Clay boys basketball coach Rob Belegrin added that while the Eagles might not be ready to make the jump from the City League cellar to the penthouse, they will be much more competitive than last season.

This is the final season Clay will compete in the City League as next year it will move on to the Three Rivers Athletic Conference. Neither the boys’ team nor the girls’ basketball team was able to win a City title during its stay. When Belegrin played at Clay, the Oregon school was a member of the now-defunct Great Lakes League — which in boys’ basketball, was a completely different animal than the CL.

“We’re not ready to be a factor yet,” he said. “We play in the best league there is. We’ll make strides and compete in every game. Our record will be better than last year if things go right, if we execute and go through with the game plan. If things fall into place, we could be a factor. We’ll be picked toward the bottom of the league, and that’s not a bad thing.”

Belegrin’s team returns a great deal more experience than they did entering last season, when they had no returning starters. This Clay squad has several returning starters and other players who got plenty of playing time a year ago.

Veteran Clay Girls' basketball coach Roger Achter talks to his players in 2008. (Press file photo)

“I feel a lot better about this group because they have experience,” Belegrin said. “They understand what it takes and it’s a great group to be around. We have the ability to make great strides this year and we are a very improved team as far as experience. A lot of guys put in a lot of work this summer. We should be a better perimeter shooting team, and that was a downfall last year. We couldn’t score from outside very well. We have a lot of guys who can shoot from outside if they’re open, and that gives us a lot of options.”

For the Waite Indians, it is always a challenge, too. Playing in the City League with schools like perennial contenders St. John’s Jesuit, Whitmer and Central Catholic, the Indians will consistently be viewed by many as the underdog. That is the challenge they face.

And it is one they accept.

The Indians are led by Coach Dave Pitsenbarger, also an alumnus of the school he coaches at, who is now in his tenth year as the varsity coach and 24th with the school.

At Waite, they understand that for them to be successful, it must start with solid play on the defensive end.

Last season, the Indians, who finished 12-10 overall and 5-6 in the City League, defeated Sylvania Northview to win its sectional before losing to Central Catholic at districts. The team, which lost three lettermen from last season, returns six lettermen, has a ten-man rotation and may use a variety of lineups this season.

In his nine seasons with the team, Pitsenbarger, despite having three teams who have qualified for the Final Four, has yet to lead Waite to a City League Tournament Championship. They did, however, win the regular season championship just two seasons ago.

Fortunately for Pitsenbarger, he’s had solid commitment from his players in recent years.

“It started with a group of freshman five or six years ago. They committed to staying and we’ve had success and it keeps building.

“We’ve gotten close (to winning the Final Four) so many times. Our goal is to finish it off for all those guys who’ve worked hard to get us to this point.”

Pitsenbarger believes the formula for success this season is rather simple. The team must rebound consistently, practice good shot-selection and play intense defense.

The Clay girls finished with a winning record in the CL last season, but they return no seniors with any varsity experience. Clay graduated four starters who accounted for 85 percent of the team’s scoring and 90 percent of its rebounding.

“We’ve gone back to the basics,” Coach Roger Achter, also a Clay alum, said. “We are extremely young and inexperienced. Practices are very, very instructional and they’re taking to it fine. We’re still not learning as quickly as I’d like, but I’ve never been in this position since I took over. Everything is simplified and cut way back. We aren’t putting things in nearly as quickly as we did in the past.

“That’s all we’re looking for,” Achter said. “We have a really nice freshman class, but we don’t have a freshman team because we only have six kids. We are going to combine the freshmen and the jayvees. They’re going to be very good in the future. The tallest girl in that group of freshmen is 5-6. We’re going to keep them together and learn to win and experience all that.”

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