Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
The Genoa boys basketball team is primed for a big season.
The Comets, who went 19-6 overall last year and advanced to the district championship game before falling to University of Dayton bound Julian Washington’s Margaretta squad, returns its top seven scorers, including all five starters.
“All I want for this team is for us to be the best version of ourselves,” fourth-year head coach Jon Sandwisch said. “I really do mean that when I say that. We don't talk about our goals such as winning league, winning districts, winning regionals, winning state. Those achievements are byproducts of us trying to be the best we can possibly be. I want this team to be the best version of themselves, and if we achieve that, then good things will happen.”
The seven players include 6-8 senior forward Walter Plantz, 5-7 senior point guard Ryan Routson, 6-2 junior guard Myles Mollenhauer, 6-2 senior guard Jake Woollard, 6-3 senior guard Ty Asman, 6-4 junior forward Jaxon Magnone, and 5-7 senior guard Logan Routson.
Plantz is a four-year starter who is committed to NCAA Division II Ashland University on a full-ride. He was the co-player of the year in the NBC last year, where he averaged 16.2 points and 11.1 rebounds per game while eclipsing 1,000 career points and laying claim to just about every block record possible in program history.
Ryan Routson is a reigning First Team All-NBC selection who averaged 12.9 points and 6.4 assists per game. This is his third year as a starter, and he’s just a few assists away from becoming the program’s all-time leader.
Mollenhauer averaged 11.2 points while earning Second Team All-NBC recognition. He was the team’s sixth man as a freshman and started last year. Fellow junior, Magnone, was an Honorable Mention All-NBC selection while averaging 8.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
Woollard was tabbed Honorable Mention All-District while averaging 6.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. Asman averaged 7.4 points, and Logan Routson tallied 2.8 points and 1.5 steals per contest.
“With those seven guys, I’m really, really excited about this year and their development,” Sandwisch said. “They were really good players last year, and they've worked their tails off this summer and fall to get even better.
“Obviously having a group that has this much experience is very uncommon in high school sports. You don't see it ever, really. That's been a lot of fun because when you start day one, you're really starting at about day 30 because you know the guys are very familiar with our system.
“They're very familiar with expectations. They know how to practice, they know coaches’ personalities, and they really work well with one another. They really understand the process, and for a lot of these guys, this is their third and fourth letter that they're going to earn. The group has been locked in the last few years.”
Outside of that group, Sandwisch is excited about his junior class that features players such as Tommy Braun.
“Our junior class is a huge class for us, and if it wasn't for where we are with how many seniors we have, a lot of these guys would be varsity basketball players and good varsity basketball players,” Sandwisch said. “Our JV team should be very, very competitive this year, and we have some guys that could definitely come off the bench if need be.
“Tommy Braun is coming back. He’s a starter for the football team. A lot of these guys don't have varsity experience because they've been behind the senior class, but a lot of them got a ton of minutes last year. They also get the privilege to practice against one another, and we've had some very competitive practices last year.”
Due to the team’s experience and offseason work, Sandwisch isn’t worried about his team’s late start following the football team’s run to the regional final.
“I always talk about pressure as a privilege,” he said. “When there's pressure on you, that's a good thing. Last year, with us being juniors and sophomores, that pressure may have overwhelmed us a little bit. I think this group's maturity, this group's competitiveness, and ultimately their buy-in, has really been successful.
“These guys get along really well. They care for one another, and they do a really good job of complementing each other's games, each other's personalities, and whenever you have a pretty solid structure, really good things have happened.”
Sandwisch is also excited for this year as he’s coached this year’s senior class since they were in seventh grade.
“I was their seventh-grade basketball coach, and then I got hired when the now-seniors were incoming freshmen, so it's been a lot of fun to watch them grow, not only as basketball players, but as young men. They are a great representation of not only the basketball team, but the Genoa community.”
