Trail College this winter.
Newton was unable to play for Terre Haute North due to illness in what would have been the last high school game of his career, a regional tournament game at Seymour against Castle in March of 2011.
He originally signed to play collegiately for Oakland City, but never suited up for the Oaks and transferred to LTC.
Finally, on Nov. 1, Newton was able to resume playing the game he loves. He had three points in a two-point win over Parkland that night, and eventually raised his role to a much higher level and finished the season as a first-team all-Great River Athletic Conference selection and a second-team all-Region 24 choice.
“It was safe to say I was ready to get back in the swing of things,” Newton said. “Although it was definitely tough being on the sidelines last year, it helped me grow mentally as well as physically and motivated me even more.”
Newton was one of 14 players on the all-freshman LTC roster this year — which also included Wabash Valley natives Jordan Houser of West Vigo, Jacob Duncan of Marshall, Greencastle’s Jesse Tesmer, Jake Weaver of Turkey Run and Austin Callahan of Hutsonville.
“Coming to LTC I knew it was going to be a challenge,” Newton said. “Coach [Mike] Ray and the staff have done a great job in turning this program around. Being surrounded with a lot of great teammates and the support of the community has made it a smooth transition.”
Ray was thrilled to see Newton’s improvement this year.
“I was really happy with Jake this year,” Ray said. “He progressed really well for us, and I’m really happy with where he ended up. He’s a good all-around player, but his forte is the ability to put the ball in the basket.”
Newton wound up starting 27 of 30 games for the Statesmen this year, averaging 11.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.
Ray liked Newton’s offensive output, but felt he improved most on the defensive end of the court.
“Depending upon who we’re playing, we could have Jake to guard a 2, a 3 or a 4 and he did a great job against everybody,” Ray said. “He was able to guard the perimeter really well, and he has good lateral movement. His basketball IQ is what sets him apart.”
Lincoln Trail has had a lot of rough seasons lately, and finished this year with a 16-14 record.
“We surprised a lot people with having the first winning season here in eight or nine years,” Newton said. “But my teammates and I weren’t satisfied with ending the way we did [an 84-79 loss to Wabash Valley].
“I wasn’t satisfied with my play this year either, and there is always room for improvement,” he added. “JUCO basketball is full of great ball players looking for an opportunity to play at the highest level.”
You can count Newton as one of those.
“He’s a qualifier [for an NCAA school], and he can leave if he wants,” Ray said. “He’s happy at LTC, and he likes the direction the program is going. I expect him to be back, and I’m looking forward to helping him work on his confidence.
“His biggest deficiency is that he gets down on himself,” Ray continued. “When he plays with confidence, he’s really, really good. He’s definitely a Division I player — Ohio Valley Conference, or maybe even the Missouri
Valley.”
Ray added that Newton, now 6-4 and 185 pounds, needs to continue to work hard in the weight room in order to make that transition, whether this year or next.
“As of now I’m planning on returning to LTC for another year,” Newton said Friday. “After getting back in the groove of playing and seeing what this level is all about, I’m looking forward to next season as we try to win a championship.”
III
n Local DACC connection gets honors — Derek Shouse of Terre Haute South also earned first-team All-Region 24 honors, and his coach — Linton native Mike Carpenter — also picked up some awards.
Carpenter was named the Region 24 Coach of the Year and Midwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Jaguars to a No. 2 national ranking in the Division II junior college polls, an undefeated conference season and a 28-4 overall record.
DACC was upset 66-58 by John Wood, however, in the semifinals of the Region 24 tournament earlier this month.
n Seibert gets career high — Terre Haute South sophomore Haley Seibert had her best collegiate game in the first round of the Summit League tournament earlier this month for Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne.
Seibert scored a career-high total of 33 points in a 106-101 double-overtime win over Western Illinois on March 10.
Seibert hit 9 of 16 field goals, including 4 of 9 from 3-point range, and added 11 of 12 free throws. She played all 50 minutes, and added three rebounds, five assists and two steals.
A free throw from Seibert tied the Leathernecks at 78-78 and a second gave IPFW a one-point lead.
Seibert was a key player in crunch time as she hit a 3-point field goal, made two free throws and recorded a steal in the final 30 seconds of the second overtime.
The Mastadons ended their season at 13-17 with an 86-59 loss to South Dakota State in the semifinals. Seibert finished the season as the team’s third leading scorer at 9.5 points per game, also averaging 2.8 assists while shooting 37 percent from 3-point range and 86 percent from the free throw line.
n Chambers honored — Haley Chambers was named the Ohio Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week last week after tossing shutouts against Loyola and Temple for Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.
Chambers, who led Riverton Parke to a Class 1A state title in 2010 before winding up her career at Cascade, threw a three-hit shutout versus Loyola and followed that with a two-hit shutout over Temple. Only one Temple batter reached base during the game.
She provided 22⁄3 innings of scoreless relief versus Central Florida. For the week, she did not give up an earned run and struck out six in 142⁄3 innings of work.
n Funkhouser gets win — Kyle Funkhouser, son of former Terre Haute resident Dennis Funkhouser, picked up his first pitching victory of the year on Saturday night as No. 4-ranked Louisville defeated Xavier 8-6.
Funkhouser pitched 21⁄3 innings of relief and struck out two batters for the 16-2 Cardinals.
n Francis on title team — DePauw’s women’s team completed a magical season over the weekend, completing a perfect 34-0 season by winning the Division III national championship with a 69-51 win over Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Chelsea Francis of Turkey Run did not play in the title game, but was a reserve sophomore guard for the Tigers.
Joey Bennett is a former Tribune-Star sports reporter and copy editor who now teaches at Northview High School in Brazil. He can be reached at tribstarcollegereport@yahoo.
com.
College Report
COLLEGE REPORT: Jake Newton makes big impact for Lincoln Trail College
- College Report
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Catching up as the school year winds down
Odds and ends from here and there as the school year quickly winds down. For starters, high jumper Nick Jaeger of Terre Haute South was named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference’s male track & field newcomer of the year:
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College Report: Lively earned collegiate upgrade with strong play
Hillary Lively signed to play Division II basketball at Maryville (Mo.) during her senior year at North Vermillion, but those plans changed and she would up at nearby Danville Area Community College — where she recently concluded an outstanding two-year career.
Lively was impressive enough to earn a Division I scholarship to Southeast Missouri State of the Ohio Valley Conference, and both her future and past college coaches think she will continue to succeed there.
“She fits what we need,” SEMO coach Ty Margenthaler said. “She has college experience, she is strong and physical and plays well around the basket and moves well.
“Her strength, rebounding and touch around the basket will be a big help. On the defensive end, she’ll be able to guard a true center.” -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley prep athletes getting ready for next level
The NCAA “regular” signing period begins Wednesday for all sports except football, field hockey, soccer, track and field, cross country and men’s water polo.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Conferences honor Valley softball players
Several Wabash Valley area college softball players have been honored by their respective conferences for outstanding play this spring.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Jake Newton makes big impact for Lincoln Trail College
Jake Newton had a long time between playing in competitive basketball games, a span of about 18 months, and used the frustration from that long dry spell to produce a stellar freshman season for Lincoln Trail College this winter.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed earns SEC Player of the Week honors
After belting three home runs during a five games last week, Kentucky sophomore left-handed pitcher/first baseman A.J. Reed was named Southeastern Conference Player of the Week.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Spring newcomers making marks
Several freshman baseball and softball NCAA Division I players from the Wabash Valley have already made immediate impacts at their new schools, while others are waiting for their turns to shine.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed named third-team preseason baseball All-American
Two-way sophomore standout A.J. Reed was one of three University of Kentucky players named third-team preseason All-America by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Sponsler honored after big week for Wabash men's hoops
Wabash College freshman Ross Sponsler of Terre Haute North was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the period ending Jan. 6.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad Hughes finds success after facing preseason adversity
A.J. Hughes knew he was in for a battle as he competed with three other walk-on punters in the preseason for the lone starting job on the Virginia Tech football team.
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Etling, Meggs enjoying great year
It’s been a great year so far with more to come for a pair of longtime friends and St. Patrick’s School classmates.
Former Terre Haute resident Jack Meggs quarterbacked the Bellevue Wolverines football team to the Washington Class 3A state championship this fall, culminating with a 35-3 win over Sammamish Eastside Catholic — Bellevue’s fifth straight crown.
Danny Etling, meanwhile, has completed graduation requirements at Terre Haute South and is preparing for an upcoming high school all-star game and his first college classes in a couple of weeks. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley’s women’s college hoops players start strong
Several women’s college basketball players from the Wabash Valley have gotten off to good starts this season on the hardwood. Highlights:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Mayhew, Mascari provide fall highlights
Several dozen Wabash Valley athletes enjoyed successful fall seasons collegiately in cross country and tennis this year. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Former North teammates start strong in college
Former Terre Haute North teammates Ross Sponsler and Matt O’Leary made their college basketball debuts last week and had outstanding initial performances. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Shoemaker OBP leads Chisox farmhands
Former Indiana State, Olney Central and Northview baseball standout Brady Shoemaker opened a lot of eyes last summer in the Chicago White Sox farm system, earning him a spot on a mlb.com blog team that highlighted the team’s outstanding minor leaguers at each position.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Boeglin has plenty of ISU memories, but not all are related to basketball
Melanie Boeglin, an All-American who played on the women’s basketball team at Indiana State from 2002-2006, will be inducted into the 21st class of the Indiana State University Athletics Hall of Fame on Thursday.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad leading DePauw volleyball in winning streak
DePauw’s volleyball team has won seven straight matches entering this weekend’s DePauw Invitational, including four straight wins last weekend to capture the Rose-Hulman invitational title.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Engle moving up football coaching ranks
Michael Engle graduated from DePauw University in the spring of 2011 with a degree in political science and future plans to advance his studies in law school.
Being a coach’s son and a competitive athlete by nature, Engle has put those plans on hold for now. -
COLLEGE REPORT: From Terre Haute South to Division I competition to coaching careers
Adriane Wunderlich and Katelyn Bishop both turned stellar high school careers at Terre Haute South into Division I collegiate careers at Indiana State and Southern California, respectively.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Former prep athletes getting ready for fall college season
An impressive total of at least 122 Wabash Valley athletes and coaches will be competing collegiately for the first time during the upcoming school year or have changed schools to continue their careers.
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COLLEGE REPORT: SP’s Boetjer is Indiana’s Miss Softball
South Putnam’s Brooke Boetjer, who will be a freshman on the Indiana University softball team next spring, was named the 2012 Indiana Miss Softball last month between games at the North/South All-Star games in Carmel.
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College report: North grad Mayhew is second team all-American at IU
Indiana University running standout Zach Mayhew of Terre Haute North was honored earlier this month as a second-team All-American by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
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College report: Bloomfield runner to join IUPUI track, cross country teams
Bloomfield track/cross country standout Julie Riggins will be joining the developing IUPUI program next fall as one of six incoming recruits.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Roberts takes coaching position at UNC-Greensboro
Terre Haute native Mike Roberts is continuing his climb up the college basketball coaching ladder, recently departing Rice for a spot as the associate head coach at North Carolina-Greensboro.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Valley grads playing role for No. 13 Vincennes
A few springtime odds and ends:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Shouse making his mark for Danville Community College
Derek Shouse definitely flew under the radar in his one season of playing for the Terre Haute South boys basketball team last winter.
Not highly recruited, he made his way to Danville Area Community College as a walk-on with the hopes he could find his way onto the court at some point. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Bullock finds sunny home to continue tennis career
Most college athletes progress along similar paths to get to their final destinations athletically, but Terre Haute South grad Taylor Bullock’s route to the Eckerd College women’s tennis team was a little different than most.
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COLLEGE REPORT: TH South QB entertains Division I offers
Danny Etling’s trek to being a big-time college quarterback took a huge step this week when the Terre Haute South junior picked up a scholarship offer from Purdue, according to 247sports.com.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Seibert stepping up her game
Terre Haute South grad Haley Seibert has seen the usual ups and downs of her freshman basketball season at Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne and is making the most of her opportunities this season.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Vikings Waters, Barton excited about college basketball
West Vigo grad Lauren Dailey helped the Lady Vikings basketball program to a lot of success at the end of the 1990s, and went on to play for Eastern Illinois from 2001-2004.
- More College Report Headlines
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Catching up as the school year winds down
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