Cedars, March 2019

March 2019 15 COVER by Tim Smith A t the end of the 2017-18 season, the future of Cedarville Yellow Jackets basketball looked grim. They finished the season 13-14, near the bottom half of the G-MAC. Their leading scorer Patrick Bain, along with several other supporting seniors, were moving on to the next stage of life. Little did they know, the 2018-19 sea- son would end with a 21-12 record and a NCCAA Division I National Championship. But, it was a long train to get there. “There were a lot of unknowns com- ing into this season,” said head coach Pat Estepp. “For one, we didn’t know how the freshmen would react to the new level of play. I didn’t know if this team would be as capable of the play we had last year.” Fortunately for Estepp, this team an- swered all the uncertainty with stellar play and a fantastic season. Freshmen Take the Lead A delightful revelation for the Cedarville men was the emergence of all-star freshmen in Branden Maughmer, Kollin Van Horn, Quinton Green and Isaiah Speelman. “I was pleasantly surprised at the play of our freshmen this year,” Estepp said. “It’s rare when you get freshmen that can play — It’s even more rare when you get freshmen that help you win.” And help the teamwin they did. Maugh- mer, Van Horn, and Green all ranked in the top five scorers for Cedarville this season, averaging 14.1 points, 10.2 points, and 9.8 points, respectively. Scoring, though, wasn’t the only place these freshmen helped. Van Horn led the team in blocks, totaling 38 on the season. He also was one of the top rebounders on the team long with Green. “We had some of the best freshmen in the conference,” Estepp said. “If there was an all-conference freshman team, we would probably have four of the five.” Great Leadership Equates to Great Wins The freshmen weren’t the only vital piece of the puzzle this year — the upper- classmen were just as important in this suc- cessful season. “The chemistry cultivated by the up- perclassmen this year was phenomenal,” Estepp said. “It’s hard when you have fresh- man coming in and taking minutes from you, but the upperclassmen really exhibited the idea of servant leadership and helped the team succeed.” Guys like Demond Parker, Robert Okoro, Colton Linkous and Gabe Porti- llo may not have made big splashes on the court, but their leadership was evident nonetheless, both physically and spiritually. “Our upperclassmen really embraced and let them play, but they also competed to play themselves,” Estepp said. “In the end, we came out unified and strong to- gether for the season.” Joining these upperclassmen in lead- ership was senior Grant Zawadzki, whose leadership on the team was a huge reason for the team’s success. “Grant is a great leader, both on the court and spiritually,” Estepp said. “His competitiveness and will to win carried over to our season and made us better overall.” Zawadzki was quick to give the credit to his teammates. “Everyone just came in ready to play and stripped away their egos,” he said. “We were able to gel as a team and become a unit.” Zawadzki was clearly a leader on the court, where he averaged 10.5 points and averaged a conference-best 6.3 assists per game. But, he was also clearly a leader in the locker room, always encouraging his team- mates and looking to lift them up. His lead- ership, along with that of his fellow upper- classmen, was an important steppingstone toward the successful season. What Comes Next? Looking forward, the Cedarville Yel- low Jackets will look to capitalize on their championship. When asked what was im- portant going into this offseason, freshman Branden Maughmer had one word: humil- ity. “Teams know now that we are young and that we have the ability to win games,” he said. “We need to stay humble and re- member that basketball isn’t all that we do – it’s a brotherhood, and we play best when we remember that and stay humble.” Estepp is proud of this team and excit- ed to see what the future holds. “This was a season that had a lot more ups than downs and I’m so proud of how the guys played,” he said. “Now, we just need to enjoy this season and come into the offsea- son ready to get better and make next year more successful.” Tim Smith is a freshman journalism major and staff writer for Cedars. He loves foot- ball, 3 Musketeers candy and primarily speaking in movie quotes. Cedarville Men Capture NCCAA Championship Photo by Lydia Wolterman Senior Grant Zawadzki helped the Yellow Jackets mesh en route to a national title.