BY JACK BULLOCK The Egyptian Illini Conference, for the first time since four-classes began, produced a regional champion in boy's basketball last February. The St. Elmo Eagles put together a great late season run and captured their own 1A Regional title with a win over North Clay, 40-35. Then for about 10 minutes they were all set to shock the world as they led Woodlawn in the sectional semifinal at Altamont. Then the bubble burst as Woodlawn came alive with a big second half to end the Eagles' season. With many kids back, St. Elmo could end up back in the postseason hardware hunt. Cowden-Herrick has some kids returning that after taking a few lumps look to maybe move up the standings for Coach Brett Boehm. Brownstown has three starters from 2010-11 still in uniform for head coach Vince Rohr to "roar" about. Patoka head coach Joe Eddy will have to rebuild his club after six seniors said aloha last spring while his brother Bill Eddy at Ramsey has kids back that will try to learn from its two-win 2010-11 season. Christ Our Rock Lutheran lost one of the best players in the conference to graduation but has the numbers to compete in this league. Beecher City got hammered by graduation losses and four kids moving out of the district but Coach Jason Eirhart will also reconstruct this program with the ones returning. Coach Bobby Koontz takes over at his Alma Mater Mulberry Grove and he wants to get his club rolling early after a rough season. The league is down one member from previous years as Odin, who is also a member of the Midland Trail Conference, has decided to leave the EIC and stay in the MTC. As for this race, there is a lot of talent at St. Elmo that returns with another regional title as a goal. The rest of the schools here can be thrown into a hat.

1. ST. ELMO Last season the Eagles got on a roll when the games counted the most. Coach Greg Feezel led this club on a February feeding frenzy, by closing their season with wins in 9-of-12 games. The ride ended abruptly at the hands of Woodlawn in the Altamont 1A Sectional but the foundation has been laid out for St. Elmo to continue its successful journey. The title game of the St. Elmo 1A Regional was a 40-35 win over North Clay to give the Eagles their first regional crown since 1993. Four of the teams' top five scorers are back from the 13-16 team that ran the EIC table in winning all eight league contests. Connor Beasley returns for his junior season after leading the group with 11.4 points a game. Beasley is a 6-foot-4 forward who can step out away from the basket. He also was the tops on the squad with 6.3 rebounds per game. Jake Mansker, a 5-foot-9 senior guard, was third in scoring average with 8.5 p.p.g. Six-foot-two senior center Ben Sperry is also back after having a very productive junior campaign. His numbers were comparable to the other two having scored 8.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. The fourth returning starter back is Blake Pruett, a 6-foot-2 senior forward, who added five points a game with 3.1 rebounds. The one player missing from the starting lineup is Garrett Buzzard, a 5-foot-10 senior from last season. As for the candidates for the fifth starting spot, Coach Feezel has options. He could go with 5-foot-10 senior guard Blaine Scholes who helped out with 4.6 points a game for the Eagles. Five-foot-eleven Patrick Schaal played in 22 varsity games last winter (1.7 p.p.g.) while 5-foot-9 sophomore Lee Maxey got into 11 games as a freshman. According to Coach Feezel, Maxey could step right in and help out as will Schaal. It is important to have good reserves and these two will be ready. Both of those players will work their way into some important varsity time. Maxey is the son of former St. Elmo standout Kevin Maxey who helped lead the Eagles to a fourth place finish in the state tournament back in 1988. Coach Feezel was the top scorer on that club. This coach mentioned three other players that haven't played much varsity can step up. Garrett Bartels is a 5-foot-11 junior forward that made an appearance in seven games in 2010-11 as did 6-foot-1 senior Willie Magnus. Jacob Denton, a 5-foot-11 senior, is also on the reserve list. “We have a lot of kids back this season with varsity experience and hopefully that will make us a lot better, earlier in the season,” said Coach Feezel, whose team stumbled out of the gate last winter before getting things positive late in the season. OUTLOOK – Using that postseason run from last season as a catapult towards a successful beginning to the 2011-12 campaign is a must. Having four starters back that went through all of the good times and the bad will make this team even stronger this year. This team proved a lot of people wrong who seeded the regional last winter when the Eagles took home the hardware on their home floor. If the regional is set up the same as last year, look for St. Elmo to once again be a favorite to get to the sectional, a place this program has been to four times.

2. CHRIST OUR ROCK LUTHERAN The Stallions were a pretty solid 12-13 a season ago and the consensus among the coaches in the league is that they are going to be the one team that could give St. Elmo the best run among the Egyptian Illini Conference clubs in 2011-12. Head coach Mike Shaffer listed eight kids he believes will be his top guns heading into the season. CORL saw its team finish 4-4 in the EIC and then were beaten in the first round of the Woodlawn 1A Regional last February by Wayne City. The Stallions graduated three seniors from that team, including Dylan Burmester who was a 5-foot-11 senior, and ABV Class 1A special mention last season. Brandon Ramsour and Joseph Snyder also left the team. But according to Coach Shaffer, the kids back have a lot of talent. Tyler Burmester is a 6-foot junior guard who will start for the Stallions. One senior of the four that are on the roster will start for CORL; Chris Turner is a 5-foot-10 guard. Six-foot junior forward Hayden Koockenga is also one of the starters along with 6-foot-2 junior Lukas Mueller. Kyle Hahn, a 6-foot junior guard, will also be in the opening night lineup. After those five, the reserve unit will be spearheaded by 5-foot-9 senior Ward Agan, 5-foot-8 senior Ben Maschhoff and 5-foot-8 freshman Jerry Hine. OUTLOOK – If the Burmester kid turns out to be as good as his brother, then the Stallions just might make a race out of the EIC. Coach Shaffer doesn't have much size or depth but it is a given that in 1A that isn't a prerequisite. The Stallions are on the right path to making this program a winner. Being in this conference helps them a great deal.

3. COWDEN-HERRICK The Hornets nest has a few kids coming back from last season that got a feel of the varsity spotlight without getting burned too bad. Coach Brett Boehm has four starters back from the 10-15 club (4-4 EIC, 2-8 NTC) that saw its season close with a 63-55 loss to eventual regional champ Neoga on the Indians' court in the semifinals. Three seniors are gone from that team, Alex Turner, Chance Buchanan and Trevor Lawrence. Back for C-H are four starters, including a pair of players that both averaged 14 points a game. Five-foot-ten senior guard Jalen Hovis and 6-foot junior guard Luke Moore return. Moore averaged a team best eight rebounds a game as a sophomore. Two other returning starters averaged right at seven points a night. Six-foot junior Tyson Morgason and 6-foot senior Shane Mitchell are both back for the Hornets. Coach Boehm is expecting big things from these four plus three other kids coming off the bench. Two seniors, 6-foot-3 forward Bryce Barnes and 5-foot-9 guard Derrick Knearam should be in the running for that fifth position in the lineup. Also in the picture is junior Seth Barnes who could also end up in the starting lineup. “We hope to play every game as hard as we can. I hope to finish in the top five of the NTC and, if we play our best, I hope we will be in the top two or three in the EIC,” said Coach Boehm who is starting his fourth season as head coach at C-H with a 32-46 mark. “We will be strong if we play every game like it is our last. We have a lot of kids back with lots of experience.” OUTLOOK – ABV got a look at the Hornets last season in their regular season finale against a loaded Windsor team. The Hornets held their own early and the youngsters who return from last season will be much improved. Moore and Hovis are legitimate scoring threats in both of the leagues they play in. Defensively they need to get better. With graduation losses everywhere in the EIC except at St. Elmo bringing teams back down, C-H could be the one that steps up to challenge those Eagles for the Egyptian Illini Conference title.

4. BROWNSTOWN From the 5-22 team a year ago there are five seniors and the top two scorers missing from the club that saw its season close with a loss to South Central, 57-30, at the St. Elmo 1A Regional. As a matter of fact, only Christ Our Rock Lutheran, Beecher City and Cowden-Herrick weren't in that St. Elmo Regional from the EIC eight remaining teams. The Bombers top two gunners from 2010-11 were Zach Rigdon and Bryce Mason. The duo combined for 25.9 points a game for head coach Vince Rohr. His purple clad club didn't fair so well in either of the leagues they play in, finishing 0-10 in the National Trail and 2-6 in the Egyptian Illini. But there is hope, in the form of three returning starters a three more to watch. Colten Hunter, a 6-foot-3 senior forward, is back after putting in 8.2 points a game while ripping down 4.2 boards. Six-foot-two junior Austin Hunter averaged 7.6 points per performance and led the Bombers in board work with 5.6 rebounds a game. The third starter in tow is Coleman Scott, a 5-foot-11 senior guard, who helped out with 4.2 p.p.g. as a junior. Those three are the ones that Coach Rohr will need to have in the lineup every night if Brownstown is going to be in the hunt for the .500 mark this season. This coach has three other kids with some experience under their belts and should be part of the winning solution this season. Five-foot-ten guard Mark Sefton, a junior, came of the bench last season and was effective enough to average 4.6 points a game. Classmate and teammate Nick Reeder spotted some players last season off the bench as this 5-foot-10 senior should gobble up more minutes this winter. Jake Behrends is a 5-foot-11 sophomore who played well as a freshman (1.8 p.p.g.) to get some PT consideration. The seventh player mentioned by this coach is Eric Gurtner, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, who according to Coach Rohr has a tremendous up-side to his game. “We made great strides over the summer and will be a tougher club this season,” said Coach Rohr who is an Effingham native. “We have three of our starters back and three other players with experience who all worked together well this past summer. If we can keep our focus, stay mentally tough and get everyone to commit to winning, we could challenge a lot of conference teams. We have intelligent players who are maturing and really bringing the team together.” OUTLOOK – Coach Rohr is optimistic about his club getting better this season and ABV agrees. Getting more than five wins this season can happen not only because this coach gets a second year working with these kids but also because the EIC doesn't look nearly as imposing as it did a year ago. Brownstown plays enough games against non-conference foes that are in the same enrollment level so it isn't a stretch to expect this team to rise about last season's win total.

5. PATOKA Head coach Joe Eddy saw his team suffer some serious cap and gown losses this past spring. Six players that provided a lot of minutes and production have disappeared. The 2010-11 Warriors averaged 47.2 points per game. The graduating seniors took with them 41.8 points per game. Patoka, in other words, starts over with nearly a whole new batch. There are some kids back that played their way into varsity games but didn't add to the scoring to the extent of the others missing. One of the starters expected this season for Coach Eddy is 5-foot-10 sophomore point guard Johnnie Clift. Clift (2.9 p.p.g., 2.7 r.p.g.) was a starter in the last half of the season as a freshman and will help continue to run the show. This mentor mentioned three juniors who have a chance at more limelight. Jacob Orrell, a 6-foot-2 junior guard, worked his way on to the varsity in the second half of the season. Five-foot-eight junior Quinn Wadkins and 5-foot-8 sophomore Seth Allen each played in 19 varsity games in 2010-11. Both could improve on their offensive output this season as they came in for reserve minutes before. Two seniors will be in the recipe for the Patoka mix. Brandon Budds, a 6-foot-2 forward, and 5-foot-8 guard Jacob Jenkins return. Coach Eddy also mentioned 5-foot-10 junior Drew Back, who he feels can be an offensive weapon this season. “We are a young team that got a lot of valuable minutes last year, which has helped them grow as players,” said Coach Eddy, whose team is coming off of a 13-16 season where they fell to St. Elmo in the first round at the 1A St. Elmo Regional. “If we move along quickly then good things will follow. This group is a hardworking bunch that is wanting to learn.” OUTLOOK – Patoka is coming off a season in which they were not consistent enough to make any sort of move towards a winning streak. They did manage to go 4-4 in the EIC but they could have been a bit better. Coach Eddy begins the rebuilding with a couple of good guards, which is a good way to start. Double-digit wins and maybe a steal or two from a good team along the way.

6. BEECHER CITY No one got hit harder with bad news this off season than these Eagles. Head coach Jason Eirhart inters the 2011-12 EIC fray with a lot of missing pieces from the 7-1 conference runner up that went 14-14 against the rest, including a 60-54 loss to Dieterich in the semifinals of the Neoga 1A Regional. Gone are five seniors of which four of those kids started for the Eagles. Luke Levitt finished his fine prep career with over 1,400-points. He reached that plateau by averaging 16.7 points a night last season while dragging down 8.2 rebounds a game. Beau Hutchison averaged 7.2 points a game last season for BC while Ole Ohnesorge added 6.2 p.p.g., Austin Miley (5.7 p.p.g.) and Ben Harder (1.1 p.p.g.) also left after their senior seasons. But the news got a bit worse before this school year began as four projected starters that would have been back for Beecher City left the district for Effingham. Two sets of twins headed east. Five-foot-eleven sophomore twins Drew Levitt and Dirk Levitt. And 6-foot-3 twin brothers Jacob and Josh Stombaugh also left the program. According to Coach Eirhart all four of these players would have started this season. However not all is lost and this coach is optimistic that the ones he has returning will do a good job as the Eagles will try to move forward. A pair of diminutive senior guards will begin the season in the lineup. Five-foot-six point guard Austin Miller managed to play in ten games last season while Mitch Kline, a 5-foot-9 guard, played in 23 games and averaged 2.9 points. Kline is the top returning player in scoring from a year ago. Six-foot-four senior Mitchell Zacha also got into some games (10) as a junior. Coach Eirhart has a good one in junior guard Donovan Riley, a 6-foot-1 player who scored a handful of points as a sophomore. The names Blake McKay, a 5-foot-8 junior guard, and 6-foot-5 sophomore Tanner Barnes could find their way into those opening night lineup. Six-foot-one senior Dylan Reed, 5-foot-11 junior Doug Krugger and 5-foot-10 freshman Jackon Bales could all spend time on the varsity floor. “Despite all of the losses, I'm really looking forward to this season and the group of guys I have towork with,” said Coach Eirhart, who went to Central A&M and played football and basketball for the Raiders. “i'm excited to see the improvement that we will make throughout the year.” OUTLOOK – These Eagles need to put the whole transfer situation out of their heads and play basketball this season. The ones that Coach Eirhart has back will be very good by the end of the season and he is really looking for underclassmen Barnes and Riley to really get better early in the season. With 10 players that appear to be all about equal, Beecher City could end up in a conference race after all.

7. MULBERRY GROVE Head coach Bobby Koontz is the new head coach at Mulberry Grove after having spent the last two seasons as the JV mentor at the school. Koontz was on the MG 2004 team and he later went to SIU-Edwardsville. Coach Koontz thought that the Aces from year ago, who finished 8-17 overall, underachieved in a lot of ways and he is wanting to work on getting them tougher for this season. There were a few highlights last season for these Aces of the flying variety. They rallied from 16 points down to beat Christ Our Rock Lutheran at the CORL invitational and they also scored 104-points in a double-overtime thriller over Cowden-Herrick. They finished the season 8-17 after a 64-46 loss to North Clay in the first round of the St. Elmo 1A Regional. “As far as our non-conference schedules goes I believe that Louisville North-Clay, Sandoval, and Mt. Olive will be very tough opponents that we will face throughout the season,” said Coach Kootz. “As far as the conference goes I believe St. Elmo will be the clear favorite followed by Beecher City, Cowden-Herrick and the rest of the field. I look for us to compete within our conference and hopefully find ways to make up for our lack of experience.” Coach Koontz lost three starters to that dreaded graduation ceremony (Allen Tompkins, Zack Heilig and Harlen Steed). Tompkins was a 6-foot-4 senior that averaged 15 points a game last season while Steed and Heilig were right at nine points per contest. One player emerged from the freshman class last winter and by the time the season ended he was one of the Aces top aces. Devonta Williams is a 6-foot sophomore who netted 10 points a game as a ninth grader. He is one of two starters back for MG which includes a pair of twin brothers. Six-foot seniors Jacob and John Rickman return after averaging five points each last winter. Those three represent most of the experienced ones remaining from 2010-11. Coach Koontz does have some others ready to step up from the JV ranks. Senior Kevin Boulier, a 6-foot-1 forward, returns as does 6-foot-1 junior Dylan Street. Six-foot-two Kyle Bloemker broke his hand midway through his junior season as Coach Koontz believes he will likely work toward getting back into the starting lineup. Shawn Willis is a 6-foot1 senior who will also be called upon as will 5-foot-10 sophomore Nate Ketchem and 5-foot-9 junior Jordan Miller. “We will be a relatively inexperienced and undersized team, but I hope to overcome this with depth and hard work. Following a decent summer I think that we have a solid group of young kids that are willing to come in everyday and give 110 percent,” added Coach Koontz, who played four years of varsity baseball and three years of varsity basketball at Mulberry Grove. “We are looking forward to a competitive season and hope to meet the expectations that we held for last years team at the beginning of the season.” OUTLOOK – This coach is optimistic for this season as he has some kids to work with. They are undersized as this coach can attest. But they appear to be able to score some points. If they can figure out a way of getting better on the defensive end then they can be in the running here.

8. RAMSEY Coach Bill Eddy saw his team slump to 2-22 overall without an Egyptian Illini Conference victory in 2010-11. Nevertheless there is some potential for a Rams' revitalization of basketball fortunes as this coach has six players back that now can boast varsity experience from the squad the gave Altamont a bit of trouble before losing the opener at the St. Elmo 1A Regional. Five of the players back started games last winter. Hopefully all of the offensive numbers missing from graduation can be duplicated by the returning players. “We will be a young team, however we have more varsity experience this year than in years past with six guys that saw time last year,” said Coach Eddy. “I liked the way the guys looked this summer and I hope we continue to build on it. If the guys buy into the system we should be a fun team to watch this year.” Of the six players back for Coach Eddy, none of the Rams are over 6-foot tall. Jacob Roberts and Jacob Bergin are back as senior forwards. Roberts is 5-foot-11 and Bergin is 5-foot-9. Both played a lot late in the season and averaged a handful of points for the season. The top two scorers returning are guards but are underclassmen. Tyler Pryor is a 5-foot-7 junior who started in the second half of the season. Five-foot-eight Tylor Kinsley is the top returning scorer (five points a game). Look for 5-foot-7 junior Ryan Black (1.9 p.p.g.) and 5-foot-10 junior Austin Cunningham to push for minutes. Ramsey could have a couple of other kids in the running for varsity time as this coach likes Colton Hunt, a 6-foot-2 junior, and 6-foot-1 sophomore Tristen Wessleman. “Tyler Pryor looked good this summer as a floor leader and if he continues into the season that will help our team greatly.,” added Coach Eddy. “Tylor Knisley is only a sophomore and still improving. He gives 110% every time he is on the floor. I have some underclassmen that impressed me this summer with their improvement and hopefully it will continue.” OUTLOOK – For the first time in a few seasons the Rams have some experience back. They will be missing a lot of offense from a year ago and those points will have to come from somewhere. Look for the Rams to win a few more games this season and build toward the seasons to come with some youngsters ready to improve.