- Class C-1 and Class C-2 Football Championship Previews (11/25/24)
- 8-Man One and 8-Man Two Football Championship Previews (11/21/24)1
- Complete list of Nebraska High School Single Season 2000 Yard Rushers. (11/12/24)
- Week 10 Friday Night Lights Football Heroes (11/7/24)
- Week Nine Friday Night Lights Football Heroes (10/30/24)
- Week Eight Friday Night Lights Football Heroes (10/24/24)
- Week Seven Friday Night Lights Football Heroes (10/16/24)
The Nebraska High School All-State Basketball Project - Saluting 2000.
The year 2000 featured a rare fact. A pair of graduates from the same class were assistant coaches for State Championship teams. My son Rob Micek and Brett Zavala, both Grand Island high Class of ‘96 grads shared the spotlight. Rob was, and still is, an assistant coach for Grand Island Central Catholic, and Brett Zavala was an assistant for Lincoln Pius X in 2000.
*2000*
*Class D-2:*
Quarterfinals:
(21-3) Ewing 76, Exeter 49 (13-9)
(19-4) Chester-Hubbell-Byron 54, Cody-Kilgore 39 (14-6)
(12-9) Butte 58, Hayes Center 47 (20-2)
(16-5) Lindsay Holy Family 52, Litchfield 35 (16-4)
Semifinals:
(20-4) Chester-Hubbell-Byron 55, Ewing 43 (22-3)
(17-5) Lindsay Holy Family 57, Butte 37 (13-9)
Finals:
(21-4) Chester-Hubbell-Byron 50, Lindsay Holy Family 48 (18-5)
D-2 Champion: Chester-Hubbell-Byron (22-4) - Head Coach: Jeff Vetter, Asst: None
*The D-2 All-Tournament team: Matt Freitag-CHB (6-6, Sr.), Casey Helmer-Lindsay Holy Family (5-11, Sr.), Tony Kurtenbach-Lindsay Holy Family (6-1, Jr.), Adam Schueth-Ewing (6-3, Jr.), and Kyle Lechtenberg-Butte (5-10, Jr.)
*The Class D-2 tournament scoring leader was no contest, as Chester-Hubbell-Byron’s 6-6 Matt Freitag dropped in 63 points (24, 30, 9) and was 21 points better than Holy Family senior Casey Helmer, who had games of 22, 10 and 10, to total 42 points for the D-2 tournament.
*In the Class D-2 final it was 6-6 Matt Freitag’s basket with just 5 seconds left that lifted CHB to a 50-48 win over Lindsay Holy Family. Brandon Fraley dropped the dime to Freitag, who responded with the winning shot.
It was an especially heartbreaking result for the Lindsay Holy Family duo of Tony Kurtenbach and Randy Preuss, who held CHB’s Matt Freitag to just 7 points until the winning basket, after the 6-6 senior had come off state tournament games of 24 and 30 points. But Freitag slipped away for a total of about two seconds, enough time to receive the assist from Fraley and drop in the winning basket.
Chester-Hubbell-Byron played incredibly clean basketball in the game, committing only 11 turnovers. Stocky, 5-11 CHB guard A.J. Gausman led the CHB co-op with 23 points, including 5 baskets from beyond the arc.
Gausman, playing with a severely sprained ankle, he suffered before districts and reinjured in the days leading up to the state tournament, came up big under the brights of the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
*Class D-1:*
Tournament Qualifiers: Deshler (Dave Morczek); Humphrey St. Francis (Paul Brungardt); Medicine Valley (Kevin Martin); Paxton (Jody Rhodes); Pleasanton (Randy Bauer); Shelby (Terry Chadek); Sterling (Stan Karr); Waterloo (Ron Michael)
Quarterfinals:
(20-2) Paxton 51, Waterloo 34 (15-8)
(18-4) Shelby 53, Medicine Valley 52 (16-6)
(22-0) Deshler 63, Pleasanton 53 (10-11)
(17-6) Humphrey St. Francis 57, Sterling 39 (17-5)
Semifinals:
(21-2) Paxton 61, Shelby 54 (19-4)
(22-0) Deshler 63, Humphrey St. Francis 48 (18-6)
Finals:
(25-2) Paxton 42, Deshler 39 (23-0)
D-1: (22-2) Paxton; Head Coach: Jody Rhodes, Asst: Dave Perlinger.
*The D-1 All-Tournament team; Tanner Anderson-Paxton (6-2, Sr.), Marcus Gillespie-Shelby (6-0, Jr.), Landon Meyer-Deshler (6-2, Sr.). Whit Smith-Waterloo (6-7, Jr.) and David Wegener-Humphrey St. Francis (6-2, Soph.)
*The D-1 Tournament scoring title was a two-man race between Paxton’s Tanner Anderson and Lanon Meyer of Deshler. Anderson’s games of 25, 30 and 17 points elevated him to the scoring title with his 72 point total. Meyer was five points back with 67 for the three game state tourney set (30, 22, 15 points)
*The D-1 championship game…….Paxton coach Jody Rhodes came up with the perfect game plan to derail undefeated Deshler…..run the dickens out of the leg weary Dragons. It worked like a charm, but the Tigers still could not put away Deshler until the very end, eventually winning the D-1 title game 42-39.
Paxton, who lost to Falls City Sacred Heart in the 1999 Class D-1 finals, were ready for run in 2000. What made an even better storyline was that Tiger star Tanner Anderson, who missed the first 8 games of the basketball season with a broken wrist, came back with a vengeance the emainder of the season. Anderson, Paxton’s quarterback during the football season, was holding for a field goal attempt in the state football quarterfinals when the kick was blocked. Tanner ended up on the bottom of a pile and emerged with a broken wrist. Unphased by the setback, Anderson returned after the Tigers had struggled to a 6-2 record, leading them to 17 consecutive wins, averaging 24 ppg along the way.
Despite being heavily pressured in the title game, Tanner Anderson still pumped in 17 points to lead Paxton to the 42-39 win. Even bigger was the fact Paxton played the final 9 minutes with 3 starters on the floor with 4 fouls apiece.
Deshler, who shot only 13 of 50 field goals for the game, had two players accounting for 29 of their 39 total points during the loss, Landon Meyer, who led the Dragon scorers with 15 points, and Matt Schoof added 14.
*Class C-2:*
Tournament Qualifiers: Arapahoe (Bob Braithwait); Battle Creek (Craig Schnitzler); Centura (Ryan Rathke); East Butler (Ray Wall); Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer (Terry Borcher); Ponca (Bob Hayes); Sutherland (Bill O’Malley); West Point Central Catholic (Duane Mendlik).
Quarterfinals:
(25-0) Ponca 57, Battle Creek 28 (7-13)
(19-4) West Point Central Catholic 69, Arapahoe 37 (19-4)
(20-4) East Butler 52, Sutherland 40 (14-9)
(21-4) Humboldt/Table Rock-Steinauer 54, Centura 46 (11-9)
Semifinals:
(26-0) Ponca 57, West Point Central Catholic 46 (20-4)
(22-4) Humboldt/Table Rock-Steinauer 62, East Butler 52 (21-4)
Finals:
(23-4) Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer 51, Ponca 46 (27-0)
C-2 Champion: Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer; Head Coach: Terry Borcher; Asst: None
*The C-2 All-Tournament Team was: J.D. Roberts-Ponca (6-7, Sr.), Chris Wagner-West Point CC (6-3, Sr.), Kyle Struebing-East Butler (6-4, Jr.), plus 6-3 seniors Russell Pager and Dustin Bents of state champion Humboldt/TRS.
West Point Central Catholic’s Chris Wagner also earned his 3rd straight All-Tournament team honor, a rare feat.
*Class C-2 Tournament scoring was a 1-2-3 slam for Humboldt-TRS. Matt Mezger topped the three with his three game total of 44 points (5, 19, 20). Teammates Russ Plager (18, 14, 10 points) and Dustin Bents (13, 14, 14 points) were close behind with 42 and 41 points respectively.
The Class C-2 Championship game------Class D-1’s Deshler was not the only undefeated team to go down in a Championship game in 2000. Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer derailed 27-0 Ponca in the Class C-2 championship game, 51-46. It was the first ever State Title for a cooperative sponsorship in Nebraska prep basketball history.
It seemed as though Ponca dared Humboldt-TRS to beat them at the free throw line and the Cardinals obliged by going a perfect 8 for 8 during the final 1:19 of the game. In fact, the Cardinals were an amazing 22 of 25 from the charity stripe for the entire game. To be specific about this fouling thing by Ponca, Indians head coach Bob Hayes actually issued the order to begin fouling with 2:04 left in the game. Ponca trailed only 43-42 at the time.
If I can remember correctly, the Cardinals did not take another shot from the field after that order to foul was ordered by Hayes.
Humboldt-TRS senior Matt Mezger led the winners with 20 points, despite hitting only 6 of 20 from the field. Matt, however, drained 8 of 10 attempts from the charity stripe.
The Humboldt/TRS defense also withstood the 18 point/12 rebound performance of J.D.Roberts, the Ponca Indians 6-7 All-State inside star, who led the way for the losers.
*Class C-1*:
Tournament Qualifiers: Adams Central (Jim LaMaster); Chadron (Jim English); David City Aquinas (Kevin Scheef); Elkhorn Mount Michael (Jim Kane) Grand Island Central Catholic (Bill Gavers); Pierce (Todd Strom); Syracuse (Mark Hrabik); Wahoo (Mark Watton).
Quarterfinals:
(15-8) Pierce 55, Syracuse 46 (20-2)
(19-4) Wahoo 55, Elkhorn Mt. Michael 44 (17-6)
(25-1) Grand Island Central Catholic 66, David City Aquinas 56 (11-10)
(17-4) Chadron 74, Adams Central 66 (17-5)
Semifinals:
(16-6) Pierce 64, Wahoo 60 (20-4)
(26-1) Grand Island Central Catholic 56, Columbus Lakeview 46 (11-10)
Finals:
(27-1) Grand Island Central Catholic 56, Pierce 35 (17-6)
C-1 Champion: Grand Island Central Catholic (28-1). Head Coach: Bill Gavers, Asst: Brian Kort, Rob Micek, Zach Bennett.
*The C-1 All-Tournament Team included Grand Island Central Catholic 6-4 twin seniors, Jeremy and Jay Wissings, Matt Herian, a 6-4 sophomore of Pierce, plus seniors Alex Shada (6-3) of Wahoo and Chadrons 5-8 floor general, Mitch Berry.
The C-1 tournament scoring crown, as well as the All-Class scoring champion was GICC’s Jeremy Wissing, who was on a mission from minute one of the State Tournament. Wissing canned 80 points during his three games (31, 25, and 24) and single handedly kept the Crusaders ahead of Pierce in the 1st half of the C-1 championship game, scoring 18 of his team’s 22 points.
Pierce sophomore Matt Herian was way back with 55 points (25, 12 18 points), but had a bright future in store for him, as we all found out.
The C-1 championship game saw GICC’s 6-4 Wissing twins fashion a deadly 1-2 punch in the Class C-1 Championship game, each coming through when the Crusaders needed it most.
It was the red hot right-handed Jeremy Wissing, who scored 18 of the Crusaders 22 first half points, that led GICC to their slim 22-17 halftime lead over upstart Pierce. It was still a ball game after three quarters when Bill Gavers squad failed to stop Pierce sophomore Matt Herian, who scored 8 of his total 18 points in that stanza..
But it was the left-handed shooting Jay Wissing who gave the Crusaders the cushion they needed to win their 1st ever State Championship. Jay scored a couple of inside buckets late in that 3rd stanza when the Pierce defense started to crowding brother Jeremy. Jay then buried a three pointer to open the 4th quarter, giving GICC a 33-26 lead and it grew from there. In the meantime, Crusader guards Jamie Douglas and Matt Strand were holding the Bluejays talented guard Travis Test to a meager two points for the entire game after Test had dropped 18 on Wahoo in the semifinals the day before..
Central Catholic ended up outscoring Pierce 23-9 in the money quarter, enroute to their resounding 53-35 Class C-1 championship game victory. The Wissing brothers accounted for 37 of the Crusaders 53 points in the game.
**The year 2000 featured a rare fact. A pair of graduates from the same class were assistant coaches for State Championship teams. My son Rob Micek and Brett Zavala, both Grand Island high Class of ‘96 grads shared the spotlight. Rob was, and still is, an assistant coach for Grand Island Central Catholic, and Brett Zavala was an assistant for Lincoln Pius X in 2000.
*Class B:*
*Tournament Qualifiers: Alliance (Rocky Almond); Aurora (Mike Herzberg); Grand Island Northwest (Troy Glock); Lincoln Pius X (Ray Forycki); McCook (Joel Hueser); Platteview (Darin Johnson); Seward (Jim Placke); South Sioux City (Mark Casey).
Quarterfinals:
(17-3) Lincoln Pius X 57, Seward 43 (16-6)
(17-3) Alliance 71, Aurora 63 (16-6)
(19-3) Grand Island Northwest 44, South Sioux City 43 (10-12) (Overtime)
(18-5) McCook 71, Platteview 57 (17-5)
Semifinals:
(18-3) Lincoln Pius X 72, Alliance 68 (18-3) (Overtime)
(19-5) McCook 62, Grand Island Northwest 54 (20-3)
Finals:
(19-3) Lincoln Pius X 77, McCook 52 (20-5)
Class B Champion: Lincoln Pius X (20-3). Head Coach: Ray Forycki, Asst: Jason Rainboth, Greg Lesiak, Chad Zavala.
*The Class B All-Tournament Team included three players from State Champion Lincoln Pius X. Seniors Nick Heiser (5-11), Travis Kirkman (6-0) and junior Ben Bixenmann (6-3) were honored, as well as McCook’s 6-7 post Nate Bennett, a 6-7 senior and Garrett Wyman of Alliance, a 6-5 senior.
*The Tournament scoring leader was Nate Bennett of McCook, who scored 59 points (14, 23, 18) were five better than Pius X floor leader Nick Heiser, who had games of 11, 16, 22 points to reach 49 for the three days of work.
*The Class B final was as close to a perfectly executed game plan as I’ve ever witnessed in high school basketball, especially at the State Tournament. Lincoln Pius coach Ray Forycki formulated a plan of attack that was carried out to near perfection, as the Thunderbolts massacred McCook 77-52 in front a crowd that numbered over 10,000 fans.
My friend Ken Hambleton reported that Pius X shot 64% form the field, hit 94% of it’s free throws, scored 40 points off of assists, pirated 12 McCook passes and won their 5th state title in history and the school’s first since 1992.
The deadly shooting of Thunderbolt guards Nick Heiser and Ben Bixenmann accounted for over half of the Pius X scoring (40 points), while the rotating quartet of Brandon McAllister, Ryan Wesolowski, Ryan Polak and Mitch Heiman dominated the boards, limiting the Bison to one shot possessions much of the time.
What really stood out to me was the fact Lincoln Pius had to rally from a 14 point deficit the night before just to send the Alliance game into overtime, let alone get the win, 72-68. One could have concluded, following that baby, that the Thunderbolts had exerted too much energy to route McCook the next day. Wrong.
Pius employed a 1-2-1 defense much of the game, a defense I rarely saw back then, or since, to frustrate the Bison offense. It wasn’t as if McCook shot that poorly during the game (50%), but the fact they were limited to only 40 shots the entire contest.
Nick Heiser of Lincoln Pius X led all scorers with 22 points, while McCook’s 6-7 Nate Bennett paced the Bison with 18 points, including two monstrous dunks. Yeah, you remember those things.
*Class A:*
Tournament Qualifiers: Bellevue West (Doug Woodard); Lincoln High (Russ Uhing); Lincoln Southeast (Jeff Smith); Millard West (Rick Hook); Norfolk (Brian Albrecht); North Platte (Dan Moore); Omaha Burke (Gary Graner); Omaha Westside (Dan Schinzel).
Quarterfinals:
(20-1) Bellevue West 71, Norfolk 46 (10-12)
(16-5) North Platte 60, Lincoln High 47 (15-5)
(18-3) Omaha Burke 69, Lincoln Southeast 66 (14-7)
(16-6) Millard West 85, Omaha Westside 68 (18-4)
Semifinals:
(21-1) Bellevue West 69, North Platte 51 (17-5)
(19-3) Omaha Burke 57, Millard West 47 (17-6)
Finals:
(22-1) Bellevue West 70, Omaha Burke 53 (20-3)
Class A Champion: Bellevue West (23-1). Head Coach: Doug Woodard Asst: Steve Willett, Troy Wharton.
*The Class A All-Tournament Team consisted of Nick Branting-North Platte (6-5, Sr.), Tola Dada-Omaha Burke (6-6, Sr.), Zach Fortune-Bellevue West (6-2, Sr.), Marty Levinson-Bellevue West (6-3, Sr.) and Dan Bruce-Millard West (6-1, Jr.)
*Tournament scoring honors went to Omaha Burke’s fine Tola Dada, who racked up games of 28, 17 and 21 points to reach his total of 66 in three games. That was 10 big ones to the good of Bellevue West star Zach Fortune, who finished with 56.
*The All Class/All-Tournament Team consisted of an all senior group, including Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic (6-4), Nick Branting-North Platte (6-5), Tola Dada-Omaha Burke (6-6), Zach Fortune-Bellevue West (6-2) and Nick Heiser-Lincoln Pius X (5-11).
*The Class A championship game saw Bellevue West not only finish 23-1, but avenge their only loss of the season, a 59-57 loss to Omaha Burke. It also erased the bitter memory of the lopsided loss to an 8th seeded Grand Island team the Thunderbirds suffered the year before.
Bellevue West may have taken a page out of Dave Oman’s defensive book while suffocating Omaha Burke, while forcing 17 Bulldog turnovers in the first half, as Doug Woodards team coasted to a comfortable 70-53 Class A championship win.
The Thunderbirds jumped out to a 10-1 first quarter lead and never looked back. So nasty was that Bellevue defense, it limited Omaha Burke to only 16 shots in the first half, while holding the ‘Dogs leading scorer, Tola Dada to zero points. Dada would catch fire in the 3rd frame and finish with 21 points, but it was too late by then.
The late Zach Fortune led the way for Bell. West with 21 points, despite the Thunderbirds 38% shooting from the field for the game. You may recall that Zach tragically lost his life in a car accident on slippery I-29 in November of 2003.
* * * * * * * * * *
*2000 Class D-2 All-State Team*
Matt Freitag-Chester-Hubbell-Byron** - 6-6, Senior (17.9 ppg/.9.1 rpg)
Clint Eikmeier-Dodge** - 6-0, Senior (20.6 ppg/.6.0 rpg)
Jared Booe-Loomis** - 6-6, Senior (25.0 ppg/15.0 rpg)
Matt Kucera-Litchfield - 6-3, Junior (20.5 ppg/11.1 rpg)
Kyle Konopasek-Verdigre - 5-11, Senior (21.0 ppg/9.7 rpg)
2nd Team:
Adam Schueth-Ewing - 6-3, Junior (16.8 ppg/9.0 rpg)
Nolan Reilly-Greeley - 6-3 Junior (16.3 ppg/8.2 rpg)
Isaiah Sicheneder-Chambers - 6-2, Senior (14.8 ppg/13.2 rpg)
Jason Kohtz-Hampton - 6-0, Senior (18.9 ppg/7.2 rpg)
Ben King-Lynch - 6-3, Senior (22.7 ppg/9.3 rpg)
*Class D-2 Honorable Mention All-State:
*Seniors: Austen Stewart-Allen; Matt Dorsey-Arcadia; Jed Johnson-Beemer; Jacob Lentfer-Bruning; Jerry Liewer-Butte; Jon Sladek-Chambers; Lauren Lindgreen-Clarks; Troy Morton-Cody-Kilgore; Aaron Haake-Davenport; Jacob Fritz, Eickhoff-Dawson-Verdon; Tyler Paulsen, Kelly Liekhus-Dodge; Scott Christensen-Elba; Cody Bade-Elgin; Seth Anson-Ewing; Matt Russell-Giltner; Simon Jensen-Hampton; Nick Broz, Toby Cox-Hayes Center; Casey Helmer, Randy Preuss-Lindsay Holy Family; Elijah Kucera-Litchfield; J.J. Johnston-Loomis; Josh Cherington-Lutheran High NE; Ben King-Lynch; Josh Chrisman-McCool Junction; Oswaldo Medina, Trevor Zach-Niobrara; Jerad Sorgenfrei, Steve Kriewald-North Loup-Scotia; Tate Bauersachs-Sioux County; Jay Webb-Twin Valley; Mark Brown-Wallace, Jeff Fritz-Wheeler Central.
Juniors: Nate Doremus-Benedict; Kyle Lechtenberg-Butte; A.J. Gausman, Corey Heitmann-Chester-Hubbell-Byron; Adam Schueth-Ewing; Jackson Krajci-Exeter; Colby Howard-Litchfield; Jay Behrends-Lodgepole; Jarett Postany-Loup County; Mike Morris-Nebraska City Lourdes; Randall Johnston-Silver Creek; Levi Gray-Sioux County; Andy Dawson-Wausa; Ryan Potts-Wheatland.
Sophomores: Tom Regan-Ewing; Brandon Holtorf-Prague; Cole Larsen-Sandhills; Cody Lenz-Wheatland; Russ Pick-Wynot.
*2000 Class D-1 All-State Team:
Tanner Anderson-Paxton** - 6-2, Senior (25.0 ppg/.3.0 rpg)
Derek Archer-Bancroft-Rosalie** - 6-3, Senior (20.4 ppg/9.7 rpg)
Landon Meyer-Deshler - 6-2, Senior (16.5 ppg/6.4 rpg)
Nate O’Grady-Falls City Sacred Heart - 6-2, Senior (16.2 ppg/8.3 rpg)
Matt Schoof-Deshler - 6-5, Senior (17.0 ppg12.1 rpg)
2nd Team:
Andy Ketelsen-Osmond - 6-4, Junior (17.9 ppg/6.5 rpg)
Josh McCloud-Newman Grove - 6-2, Senior (18.1 ppg/6.5 rpg)
Josh Hopwood-Shelby - 6-0, Senior (15.1 ppg/5.1 rpg)
Andy Hughes-Elwood - 6-3, Senior (23.5 ppg/12.9 rpg)
Courtland Grant-Omaha Nation - 6-2, Senior 19.9 ppg/10.0 rpg)
*Class D-1 All-State Honorable Mention:
*Seniors: Josh Stahr-Amherst; Chris Tietz-Bancroft-Rosalie; David Zentner-Cedar Rapids; Brock Mickelson-Chappell; Justin Scherer-Clarkson; Bryce Hagen-Culbertson; Josh Raess-Deshler; Baxter Papik-Dorchester; Josh Koch-Eustis-Farnam; Josh Rhodd, Josh Simon-Falls City Sacred Heart; Josh Bradley-Franklin; Derek Fritzen, Cody Buhr-Freeman; Nathan Pfeifer-Humphrey; Lance Kosch, Aaron Fehringer-Humphrey St. Francis; Seth Adam-Hyannis; Lane Meyer, David Rippe-Johnson-Brock; Kelly Krings-Leigh; Paul Thorson-Mead; Daniel Woodburn-Medicine Valley; Tyler Jones-Nebraska Christian; Joe Kreifels-Nemaha Valley; Mike Parker-Omaha Nation; Ross Berg-O’Neill St. Marys; Matt Jochum-Osmond; Travis McCarter-Overton; Adam Wegner-Palmer; Shane Hansmeier-Paxton; Nate Phillips-Pleasanton; Andrew Carlson, Shawn Hanquist-Polk-Hordville; Andrew LaBeau-Potter-Dix; Grant Eberly-Red Cloud; Steve Gangwish-Shelton; Lance Goings-SE Consolidated; Jeff McBride-South Platte; Shane Hanson-Stromsburg; Rogan Einspahr, Marty Wheeler-Wauneta-Palisade.
Juniors: Jeremy Prechl-Cedar Bluffs; Nathan Karnatz-Clay Center; Justin Schardt-Deshler; Todd Spohn-Friend; Scott Krause-Hyannis; Joel Grotrian-Johnson-Brock; Garrett Engelhardt-Kenesaw; Matt Woods-Maxwell; Patrick Houser-Meridian; Josh Vanderslice-Omaha Central Christian; Adam Ickes-Orchard; Tim Krab-Paxton; Mike Smith-Sargent; Marcus Gillespie-Shelby; Mke Lwe-Shelton; Brent Shubert-SE Consolidated; Greg Agena, Jake Weyers-Sterling; Nate Polak-Waterloo.
Sophomores: Jordan Downey-Anselmo-Merna; David Wegener-Humphrey St. Francis; Kyle Campbell-Medicine Valley; Corbin Biltoft-Nelson; Grant Willits-Osceola, Mike Leetch-Sargent; Chad Cruise-St. Edward.
*2000 Class C-2 All-State Team*
Chris Wagner-West Point Central Catholic** - 6-3, Senior (19.8 ppg/5.2 rpg)
Joe Sochor-Doniphan** - 6-5, Senior (21.1 ppg/7.0 rpg)
J.D. Roberts-Ponca** - 6-6, Senior (16.0 ppg/10.3 rpg)
Kyle Struebing-East Butler - 6-4, Junior (22.5 ppg/11.5 rpg)
Matt Mezger-Humboldt/Table Rock-Steinauer - 6-0, Senior (21.0 ppg/4.0 rpg)
2nd Team:
Neil Wortman-Hartington Cedar Catholic - 6-4, Junior (17.5 ppg/6.5 rpg)
Mitch Strathman -Randolph- 6-4, Senior (16.5 ppg/8.0 rpg)
Jared Meyers-Centura - 6-0, Junior (16.6 ppg/4.5 rpg)
Jeremy Closter-Creighton - 6-10, Senior (21.0 ppg/13.9 rpg)
Danny Kanhaphanh-Tecumseh - 6-1, Senior (18.2 ppg/3.7 rpg)
*Class C-2 All-State Honorable Mention:
Seniors: Kyle Ropers-Axtell; Dan Masters, Eric Volk-Battle Creek; Klint Andreas-Bayard; Mike Ford-Bertrand; Jason Florell-Elm Creek; Phil Sorensen-Emerson-Hubbard; Jason Krajewski-Garden County; Justin Williams-Grant; Jason Folkers-Hartington; Justin Yost, Nick Voorhees-Harvard; Spencer Meyer-Hebron; J.J. Gonzales-Hemingford; Trevor Hightree-Homer; Matthew Gall-Howells; A.J. Landon-Kearney Catholic; Jeff Hollenhors-Lakeside Central; Evan Smith-Laurel-Concord; Brett Sailors-Lyons-Decatur NE; Tony Moseman-Oakland-Craig;Mike Lienau-Palmyra; Adam Poulasky-Ponca; Dave Mazek-Ravenna; Charles Hickman-Rock County; Kirby Rising-Sutherland; Ben Kauk-Sutton; Russ Plager, Dustin Bents-Humboldt-TRS; Dan Jones-Tecumseh; Bruce Hohman-Weeping Water; Matt Ridder-West Point CC; Dusty Timm, Josh Christie-Yutan.
Juniors: Brad Braithwait-Arapahoe; Tim Baack-Bloomfield; Lance Summey-Burwell; Clint Duis, Alex Renshaw-Diller-Odell; Troy Benes-East Butler; Eric Prososki-Genoa; Matt Hames, Jeff Jones-Hartington Cedar Catholic; Shawn Donahue-Kearney Catholic; Matt Schroeder, Nathan Beckman-Laurel-Concord; Kirk Eriksen-Oakland-Craig; Nate Hatcher-Palmyra; Evan Uthof-Ponca; Dusty Backer-Randolph; Bronsen Schliep-Sandy Creek; Kyle Fletcher, Tony Boettcher-Spencer-Naper; Mike Jones-Sutton; John Barnett-Humboldt-TRS; John Kreikemeier-West Point CC; Steve Thomas-Wood River.
Sophomores: Dion Parks-Dundy County; Derric Werner-Elkhorn Valley; Tyler Colvin-Harvard; Josh Badura-Loup City; Kevin Smith-North Platte St. Pats, Kevin Soderholm-Sutherland.
*2000 Class C-1 All-State Team*
Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic** - 6-5, Senior (20.0 ppg/9.0 rpg)
Alex Shada-Wahoo** - 6-3, Junior (17.5 ppg/7.5 rpg)
Kevin Clanton-Elkhorn Mt. Michael - 5-10, Senior (14.0 ppg/2.0 rpg)
Andrew Drevo-Lincoln Christian - 6-9, Senior (15.7 ppg/10.0 rpg)
Zac Fredrickson-Fairbury - 6-2, Senior (17.3 ppg/7.3 rpg)
2nd Team:
Jason Buckles-Broken Bow - 6-0, Senior (20.8 ppg/9.5 rpg)
Alex Shada-Wahoo - 6-3, Junior (17.5 ppg/7.5 rpg)
Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic - 6-5, Junior (20.0 ppg/9.0 rpg)
Daryl Werner-Syracuse - 6-6, Senior (13.5 ppg/7.5 rpg)
Dusty Keiser-Norfolk Catholic - 6-4, Junior (22.9 ppg/3.9)
*Class C-1 All-State Honorable Mention:
Seniors: Ben Biehl, Bob Sealock-Adams Central; Eric Havranek, Willie Uhing-Ainsworth; Ryan Meister-David City Aquinas; Corey Dunklau-Arlington; Todd Peterson-Bishop Neumann; Jarod Dean-Bridgeport; Josh Marple-Broken Bow; Bill Cox-Central City; Robert Catches-Chadron; Ryan Tarnik-Columbus Scotus; Jason Ritterbush-Cozad; Evan Neeson, Jesse Ronkar-David City; Landon Stewart,John Southwick-Fairbury; Todd Adams, Aaron Langhorst-Fremont Bergan; Jeremy Bishoff-Geneva; Jeremy Yilk-Gothenburg; Jay Wissing, Jeremiah Stump, Jamie Douglas-Grand Island Central Catholic; Tyler Peper-Hastings St. Cecilia; Landon Goertzen-Heartland; Matt Miller-Hershey; Ryan Bourtier-Kimball; Zach Willet-Lincoln Lutheran; Rustin Riley-Milford; Brent Suing-Elkhorn Mt. Michael; Dusty Keiser, Jamie Otto-Norfolk Catholic; Josh Herbers-O’Neill; Travis Christiansen-Plainview; Kyle Anderson-Raymond Central; Kyle Fults-Southern Valley; Mike Meekins-Superior; Jeff Adamson-Valentine; Chad Sievers-Valley; Josh Kasischke, Jake Simon-Wahoo; Joel Munson-Wayne; Jared Rentschler-West Holt; Nathan Erb-Wilber-Clatonia.
Juniors: Brent Prohaska, Jordan Maly-Bishop Neumann; Matt Hanna, Mike Smith-Chase County; Jeff Kosch-Columbus Scotus; Scott Lovercheck-Fort Calhoun; C.J. Rust-Geneva; Blake Lambert-Gothenburg; Justin Lewallen, Curtis Loontjer-Lincoln Lutheran; Blake Rotherham-Madison; John Upton-Milford; Derrick Gomez-Minden; Nathan Lashley-Mitchell; Brian Buller-North Bend; Luke Peltz-Ord; Riley Anderson-Stanton; Barry Janssen-Syracuse; Russ Panko-Tekamah-Herman; Seth Brown-Valley; Eric McLagan-Wayne; Josh Lamberson-Wilber-Clatonia.
Sophomores: Ben Schmidt-Bennington, Andy Klepper-Centennial; Calvin Kapels, Dusty Jura-Columbus Lakeview; Jon Ziegler-Lincoln Lutheran; Neil Hines-North Bend; Steve Nelson-Ord; Travis Test-Pierce; M.J. Hrabik-Syracuse.
*2000 Class B All-State Team*
Nick Heiser-Lincoln Pius X** - 5-10, Senior (14.0 ppg/2.0 rpg)
Chad Sheffield-Grand Island Northwest*** - 6-3, Senior (18.0 ppg/4.0 rpg)
Jason Jisa-Seward - 6-5, Senior (11.7 ppg/7.8 rpg)
Nate Bennett-McCook - 6-7, Senior (14.6 ppg/7.3 rpg)
Micah Kohls-Aurora - 6-6, Junior (21.0 ppg/10.6 rpg)
2nd Team:
Garrett Wyman-Alliance - 6-5, Senior (13.0 ppg/5.2 rpg)
Brent Heller-Omaha Roncalli - 6-2, Senior (16.2 ppg/5.3 rpg)
Brian Jakubowski-Schuyler - 6-5, Senior (17.8 ppg/4.1 rpg)
Jarod Obering-Beatrice - 5-9, Junior (16.0 ppg/4.1 rpg)
Tony Wilbrand-Alliance- 6-10, Junior (16.0 ppg/10.0 rpg)
*Class B All-State Honorable Mention:
*Seniors: Matt Brockemeier-Aurora; Rafael Oman-Beatrice; Beau Egger-Crete; Jared VanAnne, Beau Bump-Elkhorn; Shane Fitts, Brad Hardin-Gering; Marcus Kershaw, Kirk Meyer-Grand Island Northwest; Andy Little-Hastings; Chris Erickson, Brian Riddle-Holdrege; Matt O’Brien-Lexington; Travis Kerkman, Brandon MCAllister, Ryan Polak-Lincoln Pius X; Clint Coleman, Preston DeVaughn, Joe Townsley-McCook; Bubba Kastanek-Norris; Nick Staroski-Omaha Gross; James Boone, Gavin Milks-Platteview; T.J Wilson, Tim Winters-Plattsmouth; Ben Holling-Ralston; Matt Guyman, Dustin Johnk-Schuyler; Brett Lofink-Scottsbluff; Brett Wobken, Mike Shively-Seward; Dan Dorwart-Sidney; Tommy Flynn, Ben Hornbeck-South Sioux City; Garth Glissman, Justin McGill, Tanner Persinger-Waverly.
*Juniors: Tony Essay-Alliance; Dan Whisler, Eric Moody-Auburn; Nate Wittstruck-Crete; Brian Trader-Hastings; Ben Bixenmann, Mitch Helman-Lincoln Pius X; Cody Behrends-Norris; Sean Mallory-Omaha Roncalli; Mark Segrist-Scottsbluff.
*Sophomores: Cody Hoegh-Aurora; Turner Trofholz-Schuyler.
*2000 Class A All-State Team:
Richard Ross-Lincoln High- 6-5, Senior (24.0 ppg/6.0 rpg)
Zach Fortune-Bellevue West - 6-1, Senior (22.0 ppg/4.1 rpg)
Nick Branting-North Platte - 6-6, Senior (18.5 ppg/10.0 rpg)
Kyle Bakker-Millard West** - 6-9, Senior (19.0 ppg/9.8 rpg)
Tola Dada-Omaha Burke - 6-6, Senior (18.5 ppg/6.5 rpg)
2nd Team:
David Goeschel-Omaha Westside - 6-9, Senior (20.5 ppg/4.5 rpg)
Jake Muhleisen-Lincoln Southeast - 6-2, Junior (16.1 ppg/3.7 rpg)
Jimmy Motz-Lincoln Northeast - 6-7, Junior (18.0 ppg/7.0 rpg)
Ty Graham-Lincoln High** - 5-9, Senior (14.0 ppg/3.0 rpg)
Brian Dunagan-Grand Island - 6-1, Senior (18.9 ppg/5.5 rpg)
*Class “A” All-State Honorable Mention:
*Seniors: Chris Kessell, David Finklea-Bellevue East; Marty Levinson, Jake Fredenburg, Todd Severson, Will Guthrie-Bellevue West; Travis Chmelka-Fremont; Drew Anderson-Kearney; Jeremy Parks-Lincoln High; Rick Dietze-Lincoln East; Vernon Giles, Luke Hansen-Lincoln NE; Wyatt Schmitt-Lincoln SE; Chris Appuhn-Millard North; Sam Garden-Norfolk; Jacob Mohs, Zach Smith-North Platte; Justin Rickley, Mike Sorensen-Omaha Benson; Dan Lund, Mark Violett-Omaha Burke; Ben Jacobson-Omaha Central; Justin Albrecht-Omaha North; Marcus Lawson-Omaha NW; Donnell DeLeon-Thompson-Omaha South; Grant Hauptman-Omaha Westside and Jason Burch-Papillion LV.
*Juniors: Trent Mitchell-Bellevue West; Andy Brown, Drew Snyder, Elijah Starzl-Columbus; Jesse Shaw-Lincoln East; Barrett Ruud-Lincoln SE; Matt Turner-Millard South; Daniel Bruce-Millard West; Chris Denny-Norfolk; Arthur Boults, Cameron Lollar-Omaha Benson; Greg Stevenart-Omaha NW.
*Sophomores: Shaun Wisdom-Bellevue West; Nedu Onyeuku-Creighton Prep; Wes Wilkinson-Grand Island; Jason Dourisseau-Omaha Burke.
*2000 Super-State 1st Team:
Richard Ross-Lincoln High- 6-5, Senior (24.0 ppg/6.0 rpg)
Zach Fortune-Bellevue West - 6-1, Senior (22.0 ppg/4.1 rpg)
Nick Branting-North Platte - 6-6, Senior (18.5 ppg/10.0 rpg)
Kyle Bakker-Millard West** - 6-9, Senior (19.0 ppg/9.8 rpg)
Tola Dada-Omaha Burke - 6-6, Senior (18.5 ppg/6.5 rpg)
*2000 Super-State 2nd Team:
Jake Muhleisen-Lincoln Southeast - 6-2, Junior (16.1 ppg/3.7 rpg)
Jimmy Motz-Lincoln Northeast - 6-7, Junior (18.0 ppg/7.0 rpg)
Brian Dunagan-Grand Island - 6-1, Senior (18.9 ppg/5.5 rpg)
David Goeschel-Omaha Westside - 6-9, Senior (20.5 ppg/4.5 rpg)
Nick Heiser-Lincoln Pius X** - 5-10, Senior (14.0 ppg/2.0 rpg)
*2000 Super-State 3rd Team:
Ty Graham-Lincoln High** - 5-9, Senior (14.0 ppg/3.0 rpg)
Chad Sheffield-Grand Island Northwest*** - 6-3, Senior (18.0 ppg/4.0 rpg)
Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic - 6-5, Junior (20.0 ppg/9.0 rpg)
Ben Jacobson-Omaha Central - 6-6, Senior (20.1 ppg/10.2 rpg)
Adam Lamprecht-Fremont - 6-4, Senior (20.1 ppg/3.4 rpg)
*****************************************
Players from 2000 who made the Career lists on the NSAA Records site:
*Most Points-Career:
1,705 - Matt Mezger-Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer (83rd)
1,584 - Tanner Anderson-Paxton (Tied 133rd)
*Most Points-One Game:
50 - Oswaldo Medina-Niobrara (Tied 17th)
*Three Point Goals-Career:
227 - Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic (Tied 17th)
203 - Matt Jochum-Osmond - (Tied 29th)
178 - Matt Hames-Hartington Cedar Catholic -(Tied 43rd)
168 - Jason Krajewski-Garden County - (Tied 52nd)
152 - Kyle Fults-Southern Valley (Tied 75th)
*Three Point Goals-Season:
89 - Jeremy Wissing-Grand Island Central Catholic (Tied 11th)
79 - Josh McCloud-Newman Grove (Tied 21st)
75 - Kirk Meyer-Grand Island Northwest (Tied 25th)
72- Toby Cox-Hayes Center (Tied 28th)
*Three Point Goals-One Game:
9 - Klint Benson-Fort Calhoun (Tied 5th)
9 - A.J. Landon-Kearney Catholic (Tied 5th)
*Three Point Goals-Team-One Game:
17 - Southern Valley (Tied 5th)
*Three Point Goals-Team-Season:
200 - Grand Island Central Catholic (Tied 16th)
151 - Southern Valley (Tied 52nd)
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