2 weeks Ago By CADEN SHEA Globe Gazette
FOREST CITY—Wells Fargo was only the beginning. Forest City's Hayden Brown leads a fast break during first-half action against Estherville Lincoln Central Monday, Feb. 26 in a Class 3A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.
After making it to the Wells Fargo Center and the 3A state tournament for the first time in program history, the Forest City Indians are gearing up for another great season. The Indians bring back four starters from last season, Colette Loges, Bethany Warren, Hayden Brown and Lexi Isebrand and have a team that is ready for anything the world throws at them. Jenna Dontje, Brenin Giesen and Dru Seglem, additionally, were key reserves for Forest City.
“A goal of mine since I’ve been here was to get this program down to Wells because it’s never been there before,” head coach Matt Erpelding said. “I had a really motivated and hungry group last year. We got off to a hot start and rode that momentum throughout the season and accomplished the ultimate goal of getting down there.
” “We’re looking forward to having a second opportunity at being conference champs and making it to state,” Collette Loges said. “We have high goals, and we would like to exceed what we did last year.” “Last year we made it to the first round at state,” Loges said.
“We lost playing the number one ranked team while we were the lowest seed. I feel like this year we’re definitely wanting to get to be a higher seed and that doesn’t happen again. Making it further is definitely a goal for us.
” Despite making it to the first round of the state tournament, the conference championship eluded them. Bishop Garrigan outlasted them on the road to the conference title. This year, they are ramped up to make the run at a conference title.
Forest City's Hayden Brown battles Estherville Lincoln Central's Cara Schlitz during first-half action Monday Feb. 26 in a Class 3A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. “Our ultimate goal other than state is to win the conference,” Erpelding said.
“It’s probably more balanced three through eight than it was. Last year we had four teams that were pretty competitive and this year we might be down to two or three that can really push for that conference championship.” Last year the Indians finished 21-4.
They were led in scoring by sophomore Brown with 13.2 points per game. They were followed by Loges who averaged 11.
6 points per game. Brown also led them in rebounds with 6.2 rebounds per game.
They only graduated three seniors on the state tournament qualifying team. This year, they are ready to improve upon a really good team. “We need to take it to the next level,” Erpelding said.
“We’ve had a really good offseason. Obviously, our goal is to get farther than we did last year which means we have to win a game or two down at state..
. The kids are really buying into what we’re trying to do..
. If we go at this pace as far as our intensity and our attention to detail goes, I think it’s going to be a pretty good season for us.” Forest City's Hayden Brown looks to dribble out of trouble during first-half action against Estherville Lincoln Central Monday, Feb.
26 in a Class 3A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. “We have a lot of unfinished business,” Hayden Brown said. “We set the bar for what we want and now we just have to want to get our goals and get back to the Wells again.
” Bishop Garrigan, North Union and Waverly Shell-Rock gave the Indians their only three losses of the regular season. The Indians lost to Estherville Lincoln Central in the first round of the state tournament, 61-47. “Every game is important,” Erpelding said.
“If we stub our toe along the way and fall out of the rankings and aren’t in the top eight, that would be tough for us. Top eight is our goal because without that you don’t get your own region. Any loss to a team that we aren’t supposed to lose to would really hurt us.
” The team is ready to go forward with the season with everything that they have. They still have a young team and a radically different mindset that will help take them all the way back to the Wells Fargo Center at the end of the season. Forest City's Lexi Isebrand brings the ball up court during first-half action against Estherville Lincoln Central Monday, Feb.
26 in a Class 3A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. “We have a big opportunity in front of us,” Lexi Isebrand said. “Let’s see what we can do with it.
We’re all really excited. It’s going to be a challenge and it’s not going to be easy, but we know we can do it.” “We’ve placed a big emphasis on staying consistent throughout the season,” Brown said.
“We need to focus on the games that may seem little in the moment but are going to contribute at the end.” Forest City's Lexi Isebrand drives the lane during first-half action against Estherville Lincoln Central Monday, Feb. 26 in a Class 3A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.
They defeated the Algona Bulldogs in their fist contest 64-54 on Tuesday night, starting their season with a bang against a tough first opponent. Sent weekly directly to your inbox! {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items..
