WEST TERRE HAUTE — A 19-6 season last winter with a bunch of little kids, almost all of whom weren’t exclusively — or even primarily — basketball players made West Vigo and coach Joe Boehler one of the feel-good stories of the season.
This year the Vikings have a lot of multi-sport standouts again, and if anything they are smaller than they were a year ago.
How good that feels has yet to be determined.
“One day we look really good, one day we look really bad,” said Boehler after one of the less-than-good practices recently, although two quarters of jamboree play on Friday revealed a West Vigo team that could resemble last year’s if all goes well.
The 2009-2010 Vikings don’t appear to have a platoon in the post involving a tennis player and a soccer player, but they have plenty of baseball players — who make the Vikings quick and competitive — and a few football players who add some strength, if not much height.
The two returning starters are 6-foot senior Tyler Wampler, the team’s leading scorer a year ago, its leading rebounder in the jamboree and one of the best penetrators in the Wabash Valley, and 6-0 junior Scott West, a 3-point threat and solid defender.
Zach Kent, a 6-1 junior who didn’t play a year ago, and 5-9 sophomore Jordan Houser are battling for the third backcourt spot. Two more experienced Vikings, 6-1 senior Brodey McCalister and 6-0 sophomore Cody Thornton, would be doing that too — except that they’re probably needed more to fill the vacancies on the inside.
“Hopefully we’ll rebound by committee, but that’s yet to be seen,” Boehler said.
A little more size is available from 6-2 junior Ryan Crowther and 6-2 sophomore Matt Flesher. Flesher, a two-way lineman for the football team, is by far the bulkiest Viking, and 5-11 juniors Cole Lydick and Dalton Mix add a little more muscle.
“Lydick and Flesher were all-conference football players, and they’re still shaking the rust off,” Boehler pointed out. Lydick also has a nagging injury to contend with right now, as do Houser and Mix.
Jordan Pearson and Jeremy Lucas, a pair of 2009 graduates who will be joined by Wampler on the Indiana State baseball team next year, will be missed defensively, Boehler noted.
“Jordan Pearson was our best defender last year, and someone has to take that role,” the coach said, “and Jeremy knew how to guard the post.”
Right now the post defender might be McCalister, who could play any of the five positions. Thornton might be the closest thing this year’s team has to Lucas as a rebounding threat.
In a loaded Western Indiana Conference, the Vikings will be the smallest team. They were last season too, however, and wound up sharing the conference championship with Edgewood.
“Every year you try to find ways to help your team play to its strengths,” Boehler concluded. “We have to figure out what everybody can do and can’t do, and I’m not sure we’ve done that yet.”
The Vikings open at home tonight against North Vermillion.
West Vigo roster
Player Ht. Yr.
Brodey McCalister 6-1 Sr.
Tyler Wampler 6-0 Sr.
Ryan Crowther 6-2 Jr.
Zach Kent 6-1 Jr.
Cole Lydick 5-11 Jr.
Dalton Mix 5-11 Jr.
Scott West 6-0 Jr.
Matt Flesher 6-2 So.
Jordan Houser 5-9 So.
Cody Thornton 6-0 So.
West Vigo schedule
Today — North Vermillion, 6 p.m.
Dec. 4 — South Vermillion (WIC), 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 5 — Owen Valley (WIC), 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 11 — Northview (WIC), 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 12 — South Knox, 6 p.m.
Dec. 18 — At Terre Haute South, 6 p.m.
Dec. 19 — At Brown County (WIC), 7:30 p.m.
Dec. 26 — Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic at Terre Haute North, TBA
Dec. 28-30 — Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic at Terre Haute North, TBA
Jan. 8 — At Riverton Parke, 6 p.m.
Jan. 9 — Greencastle, 6 p.m.
Jan. 15 — Terre Haute North, 6 p.m.
Jan. 22 — At Marshall, 6:45 p.m.
Jan. 23 — At Gibson Southern, 6 p.m.
Jan. 29 — At Edgewood (WIC), 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 30 — Fountain Central, 6 p.m.
Feb. 6 — At Rockville, 6 p.m.
Feb. 11 — At Sullivan (WIC), 6 p.m.
Feb. 20 — North Central, 6 p.m.
Feb. 26 — At Linton, 6 p.m.
WIC — denotes Western Indiana Conference game
High School
PREP PREVIEW: Undersized Vikings want to be big feel-good story again
- High School
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It’s a rivalry-filled Memorial Day for sectional contenders
Longtime rivalries figure to determine high school baseball sectional champions throughout the Wabash Valley today, with semifinal and final games scheduled at four sites and a stand-alone championship game at a fifth.
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South tops Oldenburg to win tennis semistate
There was no evidence of rally caps, rally towels and certainly no rally squirrels, but Terre Haute South’s No. 1 singles player Maddie Kesler needed a rally in the worst way.
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New route leads to same place for South girls tennis
For so many years, the road to the IHSAA girls tennis state finals for local teams ran through Vincennes (regional) and Jasper (semistate). In other words, south and more south.
This year, their trip was re-routed through Greencastle (regional) and Center Grove (semistate). So it cnahged to east and more east. -
PREP ROUNDUP: Robinson tops Greenville in sectional semifinal
Robinson jumped to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, then cruised to a convincing 12-3 victory over Greenville in a IHSA Class 2A Vandalia sectional semifinal game on Thursday.
Ashlyn Sullivan was 2 for 3 with a double, home run and three RBIs to lead the winning Maroons. -
West Vigo baseball falls in sectional to Owen Valley
West Vigo overcame the odds to win 20 high school baseball games this season with a lineup that often included four freshmen and few seniors.
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South Vermillion softball's late-season surge comes to end
A late-season surge by South Vermillion wasn’t quite enough to halt a high school softball sectional winning streak by the host team Thursday night, as Edgewood got on top early and held on for a 5-2 win in the championship game of the Class 3A Edgewood Sectional.
The loss was just the second in the last 12 games for the Wildcats. The Mustangs, however, haven’t lost a sectional softball game for eight years in a row. -
South takes second, North third at boys track regional
Terre Haute South finished second and Terre Haute North third on Thursday night at the boys track and field regional at Evansville Central, with 11 individuals and three relay teams qualifying for the state finals June 2.
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PREP ROUNDUP: White River Valley baseball holds off Eminence
Three Eminence errors in the top of the sixth inning finally enabled White River Valley to score in high school baseball Thursday night, and the Wolverines went on to a 5-0 win in Class A Shakamak Sectional action.
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Feeling cursed: South bitten in sectional final again
Terre Haute South softball is not even close to being as cursed as a certain northside baseball team in Chicago, but it might just seem like it.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Mundy, Porter, Knight individual regional winners
Chanli Mundy and Keirra Porter of Terre Haute North were among the individual winners in the IHSAA Evansville Central girls track and field regional that ended late Tuesday night.
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Thornton puts away South Vermillion
Cody Thornton’s three-run blast over the left-field fence was the finishing touch to West Vigo’s 10-3 victory over South Vermillion in the opening game of the Class 3A Greencastle Sectional on Wednesday.
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Lakers triumph, go home for regional
Shakamak took Class A Clay City Sectional honors in high school softball for the first time since 2009 Wednesday, defeating White River Valley 9-5 in the title tilt.
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North Vermillion avenges losses
North Vermillion avenged two high school softball losses during the regular season to win the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional championship Wednesday with a 3-2 triumph over the host Panthers.
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Pats, Knights will meet in sectional
Adler Ingalsbe pooh-poohed his lack of velocity Wednesday night, yet the Terre Haute North pitcher was throwing BBs in the first game compared to Mooresville’s Brandon Topie in the nightcap.
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South outbattles Northview to reach sectional final
Even the best of high school softball pitchers can’t keep all the batters in the middle of Terre Haute South’s lineup down.
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Panthers get 20th win in sectional
Riverton Parke will face North Vermillion in the Class A softball sectional championship at Riverton Parke today, with action commencing at 6 p.m.
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Plainfield Sectional all about parity
Considering Terre Haute South has won five consecutive Class 4A sectional titles in high school baseball, naming the Braves as favorites to capture the 2012 Class 4A Plainfield Sectional would not seem far-fetched.
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PREP ROUNDUP: North Vermillion in title game
Casey West had a triple and three runs scored to help North Vermillion softball advance to the championship game of the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional on Tuesday.
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North takes second in track regional
Terre Haute North finished second with 74 points, six behind team champion Evansville Reitz, during the Evansville Central girls track and field regional that ended late Tuesday night.
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Wildcats advance to sectional softball final; West Vigo falls
Patience, patience.
South Vermillion exhibited great patience, being very selective at the plate and it paid off royally in the fourth inning. -
South, Crawfordsville win in regional tennis semis
Terre Haute South outlasted Fountain Central 4-1 in the first round of the girls high school tennis regional Tuesday, advancing the Braves into today’s championship match against Crawfordsville.
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Braves, Knights open with wins
It was an excellent night for starting softball pitchers to help their own cause Monday night in the Class 4A Northview Sectional.
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Lough dreamt about McMillan
A two-time state finalist in wrestling and a two-time all-Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference football player and wrestler, Tsali Lough of Terre Haute South was named the male recipient of the 2012 McMillan Award on Monday night at South’s Senior Awards Night.
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PREP ROUNDUP: Panthers cruise in sectional opener
Sarah Burnham pitched a two-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts in high school softball Monday evening as host Riverton Parke defeated defending champion Rockville 10-0 in opening-round action at the Class A Riverton Parke Sectional.
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Notable tradition bodes well for Riverton Parke
Located practically in the shadow of a high school that sets one state standard in track and field, Riverton Parke has a tendency to be overlooked in that sport.
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Vikings get 18th win over Shakamak
West Vigo began a busy week of high school baseball Monday on a winning note, defeating Shakamak 6-3.
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Greencastle new site for girls tennis regional
The starting times might prove to be a bone of contention, but otherwise coaches Bill Blankenbaker and Emily Goff are thrilled their respective girls high school tennis teams will begin play today at the Greencastle Regional.
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Northview sectional groups 3 20-win teams
Three teams with 20-plus victories will attempt to claim the Class 4A Northview Sectional crown for high school softball this week, and most of the other Wabash Valley sectional fields also appear to be wide open.
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Terre Haute South softball takes Riverton Parke tournament
Terre Haute South is going into the Class 4A Sectional at Northview on Monday with momentum, confidence, a deep bench and a healthier pitching staff than it has had in quite a while.
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North baseball splits doubleheader with Indy North Central
Some of their incentive could have been sapped a couple of nights earlier, when Center Grove achieved an eight-inning victory over Warren Central to clinch the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference high school baseball championship.
- More High School Headlines
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