2020 Hometown Heroes

Page 78 2020 Hometown HEROES Magazine LINCOLN DAILY NEWS May 14, 2020 In the days following the cancellation of the Railers basketball season, the three seniors Kameron Whiteman, Will Ewald and Kaden Froebe posed in front of the Lincoln Theater marquee. Photo courtesy of Kari Froebe. T hree weeks have now passed since the Lincoln Railers basketball season ended abruptly due to the concern of the Covid-19 Pandemic. Who knew leaving a packed Roy S. Anderson Gymnasium on Wednesday, March 11, 2020 that it would all be over on this night for this team, and every team battling in the postseason in Illinois? The Railers had just defeated Decatur MacArthur 60-41 and as the crowd slowly started to disperse following the win, you could feel the excitement in the air as Lincoln fans knew Friday night at 7 p.m. they had a date with Springfield Lanphier on their home court. The game was going to be an epic matchup between two of the most historic basketball powerhouses in central Illinois. It was without a doubt going to be the game of the year, thus far. The Railers were 32-2 and riding a 17-game winning streak entering what would be the Sectional Championship versus Lanphier. Ranked 6th in the state, these Railers had an excellent shot at making a trip to Peoria and playing in the IHSA Class 3A State Tournament. And then the unimaginable happened. IHSA canceled the remaining winter sports tournaments on the evening of March 12, 2020 and in the blink of an eye, the season was over. The news was devastating and it’s still hard to comprehend. The following statements are from Coach Neil Alexander and his wife Denise, and the three seniors: Kaden Froebe, Kameron Whiteman and Will Ewald. They wrote these statements after the news broke and they had a little time to process things. LDN is printing these words with their permission. Some final thoughts on the Railers basketball season CONTINUED u