Can't say enough about G-Town!

Well, the High School Basketball season is now officially over. In a great sectional final Bishop Dwenger defeated Concordia 46-40 in the Paul Bateman Gymnasium. The game was a battle throughout with great defense and really good solid basketball. All throughout the tournament I got great comments about our sectional and the facilities at GHS. Every team regardless wether they won or lost thanked us for all our hard work. The Coaches, Players, Fans, School Administrators from each of the other schools couldn't say enough good things about G-Town.  The credit goes to a great group of workers and community members who take pride in our school and community.

Number one on that list is my wife. She is a truly dedicated supporter of GHS Athletics. All year long she works hard to keep score at every single home and road basketball game. Then she takes care of all the hospitality rooms on Friday  and Saturday Nights. (No wonder I have a hard time losing weight.) She is amazing and she deserves a big part of the credit.

Then there is my other wife. (Sorry, Ron!) Becky Blotkamp has been and always will be one of the best GHS Supporters ever and one of my closest friends! I know she gets paid to be the Athletic Secretary, (not enough in my mind), but she is the heart and soul of the Athletic Department. If you want to know who puts together all the details for an athletic season, Becky is the answer. She keeps me on track and makes sure things all get done like they should. Their is no one with a greater heart for GHS than Beckaroo! Thanks Beck for all your hard work!

But, these two great ladies are just the tip of the iceberg. Greg Griffin, Bob Novy, Matt Beerbower, Chad Sutton, George Wilmore, Barney Mahnesmith, Jake "the spin doctor" Clifford, Becky and Stephanie, all make up the best Basketball Score Bench of any school in Northern Indiana. The way you can tell how great they are? Nobody notices they're even their. They were flawless this year and wonderful to work with.

I also want to give a lot of credit to Patti Weller. She is my right arm at games. She takes care of the workers and is a great team hostess. She is another one of those behind the scene workers nobody knows about. Thanks Patti!

We also have a great set of gate workers, Kim Evans, Ginger Simon, Becky Thomas, Mary Baker, and Laura Souder are all top notch and make sure we get very dime we can to keep the athletic department running smooth.

Gaylon Wisel and an assortment of Garrett Police Officers are also dedicated and make sure our games are a safe place to be.

During the sectional we had a great set of Official Hostesses, Becca Oliver, Alaina Creager, and Katie DePew were awesome. But throughout the year we had some great student help with the floors, Brandon Porter, Brandi Dawson, Connor Meehan, Katie Wisel, Chase Hall, and many others were always willing to help, even though it would cost me a couple Chik-Filet sandwiches.

We had great support this year from Cathy Tinkler and Dekalb Health Services and we appreciate the time they dedicate to our kids.

Last but certainly not least is the great custodial staff at Garrett Schools. They work many, many hours setting up and tearing down for nearly 50 ball games and winter events. Trust me when I say it gets pretty old pulling and pushing bleachers and trash for ball games. But, Rosemary Blust and her entire crew always return the school to Pristeen shape after every game. Thanks!

As you can see, the great praise isn't for the Athletic Director, it's for a great group of hardworking, dedicated Railroader supporters. THEY ARE THE REASON our visiting teams and fans thank us continually for the great tournament and season. THANKS ALL OF YOU! I AM PROUD OF YOU!

Game On!

The Garrett Girls vs Prairie Heights Varsity/JV Basketball game WILL be played tonight with a JV tip-off at 6pm.  The main roads are just wet and slushy. The backroads may still be slick in spots. SO, be careful if you plan on attending the game or one of the scheduled practices.

The Wrestlers are practicing NOW and the Boys Basketball team is practicing at 2pm. The girls team will come in early, 4:40pm to shoot around before the game.

IF you can not arrive at the practice or game safely, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO COME! Players will not have consequences for players who feel they can not get to the school safely.

Basketball games - What Door? Chuck-A-Duck, and More!

This week the Lady Railroader Basketball team will open the Winter season with two home games. The question of the Day? What Door can we use to get to the Bateman Gym?

For Both Boys and Girls Basketball games, the "Performing Arts Center" entrance will be the main entrance. However, we will also have door #3 open for all games. Door #3 is located on the Northside of the school off of Houston Street and is located between the Elementary and the High School.  Parking for this entrance can be found in the Temporary Faculty lot, visitors lot, and some spots between the two schools. There are not many parking spots so if you arrive late, your best chance for parking will be Door #10 (PAC entrance).

This year  CHUCK-A-DUCK will once again be THROWN from the Upper Deck. HOWEVER, we will NOT have a special toss for the little kids. ALL DUCKS WILL BE THROWN FROM UPSTAIRS REGARDLESS OF AGE. When we had the ducks thrown from the floor, we had several people LIE about the ages of those kids. It became difficult to mointor. SO, ALL Ducks will Fly from the Balcony at Halftime of the Varsity games. We have some great prizes so by your ducks and support a variety of groups and organizations!

Cost for all games is $5 or your Big Train Ticket. IF YOU FOGET YOUR BIG TRAIN TICKET, you will have to pay to get in the game or go home and get your ticket. Why? Believe it or not we have people who are giving their Big Train tickets to others to use. You can NOT transfer your ticket to someone else. It is only for your use AND you must have separate tickets for all your family members.

10-0 + ACAC INFORMATION

Well, the Big Train keeps rolling. The tracks aren't as smooth as they should be but the Lady Railroaders keep finding ways to win. The team defeated a good Fremont team (6-2) by a score of 42-32.  Fremont shot 33% from inside the arc while the Railroaders only shot 30%. However, Garrett was 4 of 9 from behind the 3 point line while Fremont was 1 of 7. In all other stats the two teams were pretty evenly matched.  Garrett was led by senior Heather House with 15 points, Megan Getts had 8 and Katie Depew had 7 points. Fremont had two in double figures, Carlson and Kobalek.

The Lady Railroaders will travel to  South Adams on Saturday night for the last game before the Christmas break.

Today, the ACAC Tournament draw was held in Decatur. This tournament is the longest running tournament in the State, 2nd only to the IHSAA tournament.  Both Railroader Basketball teams will travel to Heritage High School on Tuesday, January 11th. The Boys will open the night at 6pm followed by the Girls game at approximately 7:30.  The reason for the switch is that the Boys Semi-Finals are at the Coliseum on Wednesday, while the Girls Semi-Finals are on Thursday.  The early Boys game gives them the opportunity to go home early on Tuesday so they will be fresh to play on Wednesday.

The Garrett teams would face either South Adams or Woodlan in the Semi-Finals.  Garrett's Semi-Final game times would be at 7:30pm on Wednesday or Thursday. The Championship games will be played at the Coliseum on Saturday. The girls will play at 10am followed by the Boys at Noon.  Good Luck during the tournament.