The Milan News-Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Looking ahead to 2008
JerryHinnen
PUBLISHED: January 3, 2008
So as you can see, with the holiday break in full force, this week's sports section is instead devoted to looking back at an incredible 2007 in area sports. It was a heck of a year, one I felt fortunate to have the privilege of covering on more than one occasion.
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Now it's behind us, but the good news is that 2008 promises to be just as exciting. Literally dozens of teams between Saline and Milan have the potential for success; literally dozens of area athletes are going to have the chance to make a huge difference for their teams this year. There are going to be dozens and dozens of stories to write.
But for now, here's five of them (two in Saline, two in Milan, and one in-between) that I'm particularly interested in, five that loom especially large as the year turns. I can't wait to see how they unfold, and I hope you can't either.
1. Saline success on the hardwood. Saline's basketball teams won a combined 11 games last season, but both sets of Hornets look like they could win that many individually this season. Led by senior shooting guard Sarah Hoffman and helped by a stunningly talented corps of sophomores, the Saline girls went into the break with a 5-2 record and a pair of Southeastern Conference wins. But with Kyle Larsen scoring nearly at will down low, the Saline boys have been nearly as impressive, despite their 2-4 record; one of those wins was on the road at Chelsea and all four losses have come in the dying minutes to strong (as in Belleville -strong) one-loss teams. The girls have some tough competition themselves in their district field, but it's not hard to see both finding some postseason success.
2. Onwards and upwards for Milan teams. Milan has more than a couple of programs that are working their way forward after tough times just a few seasons ago. The Big Red wrestling team has already downed defending league champion Airport, junior heavyweight David Box is undefeated, and there's talent up and down the roster; Tecumseh's presence in their district is a pain, but a league title and a strong presence at individual regionals are possibilities.
The Milan softball team went from winning two games to posting a winning record last season and return pretty much everyone from the 2007 squad, making a league title run and even some playoff noise a realistic goal.
The Big Red boys' cross country team didn't even have a full enough roster to compete in 2006, but with dedicated rising senior Kyle Anderson and a host of young talent in the freshman and sophomore classes, there's no telling how far the Big Reds could run this fall.
3. Big spring in store for Hornets? The upcoming spring season is poised to be a huge one for Saline. The boys' golf team will finally have the chance to defend their state title after an 18-month layoff following last year's season switch, and with Matt Paterini, Phil Gieseker, and others experienced golfers returning they have more than enough talent to do it. The baseball and girls' soccer teams each made the 2007 state quarterfinals and each returns a bevy of starters and regular contributors from those playoff runs (all 10 field players that starter that quarterfinal, in the soccer team's case). And both Hornet track teams will look to build on both the momentum generated by their excellent cross country seasons and the experience of returning sprint veterans like Sam Burchyett and Corrie Castro. Every one of these teams will enter the season with the makings of a team that could challenge for a state title.
4. Fall superstars in Milan. Ron Spears (deservedly) drew most of the statewide headlines last fall with his staggering rushing totals for the Big Red football team, but his was only one of several dominant performances at Milan that season — and unlike Spears, two of those performers will be back next fall. Maura Donahue continued to stamp herself as one of the best swimmers in the state and in Milan history by decisively winning two events at the Division 3 state meet as a junior and will be a heavy, heavy favorite to repeat the feat next fall. All Jordan Tomecek did as a sophomore at the Division 2 state meet was break her own Milan girls' cross country school record, lead her team to a sixth-place finish at the Division 2 meet, and finish fourth overall (just more than a second behind third). What she does for an encore should be interesting, to say the least.
5. Football teams deal with different challenges. Entering last fall, Saline was coming off of arguably the most successful football season in school history (complete with district championship) but had to deal with replacing tons of experience, particularly in the offensive backfield; meanwhile, Milan was looking to rebound from missing the playoffs but had plenty of experience and their leading rusher from the previous year on hand. In 2008, those roles will be completely reversed, right down to the backfield experience for both squads. Here's to hoping Saline bounces back into the postseason (there's no question the talent is on hand to do just that) while Milan withstands the losses and posts another great season.
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