Lincoln Junior High School loses a tough one at State

 

[February 17, 2020]  The Lincoln Junior High School Trojans lost 35-33 to Monticello on Saturday in the first round of the 2020 Eighth Grade Class 3A State Tournament at Tolono Unity Junior High School.

Trojan Coach Cal Deneke, an Illinois State University graduate who is in his third year coaching at LJHS, summed up the game like this:

“Going into halftime down 12-11 we made the adjustment of going from a 3/4 court 1-2-2 press to a full court 1-2-2 press to turn up the pressure.

“After they hit the first bucket of the second half to go up 14-11 we went on an 11-0 run sparked by a Deegan Aeilts three-pointer that tied it up at 14 and got buckets in transition from our press.

“They countered our run with a few made baskets to cut the lead to 26-21 going into the fourth quarter. After shooting 6-of-7 field goals in the third quarter we really struggled to make baskets in the fourth quarter shooting 1-of-9 from field goal range.

“Monticello had three different players knock down clutch threes to bring them back and with less than 30 seconds left and a tie game at 33, number 5 (Jacob Long) hit a baseline contested floater which ended up being the game winning basket.

“Monticello did a great job of countering our third quarter run and hit clutch shot after clutch shot in huge moments.

“Our boys played extremely hard and I told them sometimes the ball doesn’t always bounce your way and that’s what happened that game.

“It was an incredible run from starting off the year 7-6 to winning 13 straight games and finishing the season 20-7. They were the first team since 2011 to make a state tournament Elite 8 at LJHS.

“Dylan Gowin finished with a team-high 14 points. Kani Carson finished with 5 steals and Kion Carson finished with 6 steals. Aidan Gowin was our leading rebounder and Deegan Aeilts had 8 points.

“I cannot wait to see what these boys will achieve on and off the court throughout the rest of their lives. They are truly a special group.”

Deneke, who lists Macomb as his hometown, continued talking about his team with these words: “When I took over at LJHS three years ago, this group of eighth graders were a bunch of 11-year-olds walking into junior high for the first time for open gyms. I could immediately tell they had talent and we started going to work. After a tough season as sixth-graders playing up on the seventh grade team they finished the season with a 7-12 record. The following year saw huge improvements and playing against kids their own age they rolled through the regular season with a 20-2 record. They ended with a final record of 21-3 after losing in the regional championship to the eventual state champions, Athens, on their home floor. After that loss the boys were determined to get back to that game and get their revenge.

“Things didn’t come so easy as eighth-graders. After a 5-1 start to the year we lost five of our next seven games, including four in a row which brought us to 7-6. After beating Athens at home we went on a 13-game win streak to finish out the regular season and postseason. The 40-30 win over Athens in the regional championship was a moment the boys were looking forward to for an entire year. It showed that their hard work and determination paid off.

“We then took that momentum into Divernon and beat Auburn 36-35 to send LJHS to the state tournament for the first time since 2011. Despite our loss at state the boys showed me so much. They worked so hard all year and proved that they are going to accomplish so much in life. Almost every school we went to we were complimented by administration on how well behaved the boys were and how they would always help clean up the bleachers after the game. That’s one of the things I’m most proud of about this group.”

Congratulations to the Trojans on a great season and being a great group of young men bring pride on and off the court to our community!

LJHS 33

Dylan Gowin 14
Deegan Aeilts 8
Aidan Gowin 5
Kion Carson 4
Kani Carson 2

Monticello 35

Monty Snyder 12
Jacob Long 9
Jack Weidner 6
Luke Teschke 3
Raiden Colbert 3
Trey Welter 2

[Teena Lowery]