South Border who???

[luckyinlife]

While everyone has been watching Linton, Steel-Dawson, and Strasburg-Zeeland, the new coop of Wishek and Ashley has quitely earned the #1 seed in district 6. Here is a good article. OK South Border fans, it is time to toot your horns a little. You deserve it.


South Border starts fast in District 6
Kalen Ost
The Jamestown Sun - 02/21/2008
In the recent history of co-ops, the general rule has been that for the first year, plan on taking some lumps.

Players, coaches and fans all have a period of adjustment and usually by the time the team begins to jell, the end-of-season tournaments are right around the corner.

Apparently South Border didn’t get the memo.

The Mustangs claimed the top seed in the upcoming District 6 boys’ basketball tournament, something that didn’t exactly shock both coaches and players, but it may have surprised them a bit.

“We set some goals at the beginning of the year. One of these goals was, at the end of the year, we wanted the public to say this co-op was successful,” said South Border coach Floyd Helfenstein. “Not in wins and losses, but in bringing together two towns and communities. If we can have those fans and parents say this went well, that was our goal. As we started the season, we set some more goals.”

One of those included making the Region 3 tournament field, as one of four teams in the six-squad district to advance. While some of the players from Ashley made the trip to the Jamestown Civic Center a few years ago when Ashley had an undefeated regular season, there were no players from Wishek that had played in a region tournament game.

“We’ve probably went beyond what we’ve anticipated,” said Helfenstein. “We are pretty excited.”

The Mustangs have quite a few interchangeable parts offensively this season, a strength that has allowed them to attack teams in a variety of ways.

“That’s what fun about this team,” said Helfenstein. “We don’t have just one guy we can go to. No one can key on one guy anymore.”

“Most of the kids like pressure,” said South Border point guard Cody Lippert. “We went into Linton (on Feb. 1) and we weren’t supposed to win the game. We shot the ball really well and won. We thrive on having pressure on us.”

Ethan Helfenstein (10 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 3.6 apg) provides production in the paint, Michael Wishek (10.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg) and Evan Martell (8.6 ppg) can bomb away from the perimeter, Max Lovell (3.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.9) apg is a solid passer and Lippert runs the show from the point guard position for the Mustangs. Lippert is averaging 13.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.

South Border goes eight deep, with Travis Gieszler (2.7 ppg), Tallon Lippert (4.4 ppg) and Ross Martell (1.4 ppg) providing minutes off the bench.

“We’re all good defenders,” said the Mustang coach Helfenstein. “Defense, rebounding and pushing the ball up the court is the success we’ve had. If you are struggling on offense, step up your defense and the offense comes back on its own. We like to run the floor, right now that isn’t a secret.”

“We like to push it up the court and we’ve got a couple guys that can shoot threes,” said Ethan Helfenstein. “We like to work it around, be patient on the offensive side and look for a good shot. We usually find it.”

With the top seed comes the spotlight and the Mustangs know they are no longer just an upstart team putting together some victories. Now they are the team to beat.

“Our goal is still to make it to the region tournament, but there is more than one way to get there,” said Floyd Helfenstein. “We want to play as well as we can. If we come out not winning, that’s okay. We want to just play good basketball. We are not talking No. 1 seed. No one expected us to be the one seed. So the kids are taking it in stride, they’re not cocky by any means.”

And with teams such as Linton, Steele-Dawson and Strasburg-Zeeland looming, the tournament is plenty unpredictable from the outset.

“In our district, the top four teams are totally the same,” said Ethan Helfenstein. “Whoever is going to come together and put the games together, that is who will come out on top.”

The District 6 tournament opens on Friday in Hazelton as Strasburg-Zeeland takes on Napoleon at 6 p.m. followed by Linton playing Hazelton-Moffit-Braddock at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday South Border plays the SZ/Napoleon winner at 6 p.m. followed by Steele-Dawson taking on the Linton/HMB winner at 7:30 p.m. The tournament concludes Monday with two qualifying games for the Region 3 tournament and the district championship game.

Sun sports writer Kalen Ost can be reached at (701) 952-8461 or by e-mail at kaleno@jamestownsun.com

[basketball]

In the recent history of co-ops, the general rule has been that for the first year, plan on taking some lumps.

I like the first comment in this article. From what I understand recent co-ops have been very successful.

[old lineman]

Is South Border combined in all sports?

[bballfan7]

Is South Border combined in all sports?

well they were combined in football in years past and they did combine for gbb im sure they did for track and i dont think they had a baseball team for the highscholl season.

[Thunder66]

In the recent history of co-ops, the general rule has been that for the first year, plan on taking some lumps.

I like the first comment in this article. From what I understand recent co-ops have been very successful.

Region 2 girls basketball sent first-year co-ops to the state tournament back to back years in 2005 and 2006 with Hatton-Northwood and Midway-Minto

[rep]

In the recent history of co-ops, the general rule has been that for the first year, plan on taking some lumps.

I like the first comment in this article. From what I understand recent co-ops have been very successful.

Region 2 girls basketball sent first-year co-ops to the state tournament back to back years in 2005 and 2006 with Hatton-Northwood and Midway-Minto

let me again quote "GENERAL rule"

[Hinsa]

I respectfully disagree with you Rep. I think most co-ops do very well in their first couple of years because you are taking two varsity teams and putting them together, thus doubling your talent pool and experience level.

After the first couple of years the co-op effect lessens because the kids have started to weed themselves out naturally at the junior high level.

Hmmm.....good topic for a thesis - Effects of Co-op Programs in North Dakota sports.

[rep]

I respectfully disagree with you Rep. I think most co-ops do very well in their first couple of years because you are taking two varsity teams and putting them together, thus doubling your talent pool and experience level.

After the first couple of years the co-op effect lessens because the kids have started to weed themselves out naturally at the junior high level.

Hmmm.....good topic for a thesis - Effects of Co-op Programs in North Dakota sports.

doubling of talent pool, halving experience in a coach's system, putting together kids used to competing against one another, having to put aside sports rivalry, etc. i think a case could be made either way.

[Hinsa]

Yup, I'll give you that Rep.

Like I said, somebody take the thesis idea and run with it for us so we get some statistical data on it. Any teachers out there working on their PE or Administrative masters?

[baseball]

as far as halving the coaching, do some co-op take the head coaches from the 2 teams and have co-head coaches??

[Hinsa]

Yup, I've seen that in a few cases. I think Edgeley-Kulm has had that in football for several years (correct me if I'm wrong....)

[rep]

as far as halving the coaching, do some co-op take the head coaches from the 2 teams and have co-head coaches??

mott-regent (basketball) a couple of years comes to mind right away. other than that, i'm struggling to think of teams that have gone that way, but i'm sure there are some. any more it seems that with a lot of teams, the assistant coaches are doing just as much as the head coaches, it's just that one of them talks to the media after the games.

yup, ek still rolls with two coaches for fb - kosel and klusmann

[basketball]

I believe MLS went to state in girls there first year as a co-op also. I THINK

[baller01]

Geeez guys lay of Reps case. He stated his opinion by saying that co-ops generally struggle the first couple years. Of course some co-ops have great success in their first year but some co-ops do struggle their first couple years. Maybe not with wins and losses but it takes awhile for the players, fans, coaches, etc. to come together.

[Hinsa]

Nobody is on anyone's case, we're just discussing opinions.

[ndfan]

I respectfully disagree with you Rep. I think most co-ops do very well in their first couple of years because you are taking two varsity teams and putting them together, thus doubling your talent pool and experience level.

After the first couple of years the co-op effect lessens because the kids have started to weed themselves out naturally at the junior high level.

Hmmm.....good topic for a thesis - Effects of Co-op Programs in North Dakota sports.

I believe the first year or two North Border Co-oped they went to state and won it. How about girls basketball Fordville Lankin Park River is in its first year of co op isnt it?? they are making a trip to state also.

[rkmt]

I respectfully disagree with you Rep. I think most co-ops do very well in their first couple of years because you are taking two varsity teams and putting them together, thus doubling your talent pool and experience level.

After the first couple of years the co-op effect lessens because the kids have started to weed themselves out naturally at the junior high level.

Hmmm.....good topic for a thesis - Effects of Co-op Programs in North Dakota sports.

I believe the first year or two North Border Co-oped they went to state and won it. How about girls basketball Fordville Lankin Park River is in its first year of co op isnt it?? they are making a trip to state also.

I think FL-PR is in their second year, but either way, quick success. Hatton-Northwood girls went to state their first year as a co-op, and so did Minto-Midway. So up in that region, there has been great success with co-ops at least in wins/losses. I'm sure there are always chemistry/personality/politics issues, but they must be able to resolve them in these cases or they wouldn't have had the success they experienced immediately. I'm sure there are stories to support both opinions.

[baseball]

were these teams big rivals or teams close to each other who were good friends off the court? if your good friends off the court the co-ops are alot easier to have success in then. if they were rivals, their will be no chemistry and the team suffers.

[Flip]

as far as halving the coaching, do some co-op take the head coaches from the 2 teams and have co-head coaches??

South Border has co-head coaches in football and wrestling. I think they always had co-head coaches in wrestling and I believe most of the years since they were co-op'ed in football they had co-head coaches. Wishek and Ashley have been co-op'ed in wrestling and football for many years before they became South Border.

[baseball]

as far as halving the coaching, do some co-op take the head coaches from the 2 teams and have co-head coaches??

South Border has co-head coaches in football and wrestling. I think they always had co-head coaches in wrestling and I believe most of the years since they were co-op'ed in football they had co-head coaches. Wishek and Ashley have been co-op'ed in wrestling and football for many years before they became South Border.

do they have co-coaches fro basketball though? im from the District 6 area so i know that they have been together for alot of sports but i graduated before the south border thing was ever around