Upper Sandusky Rams/Northern 10 Athletic Conference News

Upper Has to be able to Handle it

Click here to listen to an interview with coach Jeff Winslow

          Upper Sandusky travels to Galion to face the Tigers in a division IV sectional final on Thursday night.

          The Rams have a very young team this season and when it comes to the postseason coach Jeff Winslow says sometimes that can be good.  “Yeah, they don't know what's going on.  They just want to go out and play, so it's just another game to them.  They can't wait to get out there.  We've had a really good week of practice again, so I'm doing some good things right now hopefully we can play well (Thursday) night,” said Winslow.

          Upper (8-14) is at Galion (6-16) on Thursday night.  The Tigers have won only one game since the new year.

          However, Winslow says they have some guards that can play.  “They have some good guard play.  They have got some guards that can shoot it.  They have got a couple that can get to the rim really well.  They're one big guy can go inside, outside, he's a big, strong kid.  He played linebacker for them on the football team,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They have an athletic five man that can rebound and score inside.  So, they're going to be physical with you at the defensive end and play a lot of half court man, get up then you.  They like to run a little bit, but they do a really good job of the guards shooting basketball.”

          Winslow says they put a lot of pressure on the ball and Galion rebounds pretty well too.  “They really put a lot of ball pressure on you in the half court and do a good job of trying to take away your stuff.  Their two post players are about 6’3” and they rebounded pretty well.  So, it's a lot of one and done.  They've created some problems with their pressure on the basketball.  So, you have got to be able to handle that to score,” he said.

Published 2/26/26

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Upper Has to do Stuff Right

          Upper Sandusky is at home for Bucyrus in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          They lost a tough one to traditional power Ottawa-Glandorf (45-44) in overtime on Tuesday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they had every chance to win.  “We played really well and we pretty much had the game in hand all we had to do was make some free throws and just did not make free throws down the stretch, it's a shame.  We had a chance to win it with a free throw and regulation didn't do that.  Overtime was quite a battle.  There's a loose ball foul call with no time on the clock and they made a free throw.  So, it was a game with the way we played and the way it was going we should have won.  We've had the lead in the fourth quarter in eight of our losses this year, so we have got to figure out a way to get over that hump against the good teams.  We have got to finish it off with holding that lead,” he said.

          Winslow says they need to continue to work on ways to develop and win games at the end.  “We have got a lot of young kids that haven't been in those situations before and they're learning on the fly.  It seems like every time you solve one situation a different one comes up there.  So, it was a great learning experience.  It was a tournament atmosphere, a tournament like game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We played really well against a team that’s 15-5 and plays in a tough league and plays a tough non league and they're really big, athletic and traditionally has been really good.  It would have been nice to get over the hump, but we got to use that to keep playing well and start pulling some wins out and those situations.”

          Upper Sandusky (7-14,6-7) plays host to (2-18,1-12) on Friday night.  Carey hammered the Redmen (61-34) on Thursday night.

          The Rams smoked Bucyrus (70-28) on January 9.

          Winslow says they Redmen actually do some good things.  “We played really well that game.  They didn't have the (Dylan) Coppler kid in that game.  He's now back, I just went and saw them (Thursday) night.  He makes a big difference because he can rebound for them, score inside, athletic kid, their leader, so he makes them a lot better.  He's been back a couple games, so that poses a little bit of a threat for us because we don't have a whole lot of size.  So, we have got to make sure we take care of him.  I just think their coach does a really good job.  They run a lot of good stuff, a lot of good actions.  They're just really young and inexperienced as well with a lot of positions.  I think he puts them in good spots.  So, we have got to be able to just be fundamental on both ends of the floor and rebound and we should be okay and if not then, it'll be a game,” said Winslow.

Published 2/20/26

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Upper Needs to Make Shots

          Upper Sandusky plays at Mohawk in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          The have lost five of their last six, two of them to Colonel Crawford, including last Friday when they fell (49-37) to Seneca East in an “N10” game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they just didn’t make shots, especially in the fourth quarter.  “We led most of the game till the end of the third quarter and then just the fourth quarter we had a really bad fourth quarter couldn't put the ball in the basket, only scored four points.  Then we had to start doing some things that we wouldn't normally do,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “They were taking the air out of the ball there with a little bit of lead.  It was closer than the 10 points or whatever it ended up.  Just got to be more consistent at the offensive end.  We just have struggled at times to put the ball in the basket and we picked the fourth quarter to do that the other night.”

          Winslow says their shooting has been inconsistent and that’s frustrating to say the least.  “I know how good of shooters we have and we've been inconsistent shooting it.  To see all those shots go up.  We were 2-22 from three.  It's going to be tough for us to win if we don't put in the ball hoop better than that.  It's frustrating to be that inconsistent when these kids are really good shooters.  So, just got to learn to score in the paint a little more to help that out and maybe get a little bit better shot and they'll start falling,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (7-12,6-6) is over at Mohawk (8-10,3-7) on Friday night.  The Warriors won their last league game in beating Buckeye Central (44-39) on Friday night.

          The first game was won by Upper (49-43) on January 3.

          Winslow says this is a lot better team than they saw then.  “They've improved a lot, playing a lot more confidence.  His teams are always playing better at the end of the year than they do at the beginning.  He's got a young team kind of like us.  They have really improved and won some games over the past six or seven games.  So, going over there.  We got them the first time.  We need to be ready to take them on again because they're a lot better group right now than they were first time around,” said Winslow.

Published 2/11/26

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Upper With a Tough Challenge

          Upper Sandusky entertains unbeaten Colonel Crawford in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Thursday night.

          They will be down the road at Wynford in a “N10” game on Saturday.

          They lost a couple of games last weekend to Carey (52-44) in a league game on Friday and (64-52) to Riverdale in non-conference play on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they just weren’t very good.  “Give credit to Carey and Riverdale, they both played well, but we did not have a very good weekend and didn't play really well defensively.  It's kind of a letdown and it was a little bit disappointing weekend.  We had won four or five going in and just didn't play well enough to win those games,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (6-9,5-3) plays at home against Colonel Crawford (12-0,8-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Thursday.  The Eagles destroyed Mohawk (66-26) in a league game last Thursday.

          Winslow says they’re physical and Brayden Holt is an outstanding point guard.  “The first two things that stick out is number one, they're so dang big.  They're big, strong, physical kids.  They're look like a men’s rec city league team out there.  They all look like they’re in their early 30s.  The point guard, he's something special.  He just plays at his own pace whether that's fast or slow.  He's so good at playing off two feet and faking and pivoting,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “He'll take the shot if he has it, if not, he finds guys that are open.  Their role players on the perimeter do a good job of just spotting up and making open threes.  Payne’s brother (John DGray), he's a really good athlete in there, he's a really good defender.  They’ve got five really good guys and they all fit together really well.  They rebound the heck out of the basketball as well at both ends.”

          Upper beat Wynford (67-66) in overtime back on December 19.

          Winslow says it’s a team that can score it.  “They are kind of like us, they're really young and they have got some guys that that they can play, but they're still learning how to win and things like that.  I honestly haven't seen them recently.  I have got to get on that here pretty soon, but I would think that they've improved since game one as well.  So, I'll get as soon as we get done with this Crawford game I'll be watching a lot of film on them to see some of the changes they've made.  They have got the two guards that can handle it and put the ball in the basket.  So, you definitely got to contain those two guys,” said Winslow.

Published 1/29/26

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Upper Still Maturing

          Upper Sandusky will be at home for Carey, the second place team in the “N10” in a conference game on Friday night.

          They play at Riverdale in non-league play on Saturday night.

          They beat Buckeye Central (53-29) for their third consecutive win on Saturday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were able to pull away in the second half.  “We didn’t play really good in the first half.  It was kind of a tight game and made some adjustments.  I thought our kids came out the second half and really gave a great defensive effort and then committed to getting the ball inside.  Played a really good second half and a pretty good game overall over there on the road.  It's our first road win.  So, three in a row and four of our last five.  We are doing some good things.  We have got to keep getting better every day to keep that up,” he said.

          Upper (6-7,5-2) hosts Carey (4-6,4-1) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils hammered Bucyrus (69-27) in “N10” action on Saturday night.

          Carey won the first meeting (73-63) on December 11.

          Winslow says they are back headed in the right direction.  “Their best scorer, the (Brayden) Kitzler kid got hurt the week in practice right after we played them, so he missed four or five games.  They kind of struggled trying to figure out how to play without him.  The last three games he's made it back and there's so much better team with him.  He gives them consistent outside shooting and as the point guard he handles the ball and calms them down a little bit,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “With him back they're a very formidable team.  Last time we got down big and then came back and took the lead, but down the stretch and (Chase) Stone kid just manhandled us inside.  He’s just so active.  We have got to do a better job with being as active and him keep him off the offensive glass and keep them from getting the ball inside.  Kitzler hit some big shots on us.  We can't let him go off.  So, I think those are the two key players.  They’re a really athletic team that really gets after it.  They are very physical, hardnosed kids that hate to lose.  So, anytime you play them, it's going to be a battle.

          The Rams had a lot of inexperience at the beginning of the season, but Winslow says not anymore.  “We had a discussion about that (Wednesday) night.  We were making some mistakes in practice.  I said guys, this is game 14.  You're no longer the being young excuse you’ve had 14 varsity games.  So, with that experience I think we’re not the same team we were back early in the year because the kids know how to play through similar situations and know what to expect and growing up quite a bit.  We just have to keep getting better and improving.  It's nice to have some kids that have been through the wars.  They know how to react in situations and we’re better off,” said Winslow.

Published 1/22/26

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Upper Building Confidence

          Upper Sandusky takes its act to Buckeye Central for a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday night.

          The Rams have won three of their last four, including a (70-28) destruction of Bucyrus in a conference game last Saturday. 

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they have kind of put it in another gear.  “Yeah, we’re playing better.  What I like is when the games get close.  We had a couple close ones in our three out of four and our kids figured out ways to win in the end.  We weren't doing that early on.  They're starting to learn as far as things you need to do and not do to win games.  They learn every day.  We had a good week of practice again and you know a little bit of confidence and bounce in their step you start winning some games.  I like the direction we're headed and hopefully we can keep getting better every game,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (5-7,4-2) travels to New Washington on Friday night.  Buckeye Central (1-9,1-5) has lost its last six, including (59-25) to Carey last Friday in the “N10” and (54-51) to Mansfield St. Peter’s on Monday.

          Winslow says they can’t get any luck at all.  “They’ve had bad luck.  I mean injury, sickness, they’ve just had all kinds of things happen to them.  If they ever get all their guys on the court, they're a pretty solid basketball team.  The point guard's playing really well, he had 38 other night.  The big freshman, he's been hurt, I imagine he'll be back for our game,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “He hurt us a little bit last time we played with his size and rebounding and post play inside.  So, anytime you have got a big and a good point guard you can win games because those two things can dominate games.  We have got to come out and play a good game to beat Buckeye Central.”

          Winslow says if they can get another win Saturday, they will really start feeling good.  “We started off slow had a rough schedule early on.  Then the kids just kept grinding and now they get to see some good results and get a little win streak going would be real positive thing for these young guys.  The more comfortable they get and confidence they get with that the better we're going to play.  So, hopefully we can get another one here and get three in a row and then keep going with this thing,” he said.

Published 1/16/26

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Upper Must Keep Shelby Out of the Lane

          Upper Sandusky takes the bus to Shelby to take on the Whippets in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          The Rams (3-6) beat Mohawk (49-43) in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their defensive pressure was a key factor in the win.  “We did a lot of good things.  I would like start shooting the ball a little bit better.  We defended really well and created a lot of turnovers, 21 turnovers again we're creating over 20 turnovers a game.  We have got to convert some of those turnovers into more points.  Again, we are a young group and improving every day,” he said.

          Winslow says the kids are showing that they want to get better.  “We looked really good at practice (Monday).  It's nice for these guys to get a win.  It was a close game down the stretch.  We've had a few of those and that come on top.  This one we figured out a way to win.  So, it's nice for these kids to start to figure out how to win and then hopefully that will propel us here in the second half of the season,” said Winslow.

          Shelby (4-2) blasted Lexington (70-49) on Saturday night. They have a three game winning streak since the return of Brayden DeVito from injury.  They smoked Marion Pleasant (70-51) in an “MOAC” game on Friday night.

          Winslow says the Whippets are outstanding at converting those kick out threes.  “Well, anytime you have got a guy like (Brayden) DeVito you're going to be pretty good.  He's got a nice surrounding cast that can shoot the ball a little bit.  They’re athletic and they're a lot bigger and longer than us,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They're going to pose some problems with their physicality.  The big thing is you have got to keep the Devito and the (Kayden) Paz kid and (Landon) Foltz kid out of the paint because they get to the pain and then you know kick out those guys really do a nice job of hitting wide open threes.  So, we are going to have our hands full trying to keep those athletic guards out of the paint area.”

Published 1/06/26

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Upper Wants to Rebound and Run

          Upper Sandusky returns to Northern 10 Athletic Conference action on Saturday night as they play at Seneca East against the Tigers.

          They beat Wynford (67-66) in overtime in a conference game last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winlsow says they found a way to win.  “Anytime you get a win it's a good win.  They made 15 threes and to survive that onslaught of threes it's pretty good job of finding a way to get a victory.  We did a lot of good things.  We're improving every week, improving on a lot of things and then hopefully we can see more “W’s” as we go along here,” he said.

          Winslow is hoping they survive the holidays.  “Noticed that Monday already.  You could just tell and I wasn't very happy with Monday's practice I sent them home a little early.  You could just tell sleep patterns and some things they weren't doing and had a much better practice (Tuesday).  So, you try to tell the kids you have got to stay disciplined, you have got to still try to approach each day the same way you do if you have school with your eating and your sleep and things like that.  It's really important to try to do that, but it it's hard to keep that consistency that you have during the school week when the kids aren't in school,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (2-4,2-1) travels to Seneca East on Saturday.  The Tigers (7-1,3-1) hammered Danbury Lakeside (74-34) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Winslow says Luke Mason is really special.  “Luke Mason is really, really good.  He’s in the top three players in our league.  Super quick, handles the ball, can score, very smart player, unselfish, defensively he gets his hands on a lot of balls.  So, he's a tough to keep him under control with his quickness and ball handling,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “I think that's the key is to try to limit him taking over the game and try to make some of those other guys beat you.  Again, we have got to be on the glass.  Other than him, who's not very tall, they're all about 6’3”.  So, they have got some size and they can rebound a little bit and play a mix of 1-2-2 and 3-2 zones that if you're not attacking it aggressively can give you some problems.  So, hopefully we can get out in transition and get some easy ones and rebound the basketball.”

Published 12/24/25

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Upper Needs to Find a Way

          Upper Sandusky hosts Wynford in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          The Rams lost their last conference game (73-63) to Carey last week.  They lost (67-50) to Ontario in a non-league game on Tuesday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they have to get more rebounds.  “We've had a really rough schedule for a team that's this young.  Getting thrown into the fire right away.  The scores might seem a little with double digits, but we're in the game the whole game.  We just haven’t found a way to get over the hump.  It basically comes down to really one thing, there's lots of things we could do better, but we have got to rebound better.  We gave up 20 offensive rebounds against Carey.  We were down 20 and came back took the lead in the fourth quarter.  Against Ontario we gave up 17 offensive rebounds,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “You can't win basketball games when you get out rebounded that much.  I remember a quote from Charles Barkley.  What’s the key to rebounding and he said just go get the damn ball. I know we're not very big, but at some point you have got to figure it out and just go get the damn ball.  You can't just continually use size as an excuse.  We have got to find a way to rebound better to give ourselves a chance to beat those good teams.”

          Upper (1-4,1-1) has Wynford (2-2,1-1) on Friday night.  The Royals beat Buckeye Central (68-48) on Monday in an “N10” game.

          Winslow says their guard play is solid.  “Well, the two guards really stand out.  The (Drew) Stanek and the (Reed) Johnson.  Stanek played varsity all year last year.  Johnson's really grown.  He's about 6’1” now and he's put on some weight and he's really having a good year.  They're both shooting over 50% from three point line and they can score off the bounce.  They're very good scores.  Then the rest of their supporting casts can knock down shots.  They haven't really done that yet I don't think, but I think they're all capable of hitting that three point shot.  They're kind of young like us, so they've had a really nice start to the year.  So, you have got to shut those two guards down.  You give them open looks and it's like a layup for them.  So, it's going to be a tough task to keep them from scoring,” he said.

          Winslow says this young bunch he has needs to find a way to win.  “The worst game we've played this year, we won.  It's really weird isn't it?  We played decent most of the game but like it's about getting that “W”.  The one game we won ugly against Buckeye Central, but you got to figure it out.  It doesn't matter how pretty or ugly it is.  The one year David Sheldon over at Colonel Crawford they won a league title winning every game that way with a bunch of 6’6” post players that seemed like they had.  You just have got to find a way to win.  Hopefully, these young guys, they've won throughout their whole life.  They're not used to this and they don't like the taste in their mouth.  So, again until you hate losing bad enough.  I think they hate to lose and then you got to find a way to win,” said Winslow.

Published 12/19/25

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Upper Has to Shoot it

          Upper Sandusky plays at Carey in its next game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Thursday night.

          They battled past Buckeye Central (45-33) in their first “N10” game last Friday.  They lost Saturday (66-52) to Tiffin Columbian in a non-league game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they could have won Saturday too, but they have some things to learn.  “For our young guys it’s a learning experience.  We battled one out Friday to get the win.  Saturday, Columbian’s got a really nice team.  We got down early and battled back and it was a game the rest of the time.  We had our chances to make a nice run to maybe tie or get the lead, but they hit a big three and we'd have a defensive lapse or something like that.  So, we were right there and it was a good learning experience playing good team like them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “We're a team that shoots the three and we just didn't shoot the wall this weekend.  We have to shoot it decent to win games.  We were 6-30 or something like that.  We have got to shoot better.  Our turnovers weren't bad just not shooting very well and defensive rebound better that's a game that could have went the other way, but good learning experience.  It's nice to play teams that are really good like that so you know what you have to work on and just getting us ready for our conference season.”

          Winslow says they had a productive practice on Monday.  “We went over a bunch of stuff that just flat out have got to get fixed.  We talked about some of the stuff that we're doing well and some stuff that needs to get fixed.  We were hard on the guys (Monday) on getting that stuff fixed.  So, really good practice (Monday).  I thought we did some of those things a lot better and it’s just going to take reps for these guys to get some of those things down,” he said.

          It will be Carey’s first game of the season on Thursday and Winslow says it will be a test for them.  “They have a really good group, really athletic.  This junior class has always been a really good class for them, really athletic.  They have some kids that can shoot the ball.  They have got three or four kids who are really, really good from three point line.  Kyler Boes is a senior that is a really, really athletic and strong kid that can shoot it and handle it for them.  I know they are going to play a lot of pressure defense on us.  They like to run with it, so it's going to be a test.  They're going to be next to Crawford I think that's the next biggest test for us in the league is Carey.  They're going to win a lot of basketball games this year,” said Winslow.

Published 12/09/25

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Upper Working to Improve

          It’s the opening week of play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference this week and Upper Sandusky will host Buckeye Central on Friday night.

          In their first game of the season the Rams fell (69-63) to Willard in a non-conference game last week.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were in position to win, but couldn’t put it away.  “It was a really good game.  We have got some work defensively that we had to get done.  I think we just made some offensive errors at the end.  You have got a three point lead with a minute something you have got to close that game and we weren't able to do it.  We had some turnovers that hurt us.  We only had eight turnovers in the game, but we had three of them late that that really cost us.  We have got to get that shored up.  They're a good basketball team.  I thought we showed we're pretty good basketball team.  It was a really good game,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says he is confident these kids will improve because they really want to.  “These kids I mean they just take in all kinds of information.  They just want to get better.  They're really good in the film room and really good film sessions.  They have questions, they pay attention, they want to get better.  They don't want to make those mistakes.  They want to win and be good basketball players and a good team.  So, it's a real fun group to coach because it just seems like every day a little bit better at something.  So, I think we're going to be better in those situations and we get to show that this weekend,” he said.

          Buckeye also lost their opener (70-49) to Plymouth last week.

          Winslow says right now they are dealing with some injury problems.  “Well having some injury problems right now.  The Phillips twins, nice athletes, nice players, one I think just got hurt pretty bad and the other one didn't play the first game I'm not sure if he's going to be able to play or not.  So, they have had a good senior group, but they have lost a few of them.  so, I kind of feel bad for them and the coach and the players cause injuries that's a bummer,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “They have got a team that's got a lot of seniors that have played since they were freshmen.  They had a nice end of the year last year getting to the districts the first time in quite a few years.  They still have got some seniors that play the game and have had a taste of winning.  So, we have got to be ready and prepared to go over there because they're looking for their first win too.”

Published 12/05/25

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Upper Matching Young Groups with Willard

          Upper Sandusky will be at home for Willard to open the boys’ basketball season on Wednesday night.

          Both schools feature talented, but inexperienced lineups.

          Upper coach Jeff Winslow says you are never sure what you are going to get when they put the lights on for the first time.  He says he thinks they will be ready to play.  “Well, I hope so, but you never know that first game.  Sometimes it takes some time to settle in.  Everybody's always super ramped up and excited.  It's nice to have that first game at home.  I think that helps a little bit.  I guess you never really know what you're going to get until you get out there and start playing,” he said.

          Winslow thinks the Rams can both shoot the ball very well and defend the other guys too.  “One thing, we have got multiple guys that can shoot the ball.  We shoot the basketball really well.  Our pressure defenses are pretty good so far,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “I think we're going to be able to get out and play fast and then get up some threes.  That will allow our lack of size to rebound some missed threes because you'll have some longer rebounds.  I think overall we can really shoot the basketball pretty well and we defend pretty well.”

          When it comes to the Willard Flashes, Winslow believes they are a lot like them in many ways.  “They're just about like us, in the same boat.  Our freshman and sophomore classes have kind of battled Willard throughout the years in the off season.  Both groups were doing very good growing up.  We have got a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, both groups do, with a couple older guys.  So, we're kind of in the same boat.  We don't really know what you’re going to get because you have got younger guys playing that have never played.  They're younger guys, like ours, are really skilled, but until they get into the fire, we'll have to see how they react,” said Winslow.

Published 11/26/25

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Upper Having Fun

          Upper Sandusky is eager to get going with the basketball season, but they are going to have to wait three weeks.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says he has a lot of young kids that are a good combination of athleticism and shooting ability.  “Well, I like what I see so far.  What it is just nice about the summer is you get a pretty good picture of what you have going through a month or two with them.  We had some kids in the fall that didn't play sports, so we've had a little more time than a few days,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Some teams have got a lot of guys playing football and stuff, but we only have a few, so I've been around them all fall long and these first few days of practice have been great. We have got a young group with lots of athleticism.  A lot of kids that can shoot the ball.  They're going to be a lot of fun to watch.  We'll see how they grow up here and their going to have to grow up pretty fast to get some wins against some older teams.”

          Winslow says these kids have shown he willingness to get better and he thinks that will continue to happen.  “We have a scrimmage coming up here.  I'm anxious to see where we're at and then we can figure out what we do well, don't do well.  That's one thing that that makes coaching really fun with this group is you can really see progress day-to-day.  I have got a bunch of gym rats.  They've lived in the gym all year round and they soak up all the information.  They’re very coachable and then they get better every day.  It's fun to coach when you can see that you're making a difference with kids improving everyday,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says he is definitely having fun with this team.  “It's so much fun because you can just tell they can't wait to be in the gym.  We get done practicing they would still keep playing if you let them.  So, when you have got kids that like basketball just as much, or more than you do even, it's really, really enjoyable,” he said.

Published 11/05/25

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Upper has to Control Mohawk Athletes

          Upper Sandusky is at home for rival Mohawk on Friday night in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Mohawk trails Colonel Crawford and Carey by a game.

          Upper (3-4,2-2) has won two of its last three, including whipping Bucyrus (49-14) last week.

          Coach Russell Hall says they got great execution, something they have been waiting for.  “It was nice to see our boys execute.  I felt the games that we had lost we didn't do ourselves any favor.  That's something early on that I talked about with our team.  Good teams don't beat themselves.  It was kind of frustrating because we weren't helping ourselves.  We weren't executing, too many penalties missed assignments, etc. and it was nice to see on Friday solid execution in all three phases of the game. I thought we played very well on offense, defense and, special teams that were phenomenal for field position as well as we had a punt return for a touchdown.  So, it was just really nice to see that execution,” he said.

          Mohawk (6-1,3-1) is coming off a (50-14) destruction of Wynford last week.

          The Warriors won the “N10” last year and Hall says they haven’t missed a beat.  “It's a very well coached team, they're a very physical team, they're a very disciplined team.  They are 6-1 and they were one-yard away from getting the first down in the red zone to have a chance to even beat Crawford there when they hosted them at home.  They're a very, very good team this year. Hats off to coach (Eric) Daniel and his staff.  Those players are replacing all those guys that graduated last year there were multiple year starters.  I’m just super impressed watching them play.  They play the right way, they play physical, they play hard, they play disciplined.  They play a good brand of football.  They look a lot like good Warrior teams from the past,” said Hall.

          Mohawk quarterback Andon Clouse is the total offense leader in the conference and Hall says he is latest in a long line of quarterbacks at Mohawk.  “That goes back to the coaching staff.  They've run the same base offense, new wrinkles here and there, but they've done a great job since they've been coaching over there.  Coach Daniel and coach (Zach) Hawkins and those guys.  This is what we like to do and we like having an athlete at that quarterback position.  You go back, even a decade, they always seem to have just an incredible athlete at quarterback.  If nobody's open, he could always just take off and go.  They don't hesitate to call quarterback runs and things like that and at the same time they've had that athlete that that's a pretty good passer too,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “They normally do a good job going through their reads and hit their check down here and there and pretty accurate.  It's a very well run program.  They've got a lot of tradition there.  They have yet another guy, (Ben) Bogner, the guy that was there for three years before that.  I mean he left some giant shoes to fill.  Right now, their quarterback is doing a heck of a job.  He runs the ball, he throws the ball, he reads well and he's a very good player.”

Published 10/07/25

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Upper Ready to be Better

          Upper Sandusky Entertains Northmor in a non-conference football game on Friday night.

          Upper coach Russell Hall says his kids are working at doing the right things.  “We have seen less and less mistakes.  I love the fact that our team right now is extremely coachable, very hard working and they just wants to get better.  So, it's fun coaching that that type of kid,” said Hall.

          Hall says this year they have some experience and some younger kids too.  “It's a good mix, it really is.  On defense, we've got nine or 10 guys with multiple starting experience on defense back at some point in their career.  On offense, there's very few, so it's a good mixture,” he said.

          When it comes to Northmor, Hall says this is just a team that doesn’t make mistakes.  “You can tell, they're just very well coached, they're used to winning, super high level of execution on offense, on defense they do a fantastic job getting off blocks and getting to the ball,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “I told our team this year multiple times, good teams don't beat themselves.  They don’t make those big mistakes.  So far, from the scrimmage film we've traded it looks like Northmor is still doing that.  They're still taking care of the ball pretty much, they're not making the big mistakes and giving up the big plays and things like that.  They're very solid team still even with that great group of seniors that they had last year graduated.”

Published 8/22/25

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Upper Expects a Battle

          Upper Sandusky takes on Shelby on Tuesday night at Findlay High School in a division IV district semifinal.

          The winner returns Friday to face the winner of Tuesday night’s first game between Elida and Lima Bath.

          Upper (17-6) advanced to this game with a (63-41) win over Clear Fork on Thursday night at Upper.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their quick start was key.  “We came out and we were talking about having a great start and we got out to 11-0 start.  We moved the ball well, shot the ball well, defended and rebounded.  Our kids played a nice game and it’s a nice way to head into the tournament,” he said.

          Upper beat Shelby (62-56) in a game played on January 7 at Upper Sandusky.

          Winslow says the makeup of the teams is really kind of similar.  “We played them earlier in the season.  They're a little bit different and we're a little bit different.  We are kind of same team though.  Our team and their team kind of got the same type of personnel.  So, I think it's going to be a really close game like last time.  Whoever makes a couple clutch plays at the end of the game probably wins the game,” said Winslow.

          Shelby (15-8), who advanced to the state semifinals last year, but returned only one starter, and one other kid that played much, beat Ottawa-Glandorf (51-49) in overtime last Friday.

          The tournament tends to be more physical than the regular season and Winslow believes they are prepared for a slower whistle.  “Referees don't tend to call as much stuff.  They let a little more go on.  That's why we scheduled some teams this season that are a little more physical to try to get used to that situation,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “I think both our ballclubs have played teams like that and we're used to physical play. However, with the refs you have to adjust whoever adjusts the best usually comes out on top.”

Published 2/25/25

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10-11 PM

Upper Wants the Momentum

          Upper Sandusky entertains the Clear Fork Colts on Thursday night in a division IV sectional final.

          Upper (16-6) has won six of its last eight and shown confidence in their play, but coach Jeff Winslow says the postseason can be different.  “The one nice thing that makes us feel a little comfortable is we have got four seniors that have been through it a few times, so you feel a little more confident that they're going to come in and play well.  You have got a home game too, so that helps.  You hope they're going to come in and just play basketball like they've played all year, but you never know.  You're playing a different team than you normally play, and a different atmosphere, and a little more is on the line, the season is on the line.  So, you hope you get your best out of kids, but you never know,” said Winslow.

          Clear Fork (9-14) edged Ontario (40-38) in a semifinal played at Ontario on Tuesday.  Senior Garrett Hotz took a charge to preserve the win.

          Hotz is the second leading scorer and rebounder in the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference.

          Winslow says he’s a difference maker for the Colts.  “They're a nice group, young group and their best player is a senior, the (Garrett) Hotz kid and then the sophomore guard is a nice player who can shoot and he plays really under control.  So, those two guys really good offensively.  The other guys around them seem to be fairly athletic and play their role.  They mix up their defense.  They’re a team that has played with a lot of teams.  If you don't play well, it's going to be a long night for you,” he said.

          Winslow says he would prefer to have a quick start to grab the momentum.  “You always like to get off to a good start, you're playing a team that you have a better record than them.  They get off to a good start, now they start really believing they can beat you,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “It can be the opposite way around if you get off to a good start you off to a good start and they get down on themselves it's a little easier.  So, I think the first three minutes of the game and the first three minutes after halftime those are six really important minutes that will tell the tale.”

Published 2/20/25

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10-11 PM

Upper Needs to Keep Executing

          Upper Sandusky has a double weekend of league games in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference to close the regular season at Buckeye Central on Friday and home with Carey on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they want to keep getting better.  “We're just striving to execute a little better, just defend a little better, rebound a little better.  We've had a pretty nice season and had a pretty good run and we just got to stay consistent,” he said.

          Upper (14-6,8-4) plays at Buckeye Central (7-13,3-10) on Friday night.  The Bucks beat South Central (52-43) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Winslow says Buckeye is a team that can do some things.  “They've won more games they've won in quite a while.  They have got a good junior group that has been good all the way through ever since they were in junior high.  They have got three kids that really shoot the ball well.  They get to the rim.  They've been all man, but they started playing some 1-3-1 to give a different look.  I think that's been pretty successful for them,” he told Swanknsports.com on Thursday night, “We have to make sure that we take care of the ball against that 1-3-1 and get good looks.  Going over there the gym is a little bit tighter rims, a little bit bigger ceiling and just a little bit different shooting atmosphere.  So, you have got to make sure that if you're not hitting threes, you have got to get the ball inside.”

          The Rams beat Buckeye (58-33) on January 4.  They also beat Carey in their first meeting (61-50) on January 10.

          The Blue Devils got overwhelmed (81-21) by Old Fort in a non-league game on Tuesday night.

          Winslow says they are a better team than that.  “They're a younger group and he started playing a couple younger guys that were playing a little more JV minutes now they're playing all varsity minutes.  When you have got a younger group sometimes you're going to be inconsistent.  You go play an Old Fort that's a veteran team that really pressures the ball and traps and gets after it.  They fell behind the 8 ball early in that game and could never get out of that rut.  They’re a team that's capable of scoring the ball, and the shooting three.  They like to get up in you defensively and be physical and athletic.  So, that was just one of those games.  They have played a lot of games in a short amount of time lately because their football put them a little behind.  So, that we one of those games, they are a lot better team than that,” said Winslow.

Published 2/14/25

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Upper Has to Score

          Upper Sandusky plays at Northern 10 Athletic Conference co-leader Mohawk on Tuesday night in a conference game.

          The Rams stuffed Seneca East (50-38) last Tuesday in a conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says he was really pleased with how they defended the Tigers.  “We played really well.  Going over there is tough.  It’s a little bit different type of gym with the lighting and things and background that you have to adjust to.  A lot of times you don't shoot well over there, but we shot pretty decent.  They've won 13 games for a reason.  They have got two of the better guards in the area.  Our guys did a really good job of limiting those two.  We got double digit lead and kind of kept it there the rest of the game.  Pretty help happy anytime you go on the road at a place like that and get a win,” he said.

          Upper (13-4,7-3) is at Mohawk (15-1,9-1), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Tuesday night.  The Warriors manhandled Buckeye Central (78-37) on Thursday night in a league game and then smoked Hillsdale (62-38) in a tournament setting on Saturday.

          Winslow says they just do everything well.  “I know a lot about them, but I went and watched them live again when they played at Smithville, and a little tournament thing, against Hillsdale and man they're good, they're just good.  They have got a bunch of guys that can handle it. They got a bunch of guys who can shoot it.  10 seniors on the roster.  Their point guard, he's really tough to keep out of the paint and then the two wings really shoot the ball well.  The (Kahne) Hayman kid, one of the wings, he's a really hard guy to guard,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “He killed us the last time because he's so strong and athletic and he gets to the rim and he can shoot the three.  Then they have got a 6’7”, athletic kid inside that alters and block shots, rebounds and can score un putbacks and things.  So, they have got a real nice combination of guards and bigs and older guys that have played three or four years.  They're a really good team.  They are 15-1 for a reason.  So, to go over there and try to stay in the basketball game and get a win is going to be a tough task for us to play well.”

          Mohawk beat Upper Sandusky (56-30) on December 20 on a night when then Rams were dealing with some sickness.

          Winslow says they have to get better shots than they have been getting against the really good teams they have played.  “That was the problem the first time with Mohawk.  They kind of sped us up a little bit in the half court and it was too much one on five trying to beat people off the bounce.  We have played well lately by scoring a bunch of points.  We have moved the ball and shared ball, pass and cut.  We've got to commit to playing that type of basketball against their aggressive style.  If we do that we can score.  If we try to rely on one-on-one dribbling then it's going to be a long night.  They're hard to score against.  It’s tough to score in the paint because the 6’7” kid alters everything.  You are going to have to go over there and shoot well to loosen them up a little bit.  Hopefully, we do that with some good ball movement and then shot selection,” said Winslow.

Published 2/04/25

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Upper Sandusky Starting to Peak

          Upper Sandusky has won seven of its last nine heading to a meeting with Seneca East in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Thursday night.

          Last weekend, the Rams drilled Wynford (76-41) in an “N10” game on Friday and beat Riverdale (56-43) in non-conference action on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their outstanding play began on the defensive end.  “We had a nice weekend.  It all started at the defensive end.  We're playing well defensively and rebounding ball.  Then offensively we're just really moving the ball well and sharing and making extra passes.  We are putting four to five guys in double figures and when you do that you usually come out on top,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (12-4,6-3) plays at Seneca East (12-5,6-4) on Thursday night.  The Tigers smoked Ridgedale (61-31) on Tuesday night in a non-conference game.  They lost to Carey (62-53) in their last conference game last Friday.

          Winslow says they have to contain Luke Mason and Lucas Bordner, who both average between 15 and 18 points a game.  “They have got two dynamic guards that can really score it back from last year.  So, they have plenty of experience there and you have got to make sure you stop those two because those two can win games by themselves.  Anytime you play two guards like that.  That's the scary part about that because those two guys can go off at any moment.  So, you have got to make sure that you make them earn their points and then keep the other guys off the glass and things like that,” said Winslow.

          With six regular season games to play, Winslow says he likes the way they look heading toward the post season.  “I think the most important thing is our kids are playing a lot of confidence.  So, they just have really bought into defensive end and the scary part about us now is we're starting to shoot the ball so well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “The big thing about that is because playing inside out.  We're getting the ball to the paint.  We're throwing it into the post or we're getting there off the bounce and making extra passes and making inside out threes.  Those are just so much easier to put it in the basket.  I like the way they're playing, I like our chances.”

Published 1/29/25

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Upper Has Things to Play for

          Upper Sandusky is at home for Wynford on Friday night in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The Rams likely fell out of title contention when first place Colonel Crawford stuffed them (53-31) on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they just couldn't make shots.  “We just couldn't put the ball in the basket.  I thought we did some good things offensively and sometimes it just comes down you have to make some shots.  You make some shots it makes things easier for you and we just couldn't get the ball to go.  They played really well, so it's one of those games,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (10-4,5-3) entertains Wynford (1-11,1-8) on Friday night.  The Royals are coming off a (54-42) loss to Buckeye Central in conference play last Saturday.

          Upper won the first matchup (63-41) on December 12.

          Winslow says Wynford has an athletic guard, but they have had trouble scoring this year.  “A lot of Western Prenger, he's a really good player.  One of the better players in the league.  He can score a lot of different ways, a really athletic kid.  He's a tough person to guard because he can shoot from anywhere and extremely quick and athletic,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “They've started playing a little 1-2-2 and mixing up their defenses a little bit.  So, something different than they've had in the past.  They struggled to score.  Let's hope that we can come on out and defend and keep that up.  We'd like to get in transition and get some easy ones.”

          Upper may not win the “N10” title, but Winslow says there are other titles they can win.  “It doesn't look good for that, but like I told the team with the Ohio State Buckeyes they didn't win their league and they're sitting right now.  So, we've got stuff to play for.  We've got district titles and regional titles and things like that to play for.  If we don't get the league title nobody is even think about that if we can keep getting better and working toward those type of goals that we've had before the season started.  So, we have still got a lot of things to play for and we think we have got a good enough team that we could get there,” said Winslow.

Published 1/24/25

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Upper Faces Must Win

          Upper Sandusky has a couple of tough games on the schedule this week as they are at Bellevue for a testing non-conference game on Tuesday and have a rematch with Northern 10 Athletic Conference leader Colonel Crawford in North Robinson on Saturday.

          Upper beat Carey (61-50) in a conference game on Friday and Kenton (73-47) in a non-league game on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they continue to make a lot of shots.  “We have got guys believing in themselves.  We're playing good defense and rebounding the ball and that's allowing us to get out and get some easy ones and get comfortable.  We're moving the ball really well, which has really allowed us to shoot the ball really well.  We made seven threes Friday night and then another 10 on Saturday.  When you shoot the ball like that it gives you a really good chance to win,” he said.

          Upper is at Bellevue (9-3), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the league school division, on Tuesday night.  The Redmen are second place in the Lake Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference.

          Winslow says the Redmen have shooters and they still play outstanding defense.  “It's kind of different from the last few years.  They haven't really been a very good shooting team.  They've had some size and a really, really good defensive team.  Now they're a good defensive team that can shoot it.  They play basically four guards most of the night.  Not only can they shoot they can get to the paint and that leads to a lot of good shots for them because when they kick it out and those inside out threes or are really makeable.  They have got some kids that can shoot the ball even coming off the bench.  So, it's going to be a night where you have to do a good job of staying in front of people, so they don't get into the paint then have good close outs,” said Winslow.

          Upper (10-2,5-2) is at Colonel Crawford (11-1,7-0), #3 in our small school poll, on Saturday night.  The Eagles won the first game (44-42) on December 6.  However, the Rams led by eight with 2:30 to play in the game.

          Winslow says they just have to finish the game.  “We always look forward to that game, it's a lot of fun, it'll be a packed house, great atmosphere all the kids have fun, it's always a good game.  We feel like we kind of blew that one.  They earned it, they made some plays to earn the win.  We put ourselves in a good position to win late in the ball game and didn't come through, but we learned a lot from that game and have gotten a lot better at those things since then,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Sometimes as tough as it is to lose a game you learn a lot about yourself and you get a lot better from it.  I think we got a lot better from that loss by seeing some of the things we need to do to beat good teams.  So, really quality team that's really well coached by David (Sheldon) and it should be a fun one.  If we want to stay in this race, it's pretty much a must win for us.”

Published 1/14/25

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Upper Sandusky is Executing Well

          Upper Sandusky will make the short trip to Carey Friday for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The varsity game should tip about 6.

          The Rams beat Shelby (62-56) on Tuesday in a non-league game and they have won seven of their last eight.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they are executing well on both ends.  “We're playing really well.  Our kids have really bought into the defensive end and they kind of realize that if we're going to win basketball games it’s got to be at that end and we just come out and they just do a really good job of defending and rebounding.  Then our offense is getting better each week.  We're really, really moving the ball well and playing inside out and starting to really shoot the ball well.  Last year we only averaged three made threes a game and now we're over six almost seven made threes a game, that's double.  It's just the ball movement and the kids are making the extra pass and just playing pretty well right now,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says if you can consistently move the ball, you are going to get open shots.  “Roy Williams, I went and watched him at a clinic one time.  He talked about keep moving the basketball until the defense makes a mistake.  The defense can only play good defense for so long until there's going to be some breakdowns.  When you decide you're not going to take that that first look and keep moving the ball, it just leads to a great open look,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We call it the ball finds energy when you make the extra pass and then it goes through the hoop.  I just think kids have a lot of confidence when they have a wide open shot after they get really nice pass from teammate that’s talked about so much.  Hopefully, we can continue doing that, keep getting better, there's lots of areas we got to improve, but right now we're getting better every day.”

          Upper Sandusky (8-2,4-2) is at Carey (3-6,3-2) on Friday.  The Blue Devils have won their last two league games over Buckeye Central (58-29) and Bucyrus (66-49) on Saturday.

          Winslow says he realizes their potential.  “They lost seven seniors last year, so this junior group and this sophomore group has won a lot of basketball games as they've grown up, so they're pretty talented.  They're just trying to find their way into the varsity speed of the game.  They have got some guards that you can see that are pretty athletic and can shoot it that haven't shot it extremely well yet, but you can see that they're good shooters.  So, they're kind of finding their way through the varsity game and they're just a team's that going to get better every game.  So, anytime Carey and Upper play you're going to have to come out and it's going to be a dog fight, so it should be a fun game,” he said.

Published 1/10/25

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Follow our scoreboard Friday night

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Perimeter Defense Key for Upper

          Upper Sandusky plays at home against Buckeye Central in Northern 10 Athletic Conference action on Saturday night.

          The Rams have won five of their last six games after outscoring Bucyrus (83-82) in conference play on Friday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they got a lot of good shots.  “The big thing we did, we just did a really good job of running the floor and moving the basketball around.  We've been utilizing the dribble too much and we really moved it around utilizing the pass, which gave us some opportunities where we were able to pass one more pass to get a wide open shot.  We made 14 threes and I think a lot of that was just because of our ball movement,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says in practice they have been working hard on becoming better passers.  “We've been working on some no dribble offense in practice just to get our kids used to passing the ball around instead of drilling because you can pass way faster than you can dribble it.  It's amazing how when the ball finds the open, open guy after you pass up a good one for a great one how it just seems like that shot always goes in.  That's what we did a good job of Friday night and hopefully we can continue to do that because when we do that, we're pretty good shooters,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (6-2,3-2) hosts Buckeye Central (4-5,1-4) on Saturday night.  The Bucks lost (58-29) to Carey last week in conference play.

          Winslow says this is an experienced team and they are very good perimeter shooters.  “They're much improved.  This is a group that started some freshman two years ago and then they started again as sophomores and now they're playing as juniors.  So, they're bigger and stronger.  They can shoot the basketball, so you have got to make sure you are contesting shots.  They're big guy inside is a pretty athletic guy that can get around you off the bounce and pretty strong and offensive rebounds,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “You have got to guard him by moving your feet and then checking him out.  They're starting to mix up defenses a little bit, so you have got to be ready for that.  The big thing is they have got three guys that can shoot open shots and you can't give them open looks to get them going.  Then be able to pressure them so maybe you can get some turnovers.”

Published 12/31/24

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Upper Must Battle Back

          Upper Sandusky will host Bucyrus on Friday night in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Last Friday, they were smoked (56-30) by Mohawk in league play.

          Coach Jeff Winslow feels there were a couple of reasons.  “I'm not taking anything away from Mohawk, they played really well, totally outplayed us, but we played sick the night before.  We had a whole bunch of guys sick that night and it just snowballed.  They just got out to a good start and we just had no energy.  It was just a rough night from the get go.  They just totally kicked our butts.  They outplayed us in every facet of the game and we just couldn't recover.  So, it was just a rough night,” he said.

          Upper (5-2,2-2) hosts Bucyrus (0-7,0-4) on Friday night.  The Redmen lost their last “N10” game to Wynford (66-56) on Friday night.

          Winslow says despite their record, they have some players.  “I went and watched them play the other night.  They have got some guys that can put the ball in the basket.  If they are allowed to run some half court stuff, they're pretty successful.  They've really struggled when teams have pressed them.  So, if you can get out and press them and get them to turn the ball over, you'll be alright.  If they handle press then they'll be able to stay in some games,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “The (Dylan) Coppler kid is really good.  He's a nice 6’4”.  He plays on the perimeter or inside.  He's a nice player.  So, they’re a team that's young and learning to play at the varsity speed and I think they're going to keep getting better.”

          During the Christmas break, Winslow believes the team that has the most self discipline will win.  “A lot of times over Christmas I tell my kids this all the time whatever teams have the best self discipline win.  The tough part is the kids you have got to get to bed.  You can't just stay up till two, three in the morning and then sleep late.  You don’t have the same energy and you're open to sickness when you do those things too when you don't get sleep.  Just your routines are different, so the team that decides they're going to have more self discipline usually survives it.  It's rough, like all of a sudden we don't have practice on Wednesday right in the middle of the week.  It’s some changes and you just have to have to tough it out, but everybody's going through it, so you have got to figure it out,” said Winslow.

Published 12/24/24

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Upper Will be Tested This Week

          Upper Sandusky will face two challenges this week as they host Ontario on Thursday in non-conference play and Mohawk in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday.

          On Saturday, the Rams (4-1,2-1) hammered Seneca East (52-34) in an “N10” game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were on point.  “It was a really good win.  Seneca East has played well all year and they have got two of the better guards in the area that are back from last year.  They've been really playing well and we just did a really nice job defensively on those two guys and then played really well.  We had to play well to beat them and played well and beat them,” he said.

          Ontario (2-1) has an influx of younger talent this year.

          Winslow says they want to push the pace and have the talent to do that.  “They are going to diamond press you, maybe throw in some run and jump and pressure the ball pretty hard in the half court they like.  They like to get out and then run and score in transition, that's their goals.  Their personnel is a lot different.  They have got two freshman guards that are really good, not just for freshmen.  They didn't look like freshmen when they play,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “You have got to keep those guys in front.  Keep them away from the basket, but they also got the ability to knock down some shots.  They have got another big freshman they play.  They play like nine, ten deep and try to wear you down and press you all game long.  So, we like playing transition too.  It's a fun game to go into these games when the other team wants to play in transition because we like to get up and down too so, it should be a fun one.”

          Mohawk (3-0,2-0) beat Hopewell-Loudon (42-28) on Monday night in a non-league game.

          Winslow says with their great experience and tremendous talent they are going to be a tough challenge.  “10 kids on this varsity roster all seniors.  You don't even see that with freshman groups anymore with 10 kids in the same grade being out.  I just got done watching them, just got back from the game and they're really, really good.  It's a bunch of them played all four years and they're bigger, faster, stronger than they've been and they're really athletic.  They have got a bunch of kids that can put the ball in the basket.  They play four kids that can really handle it.  Then they start a 6’7” athlete that jumps out of the gym and gives you a lot of problems inside with his length and athletic ability for his length.  They mix up their defenses and trap you a lot.  They're a tough matchup, so Friday is going to be a good test for us,” said Winslow.

Published 12/17/24

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Upper With Two “N10” Games

          Upper Sandusky has a double weekend of Northern 10 Athletic Conference games as they play at Wynford on Thursday and host Seneca East on Saturday.

          Last week, they lost a tough “N10” game to Colonel Crawford (44-42) on Friday and edged Tiffin Columbian (68-62) in a Saturday non-conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says Saturday was a nice way to battle back.  “Friday was really tough game we should have had.  We kind of let that slip away and then challenged our kids to move on and they did a really good job of being ready to play a day after a tough loss like that.  They're a pretty resilient group.  Columbian is a really nice, athletic team that gets up and down the floor and our kids did a really nice job of handling their athleticism and pressure,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (2-1,0-1) is at Wynford (0-2,0-1) on Thursday night.  The Royals have a new coach in Adam Guinther.  They lost their league game to Buckeye Central (67-62) in overtime.

          Winslow says they have some kids that can score.  “They have two really good guards in Prenger and Johnson.  Prenger can score from anywhere, past half court he's got the green light.  He can score off the bounce, jump shots from 15, pull ups from three.  Then you have got the Johnson kid, who's a really nice spot shooter.  They've been putting him in the post a little bit to get some scoring there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Those two guys are three year starters for that group and they've been really good players ever since they entered high school.  So, those two are a load.  Then the (Jaxson) Vance kid is a good athlete and he is having a nice year in the post for them.  Then a couple young guys that are really skilled.  They're just young and learning their way.  So, pretty solid team overall and they can put the ball in the basket, so you better be ready to defend.”

          Winslow says Seneca East (3-1,1-0) has two of the better guards in the conference.  “The kids they graduated were really nice players, nice role players, but they have got their two studs back in Bordner and Mason.  Those two are two of the better guards in the league.  Both of them are super athletic, super quick, and they can both shoot the three very well as well and get to the rim.  Defensively they do a really good job of getting their hands on a lot of balls and they use their athleticism.  So, those two are just a tough matchup for anybody.  So, that's going to be a real test to come back a couple days later and have to play those two guys,” said Winslow.

Published 12/12/24

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Upper to Play a Very Good Colonel Crawford

          Upper Sandusky will host Colonel Crawford in a key early season matchup in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          Upper beat Willard (53-40) in its first game last Wednesday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says it was a pretty good effort.  “I felt for game number one we played pretty well.  Anytime you can go over to Willard and come out with a win that's a good start to the season.  I thought we got a little sloppy toward the end of the fourth quarter there.  Give them credit, they made some nice plays and hit some shots to make it a little closer than it was through most of the second half.  Joe's got a young team and they're going to keep getting better.  They have got some skilled young guys.  Offensively, even though we didn't shoot too well, that happens a lot game number one, and I thought probably played pretty well for game one,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says now they know the areas where they have to get better.  “You never know what you have until you play an actual game and now it's where you can start seeing where you have got to make all these improvements.  With most teams you do see a lot of changes or improvements between game one and game two.  That live competition, game speed, playing game minutes is really big for your growth between games one and two.  So, we saw a lot of things that we have got to get better at and we’ve been working on that this week.  We've had a really good week of practice, so I think game two we're going to play a lot better than the first one,” he said.

          Colonel Crawford (0-1) lost (56-48) to Crestview in its opener last Saturday night.

          Winslow says the Eagles are loaded and they are going to play a lot better on Friday night.  “They are a good basketball team.  Any team that's coached by David Sheldon is going to win a lot of games.  This team is going to win a lot of games because they have got a lot of good players as well.  They're big, they're athletic, they're physical and they can really shoot the ball.  Now the other night against Crestview, they didn't shoot the ball very well.  That's not going to happen very often with them because they have got a lot of good shooters on that team.  When you have got to pay so much attention to the big guy inside it opens up a lot of shooting.  Then the (Brayden) Holt kid for his first game at Crawford I'm sure he was a little nervous at things and didn't really play his best.  So, we're going to get a lot a lot better game out of him Friday night.  We have got to be ready to guard.”

Published 12/05/24

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Upper Can Play Defense

          Upper Sandusky takes on Willard in a boys’ basketball game to open the season on Wednesday night.

          Coaches never seem completely ready for the season to start, but coach Jeff Winslow says it’s time to find out where they stand.  “No doubt the kids are ready, they want to play, chomping at the bit and I'm looking at it as we got so much stuff we want to accomplish yet before our first game.  So, it's time though.  We've been in the gym for three weeks or so and it's time to go out and play somebody and see where we're at,” he said.

          Winslow says this team can be really good on defense and they have an unselfish nature when they have the ball.  “We have got a real good chance to really good defensive team again.  We were really good last year defensively and have four of those starters back and they seemed to pick up where we left off and do a really good job of just making life tough for opposing offenses.  We share the ball really well.  We get along great as a group and share the ball really well.  So, it should be a fun system to watch,” said Winslow.

          Willard graduated a lot from a team that won the “SBC” Bay last year, but Winslow says what they do have is some young kids that can shoot the basketball for them.  “They can shoot the three, that's for sure.  They’re playing a lot of young guys that are really skilled, maybe physically you know they're not where you want some of them.  As freshmen and sophomores that's what you have got to deal with,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “(Coach) Joe Bedingfield just does a really good job of putting his team in situations where they can be successful an find out ways to win games with whoever he’s got.  He's got a bunch of kids that are skilled and can shoot the basketball and he's putting them in good positions to be able to do that.  So, it's a good rivalry game between us.  It’s the first game every year way back from the “NOL” days it’s a big rivalry, so both teams look forward to it and it should be a good opener.”

Published 11/26/24

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Upper Sandusky with a Nice Mix

          Upper Sandusky looks like they will be in the mix this year in the Northern 10 Athletic this season.

          It was a very competitive league last year with four teams sharing the conference title and that appears to be the case again this season.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they have some experience back, but they also have some younger guys that can play.  “We have four starters back, so we got a nice group back.  Three of the four, this will be the third year starting.  So, we have got a nice, solid group back to work in with some younger guys.  So, it's kind of been mixed to have those older guys help those younger guys that get ready to be able to play varsity basketball,” said Winslow.

          A big key with any team at any part of the season is to show improvement and Winslow thinks the Rams have done that here in November.  “I just said that to the guys in the locker room after (Thursday) night.  I really like our progression.  The first two scrimmages I wasn't too happy with the way we were playing and some of the things we were doing.  Each practice we bought in and got better each practice and scrimmage we’ve got a lot better,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “We played a really solid Dublin Jerome team (Thursday) night and did really, really well handling their athleticism and pressure and size.  So, really happy with the progress since day one and hopefully this team keep getting better.”

          Upper will play Willard in its first game on Wednesday in non-conference play, the day before Thanksgiving, and Winslow likes that.  He says they are ready to lace them up and get tested.  “I just said that to the girls’ coach because it just looked like watching his girls practice they're just sick of beating up on each other just want to play a game, let's go play.  That's how we are now.  I'm glad we play Wednesday and don't have to wait until next Friday.  It’s less than a week now and we can go play.  Our kids are ready to go and see what we have got and make adjustments from there,” he said.

Published 11/22/24

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Upper Likes its Role

          Upper Sandusky, of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, made the division IV playoffs as the final seed in their region, and will play at top seed Sandusky Perkins on Friday night.

          Coach Russell Hall says the Rams (5-5) have worked hard to get here.  “We started the season off 1-2, which is the way you want to start to go into league play.  The boys did a great job of working each and every week, of trying to improve as a team and the wins started to come, which was good.  We got just enough to get in,” said Hall.

          Perkins (9-1), #1 in the final Swankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, smoked Tiffin Columbian (42-7) last Friday to claim the outright title in the Lake Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference.

          Hall says they are just outstanding.  “It shows, they're a top team in the state.  They're very solid at every single position.  They're very impressive to watch.  Fun to watch on offense and stuff like that, just the playmakers that they have.  You can tell they're very well coached and they're a very good team,” he said.

          There likely aren’t very many people that give the Rams much of a chance to be competitive in this game.  However, Hall says the pressure is all on Perkins in this game.  “That's what we told our boys on Saturday.  There's not very many people out there that think you have a chance to you know even stop them when they're on offense because they're such a good team.  There are super high expectations for the season,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “That's what I told them.  You need to enjoy the moment and have fun and all the pressure is on them.  They're supposed to win 100-0 and you get to go out and play.  Making the playoffs for Upper Sandusky is not something you take very lightly.  This is the seventh week 11 in football program history and then the eighth time with the COVID year in 2020 that we've qualified for the playoffs in that year when every team made it.  So, just proud of these boys and proud of the program to keep working kind of turn it around.  I really enjoyed coaching this group of kids and looking forward to Friday night.”

Published 10/29/24

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Upper Beginning to Peak

          Upper Sandusky, fresh off a big win last week, will be at Colonel Crawford to challenge the Eagles Friday night in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Last week, the Rams handed Mohawk their first “N10” loss (13-6) on Friday.

          Coach Russell Hall says they had a good week of preparation and they were plus three in the turnover margin.  “I'm proud of the kids preparation, their effort, their focus, their discipline on special teams, offense, and defense.  We won the turnover margin three to none protecting the ball and getting turnovers that was definitely an asset for us.  It's a big win, it's hard to go to Mohawk and win, so I was very, very pleased,” he said.

          Upper has won three of its last four games, their only loss in that period was (14-7) to conference tri-leader Seneca East.

          Hall says they have focused on improving every week.  “I feel we've improved every week you know and as a coaching staff that's kind of our goal is to next week be better than we were the week before because that's what good teams do.  They find a way to keep getting better to improve their game.  It goes back to our players and their attitude in practice,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “Today is the most important day because it's the day we get to work on stuff to get better to be in a situation to win on Friday.  So, that's kind of been the theme all year is find a way to get better today and put yourself in position to win on Friday today whether it's Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.”

          Upper (4-4,3-2) is at Colonel Crawford (6-2,3-2) on Friday night.  Crawford lost (19-10) to Carey last week.  Both schools are just a game back in the conference standings.

          Crawford’s Conner McMichael is the leading rusher in the “N10” and Hall expects the Eagles to feature their power run game.  “A ton of physicality.  They have very physical lineman, hardnosed running backs, the (Conner) McMichael kid, it's hard to believe he's only a junior, he’s pretty good.  The (Dominic) Dean kid transferred over from Buckeye Central last year also a junior, plays some running back, tight end, linebacker is very physical.  It’s a traditional Colonel Crawford team of physicality.  They're going to run the ball and they're going to be very physical on defense and sound on special teams,” said Hall.

Published 10/16/24

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Upper to Face Speedy Galion

          Upper Sandusky is at home Friday night for the Galion Tigers in non-league action.

          After tailing at the half, Upper rallied past Mt. Gilead (27-18) last week.

          Coach Russell Hall felt his team responded well.  “I'm glad the boys responded in the second half and we're able to control Mt. Gilead’s powerful rushing attack and put ourselves in position to pull away and get a win,” he said.

          Hall says they cut down on mistakes, but they have to continue to do that.  “We played much better.  A lot less mistakes.  Still made our fair share, that's for sure, but there were fewer mistakes.  Played cleaner on offense and defense.  We do need to improve on the special teams.  Unfortunately, we gave up a kickoff return for a touchdown, which we knew ahead of time Mt. Gilead special teams are phenomenal and we warned the boys that they were really good.  So, we have got to improve our tackling.  We have got to improve our blocking, our running and everything.  It was fantastic to see a reduction in the mistakes, so that was good,” said Hall.

          Upper (1-1) hosts Galion (2-0) on Friday night.  The Tigers outlasted Carey (14-8) last Friday.

          Hall says they have electric speed.  “One word, fast, very fast.  They're a very fast team.  They're not giant in size like they were last year and the year before with those seniors graduating last year, those really big offensive lineman, but they are very, very fast and disciplined in all phases of the game,” he said.

          Hall says with Galion there is speed everywhere on the field, including the trenches.  “It's speed everywhere, their offensive lineman are fast, they're running backs are fast, they're receivers are fast, the quarterback, it seems like he's been there forever now, he's fast too when he takes off and gets going,” he told Swankonsports.com, “That's why I say it's just one word just fast.  They just seem to have speed at every single position.  We won’t have nearly as much time to respond, that's for sure.  They just have phenomenal team speed this year,” said Hall.

Published 9/03/24

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Upper Can’t Have Mistakes

          Upper Sandusky will be on the road to face the Northmor Golden Knights in non-conference game to open on the season on Friday night.

          Coach Russell Hall predicts it will be a physical game that they are ready to play.  “You know it'll be a great challenge.  Northmor was fortunate enough to play 13 games last year and they bring back most of their team,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “I thought we looked pretty good and in our first two scrimmages, so I think it'll be a fantastic, physical match up.”

          Hall knows Northmor will be physical and they have to be too.  “They have nice, big, strong lineman, running backs, tight ends defensive line. They are definitely a big football team,” he said.

          Northmor won this game (42-21) last year.

          Hall says most of all they can’t have turnovers.  “We have to protect the football.  Last year, we had five turnovers, two on kickoff returns, you can't give a good team like Northmor extra possessions.  We have got to be fundamental, not have turnovers, try and win the line scrimmage.  I think if everyone does their 1/11th we'll be pretty successful,” said Hall.

Published 8/23/24

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Upper Has High Hopes

          Upper Sandusky is a mix of experience and inexperience this year and they are working hard to be able to compete in the tough Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Coach Russell Hall says they have some players back with varsity time.  “I would go with experience at a lot of the positions and then some new faces.  We went 4-6 last year.  Unfortunately, we had about two years worth, three, four years worth of injuries there.  We ended up playing, I believe it was like 15 different receivers in our offense throughout the varsity season.  We played about eight, nine, 10, 11, somewhere in there, offensive lineman and defensive lineman throughout the season,” he told Swankonsports.com, “The good thing is last year a lot of younger guys ended up getting some game experience.  I think that normally helps to prepare you for what you’ve got to do to to get ready to compete and give yourself a chance to win.  We have four returning letter winners on our offensive lineman out of the five, so that's pretty good.  We've got three returning wide receivers that rotated in even before the injury bug really hit there.”

          However, Hall does admit that they have a number of really good players they are replacing.  “We lose our quarterback Kaden Holman, who took over the starting job as a freshman.  He graduated, ran out of eligibility, now he's pitching for Findlay University.  We lost Gavan Frye and Ethan Hill, that were four year letter winners for us rotating in as freshmen special teams and offense and defense there and then three years solid starters for us.  So, they're going to be tough to replace and there are other seniors as well.  You have that every year, but it's odd to lose guys that are three year letter winners and there used to always being there,” said Hall.

          Upper plays its first game next Friday against Northmor.

          Hall says they are building toward that point.  “Our execution has continued to get better every single practice, which was good.  I like the guys mentality, very blue collar, show up, work, get better.  They're not all best friends, but they play together really well, they push each other, they try to motivate each other and it makes it fun to coach when you've got guys that want to be there, want to get better and want to compete and help the team,” he said.

          Hall says he has been pleased with what he has seen so far on the field.  “Saturday was our first scrimmage against Centerburg and our boys were ready to go.  They were ready to go and go against somebody else besides their own teammates.  That was a lot of fun getting started.  You can feel the energy and stuff.  The returning guys that have been waiting since the end of week 10 last year and then the new guys that are stepping in and playing some varsity for the first time.  So, it was a lot of fun by us, by them, I was very thrilled with our players mentality, effort, physicality, that was very good to see as a head coach,” said Hall.

Published 8/16/24

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Clear Fork Advances with Win Over Upper

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          Clear Fork smoked Upper Sandusky (8-1) in a division II district semifinal on Thursday afternoon at Bluffton University.

          They will be back on Saturday afternoon to play St. Mary’s Memorial, a (4-3) winner over Lexington in the second semifinal on Thursday, for a regional berth.

          Colts starter Luke Schlosser almost always has his “A” game on the mound.  Thursday, he had his “A+” game in what was Clear Fork’s most important game of the season so far.  He had 15 strikeouts in six and 2/3 innings of work.  Twice he struck out the side.  At one point he fanned nine of the 12 batters he faced.  He allowed only two hits in the first six innings before kind running out of fuel for the machine in the seventh.  He reached his pitch limit and had to be removed with two outs in the seventh.  Garett Hotz, the expected starting pitcher on Saturday, got the last out.

          “Luke is just a dog.  He is a bulldog out there.  It's just so nice to have a kid who's a leader and obviously you can take that leadership and add production to it.  Holy cow that's a great dude to coach.  We're just trying to enjoy the ride right now,” said Clear Fork coach Gabe Kennedy.

          Upper (17-8) was the outright champ of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference this spring.

          Upper coach Jerry Smalley says they are really disappointed, but eventually they will understand what they have accomplished.  “They'll be happy with what they've done in their careers at Upper, they set all kinds of records, but they didn’t want it to end this way I know that.  That’s the game of baseball and that’s the way you play.  We’ll go from there.  I mean Kaden (Holman) is going to go play college, so he still has a career ahead of him.  The seniors were the best class to go through Upper with stats and wins, so they can take that on their shoulders and take it with them after high school,” said Smalley.

          The Colts (24-4) took a (1-0) lead in the first inning when Jay Jackson reached on an error and scored on a single by Mason Sansom.  They added one in the third when Jackson led off the inning with a triple to the fence in leftcenter and scored on a sacrifice fly by Chandler Ball.  Hotz opened the fourth with another triple to the wall and he scored on a wild pitch.

          It’s mostly small ball that has produced the offense for Clear Fork this year, but Kennedy says those gap shots are a plus.  “Those were huge hits.  The kids are… they're amped up and ready to go.  It's one of those things where we'll get back at it (Friday) for practice.  We will work on the base running, we'll work on the first and third, the bunting, and everything else,” he told Swankonsports.com after the win, “If you hit a triple that's really nice.  I don't have to do all that other stuff to get the guy to third base.”

          Hotz was the first batter to face Upper’s Kaden Holman, who was one of the best pitchers in Ohio last year, but he has been hampered with injuries this year.  The Colts continued to reach Holman as in the fifth as Sansom, Ball, Kasey Swank and Hotz has consecutive singles and there were four stolen bases and the two runs made it (5-0) Colts.  Three more runs came across in the sixth on a RBI hit by Schlosser and a two run error by the Rams.

          Kennedy says they looked forward to the challenge of facing Holman.  “I think we were looking forward to the challenge.  The kid is a stud, the kid is ridiculously good.  If we want to be great then we have got to we fight against great people.  So, we were fortunate,” he said.

          A key on Thursday was the Colts ability to keep adding on.  They scored in five of their six innings at the plate.  Kennedy says that is something they preach. “The kids are hungry.  One run is not enough.  We try to preach to win each inning.  No matter what the score is we want to win the inning.  Whatever the inning is and the kids they did that,” he said.

Published 5/24/24

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Defiance Like Rams

          Upper Sandusky will be at home on Tuesday night for the Defiance Bulldogs in a sectional semifinal in division II.

          The winner gets Elida, the top seed, at their place on Friday night.

          Upper produced a tremendous win on Friday night as they outscored Carey (19-2) in the fourth quarter and buried the Blue Devils (51-33), costing them the outright title in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they played very well against Carey.  “We got big momentum with defensive play and score at the end of the third quarter and it kind of found its way into the fourth quarter.  We just defended really well and made things made things very tough on them and we're fortunate to get some easy ones at the other end.  We just did a nice job all game long against really quality opponent,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says he hopes they can take some momentum from the win on Friday into Tuesday.  “My assistant and I talked about that going to that game that was a pretty big game for us to win because if we win Friday, you feel pretty good about going into Tuesday.  The opposite could be true if you get beat.  So, we’ve had two good days of practice since that game.  The kids are ready to go and excited.  I think they’re playing with a lot of confidence and that win was pretty important heading into (Tuesday),” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (13-9) is the only area school in district two.

          Defiance (7-15), out of the Western Buckeye League, comes in off a (54-51) loss to Lima Shawnee on Friday night.

          Winslow says they are really a lot like the Rams.  “Their record is a little deceiving, their schedule is pretty tough.  It’s not just their league, their non league schedule the played some really good teams.  So, they played everybody pretty tough.  Watching them is kind of like watching us,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “A really good defensive team that at times can struggle to score at the offensive end, inconsistent three point shooting and they like to win in the paint.  They get the ball in the paint if it's off the drive or getting it into the post.  So, I think it's going to be a battle of who's going to win that paint battle, who's going to get the most rebounds, who's going to be able to score inside the paint.”

Published 2/27/24

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Upper Must Compete on the Boards

          Upper Sandusky makes the short trip to play Carey in a contest in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          The Rams can play the role of spoiler.  Right now, Carey shares first place in the conference with Colonel Crawford and a win would guarantee them no less than a share of the title.

          Upper has won five of its last eight games and coach Jeff Winslow says he likes the progression they have made this season.  “Yeah, for sure, I mean, especially the defensive end we've really been a good defensive team, hung our hat on that.  We've had a really tough schedule, our league is good this year and our non league is always really tough.  We've been competitive in every game except Shelby, who's a little bit different breed than anybody else right now.  I have been pretty happy with the improvements.  We had lots of problems last year, only three wins and to bounce back with 12 so far and a chance to win a few more and have a home tournament game.  A lot of good things are happening with Upper Sandusky basketball just hopeful we can finish up the season strong,” said Winslow.

          The Rams (12-9,7-6) are at Carey (14-7,10-3) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils beat Bucyrus (73-52) in a league game last Friday.  They hammered a good New Riegel team (64-37) in non-conference play on Tuesday.

          Winslow says they are back in peak form.  “Well, late in the late in the first round they lost young, their best player, and it just took them some time, even though they won a few games there, you could tell they weren’t the same team and it took them some time.  They've gotten to the point that they figured out people in different roles.  I've seen them play the last five games and they're really playing well right now,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “The Young kid is back and doing some shooting for them and things.  They're always a big, athletic, really good, defensive team.  So, the way they play defense, they're going to be in games and now with their offense coming around, so they're playing really good right now.  It's going to be a tough task to go over there and come out with a “W.”

          Carey won the first meeting (53-48) on January 12.

          To win this time, Winslow says they have to rebound and they have be the ones that make the plays late.  “Down the stretch last time they just made a couple more plays than we did.  It was a back and forth game all game long.  The main concern after watching them play with all those big boys they have got is they really crash the offensive glass.  So, you can't let them control the glass all night or it's going to be a long night.  We have got to rebound, get out in transition and get some easy ones so they can't set up in their half court defense.  Then down the stretch you just have got to be the team that makes the plays instead of them,” he said.

Published 2/23/24

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Defense the Key for Upper

          Upper Sandusky will host Buckeye Central in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night.

          They play at Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion Shelby on Saturday night.

          They beat Bucyrus (59-51) in a conference game last Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says it was defense that won the game for the Rams.  “Bucyrus is a much improved basketball team.  They played a really good game against us.  We didn't shoot the ball very well, missed our first 11 threes, but once we got going in the second half we played a pretty solid second half and thought we did really good job defensively most of the game,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (11-8,6-6) plays at home against Buckeye Central (3-14,0-12) on Friday night.  The Bucks are coming off a (72-34) loss to conference co-leader Carey last Friday.

          Winslow says they have nice young talent that shoot it.  “They're young, it's a group like I said before when I talked about them it’s a group that won when they were younger.  They're playing a ton of sophomores that are trying to learn to win at the varsity level,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “It seems like they'll have stretches of playing two good quarters, maybe three and haven't put four quarters together yet.  So, it's a team you have got to come out and play well against some kids they can shoot the basketball.  You have to be ready to defend the three-point shot.”

          Shelby (17-2), #2 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, is coming of a big win (59-53) over division I Findlay last Saturday.

          Winslow says to have success against the Whippets they need to play outstanding defense.  “I've seen them play a couple times.  I saw the game against Findlay and Shelby played really, really well.  They're so long and athletic and of course you have got the (Alex) Bruskotter kid.  He's 6’7” and can do just about anything on the court.  So, we've had a really good defensive season.  It’s just going to be a fun challenge to try to go over there and see how we can do against them defensively,” said Winslow.

Published 2/13/2024

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Upper Has to Make Shots

          Upper Sandusky is on the road Friday night to face the Bucyrus Redmen in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          They have lost their last two in very good teams, in Mohawk (41-33) in a league game last Saturday and Bellevue (34-30) in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they just couldn’t score.  “It was frustrating, two really winnable games and two great defensive efforts where you can't defend much better than you did and to not come away with a win in either one is pretty frustrating.  I mean just couldn't put the ball in the basket either night.  So, our defense is right there with the best of them and we have got to figure a way to get a few more points,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “When you hold teams the 30s you have got to win those games.  So, playing really well, moving the ball, just have got to get that thing to go through the hoop a few more times, so we're still trying to figure that out.”

          Upper (10-8,5-6) plays at Bucyrus (4-13,1-10) in an “N10” game on Friday night.  They lost (82-73) to Wynford in a league game on Saturday night.

          Winslow calls the Redmen dangerous. “Number one, they've been playing better.  I mean they played Crawford pretty well for a lot of the game last week and then they turned around Saturday night and they score 73 points against Wynford.  Anytime you have got a kid like Malachi Bayless you can win a basketball game because he can score at all three levels.  He is an unselfish player, really good really good offensive player and that's what's scary about them.  He can put his team on his back and carry them to victory.  So, we have got to come out and play well defensively and we definitely have got to be able to put the ball in the basket,” he said.

          Upper is in a district that includes that includes most of the Western Buckeye League and Winslow says to be competitive with those teams they have to make shots.  “Offensively, we have got to make shots.  We played Bellevue, who is 15-3, and led the whole game long and they just made a couple plays down the stretch that that we didn't and it was basically a one possession game at the end.  Those are the kind of teams if you want to advance in the tournament into the districts and the district finals and get to a regional, that's the kind of teams you're going to see.  That was really encouraging to play a game like that and we have got to figure out a way to get over the hump with just making some more shots.  So, it's weird, we're a good shooting team that just doesn't put that all together this year.  So, just got to get more consistent making outside shots,” said Winslow.

Published 2/09/24

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Rams Has to Hit Shots

          Upper Sandusky is at home for Northern 10 Athletic Conference co-leader Seneca East on Thursday night.

          They are at Mohawk in a conference game on Saturday.

          The Rams have won eight of their last 10, including a (57-52) victory over Wynford in a league game on Friday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they are doing the things they have to in order to win.  “We’re playing pretty well right now.  We finally start shooting the ball like we're capable of.  Got our three-point shooting percentage above 30%.  I think a lot of that is offensively moving the ball a little better and getting a little bit better shot.  Defensively we have been really sound.  The best thing about our defense right now we are rebounding the ball very well.  So, we're doing the little things it takes to get done to go over to Wynford and beat a good opponent like that says a lot about the basketball team,” said Winslow.

          Upper (9-6,4-5) plays host to Seneca East (11-3,7-2), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Thursday night.  The Tigers moved into a share of the conference lead when they beat Carey (55-54) on Friday night.

          Winslow says they are athletic and they execute well.  “I mean they are really athletic.  (Luke) Mason and (Lucas) Bordner and two of the better guards you're going to see and then all of their role players can hit the open three, that's what's really made them tough to guard.  Those big guys can step out and hit that three when you have to help on Bordner or Mason driving,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “Coach (Langhurst) is doing a really good job over there, he's a good dude.  He's running that 1-3-1 defense that you don't see a whole lot and then they're running really well.  They're scrappy and now they're starting to believe.  I liked them the first time I saw them and they keep getting better.  They're a tough team and you have got to come to play to beat them.”

          Seneca East won the first matchup (49-37) on December 16.

          This time, Winslow says they have to make open shots when they get them.  “We have got to move the ball and hit open shots.  If you move the ball, you're going to get shots against that zone and then you have got to make them.  The first game we played we were 3-23 from three, that's just not going to get it done.  You have got to be better than that.  You have got to keep Bordner and Mason out of the paint and hit some shots and that will give you a chance to win,” he said.

Published 1/30/2024

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Upper Has to Do it

          Upper Sandusky will be over at Wynford on Friday night for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The Rams won for the seventh time in nine games on Tuesday night when they got past Galion (65-62) in a non-conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they responded well to adversity.  “I'm really happy with the way we played Tuesday night.  We were without our leading scorer Holden Daris, who hurt his knee in that Crawford game.  I was wondering how the kids would respond to life without Holden.  All six guys that played, being short handed like that, really stepped up and played really well against a really solid Galion team,” said Winslow.

          Upper (8-6,3-5) is at Wynford (11-3,5-3) on Friday night.  The Royals beat Cardington (69-61) in a non-conference game on Wednesday night.  They hammered Buckeye Central (70-33) in an “N10” game last Saturday.

          Winslow says they are just so athletic.  “I just watched a little bit ago and they're so long and athletic.  They have got so many guys that get the ball to the rim off the bounce as well as they can put five guys on the floor that can shoot the three,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They're a really tough matchup.  It’s hard to keep them off the glass because they are so long and athletic and they make a ton of shots.  You have got to stop the drive, you have got to stop the shot, you have got to stop transition and you have got to stop the offensive glass.  Just a lot of things you have to basically just play perfect defense to take all those things away from them.”

          In their first meeting, Wynford won it (66-57) on December 14.

          Winslow says they have to be the ones that make the clutch plays this time to win it.  “Pretty much every game in the “N10” is a battle that comes down to last few possessions.  We cut the lead to one with like 2:30 to go last time against them and they just made a few more plays than we did.  So, hopefully we can keep the game in that range going into the end of the fourth quarter and this time change that end of the game situation,” he said.

Published 1/25/2024

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Upper Has to Score Inside

          Upper Sandusky begins the second round of play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference with a home game with Colonel Crawford on Saturday night.

          They had a chance to stay in the conference race, but Carey, the “N10” leader, rallied past them (53-48) last Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they didn’t make the plays down the stretch.  “We took the lead with 2:40 to go and that last 2:40 they executed better than we did.  We shot ourselves in the foot too many times offensively with some turnovers that led to layups and it’s pretty hard to defend the wide open layup.  Then rushed a little bit offensively and took a few bad shots.  It's a game that was very, very winnable right there and they just made they ended up making a few more plays than we did.  It was disappointing, felt we played good enough to win, but we have got to clean some stuff up to beat good teams like that,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (7-5,3-4) plays host to Colonel Crawford (10-3,5-2) on Saturday night.  The Eagles, two back of Carey, beat Mohawk (38-27) last Friday.

          Winslow says they know what they have to do to win.  “They're big, they're athletic and they're very physical.  They have got a bunch of kids that know how to win.  They've won a lot of games in their career.  Coach (David) Sheldon has those guys playing the style of ball they need to play to win games.  They're playing very well at their game.  They screen you a lot, they get the ball inside, they have got two kids that are really good shooters and those are the two that get most the shots,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “The (Trevor) Vogt kid has just had a tremendous season.  I mean he's really stepped up from a year ago.  With his athleticism it's hard to keep him out of the paint.  He makes plays all over the place.  Against Wynford, he made the game winning shot at the buzzer.  He made a defensive play the first time we played.  We were down one with the ball and the chance to win and he made a defensive play with a steal.  So, he's a kid that's a good athlete that is making plays for him as well and the (Payne) DeGray kid, he's 6’6” big, strong finishes inside.  Those two guys really make it tough on you.”

          Winslow says they would like to kick the pace up, but that’s not going to be easy.  He says they have to be able to score in traffic.  “They do a very good job of not getting out of that.  You'd like to speed them up with some pressure full court stuff and maybe run traps here and there.  I think the best way to get them out of it is to get stops to where you're able to get out and run offensively and that just kind of lends to being able to speed up the game a little bit when you can run some offensively and get scores in transition and then pick them up full court.  Hopefully, I think we're a little bit better in a game where the pace is in our favor like that where we speed it up and they're probably better if they slow it down and get fewer possessions where they hold the ball a lot longer.  So, probably be a battle of who is trying do that the most.  It's just going to come down to I think who wins the battle in the paint.  Who's going to score in the paint.  Both teams primarily score in the paint and who's going to rebound the basketball,” said Winslow.

Published 1/19/24

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Upper Has to be Physical

          Upper Sandusky hosts Northern 10 Athletic Conference leader Carey in a conference game between Wyandot County rivals on Friday night.

          The Rams won their sixth in a row beating Buckeye Central (59-26) on Saturday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were very stingy on defense and efficient on offense and that’s a good combination.  “Anytime you hold a team to 26 points you have a really good chance to win the basketball game.  We defended really well and were efficient offensively.  We're a group that's gotten better every day.  We've done that again this week let's hope that carries over to Friday night,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (6-4,3-3) will be at home for Carey (8-3,6-0), the “N10” leader, on Friday night.  Carey blitzed Bucyrus (75-47) last Saturday night in a conference game.

          Winslow says the Blue Devils have a nice combination of players that know how to win.  “Well, the first thing is we're just really physical and they're really athletic and they know how to win.  These guys, the kids they have, have won in football and basketball for the past few years and they know how to win games,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “They're real good competitors that is just the tough match up.  You have got to match their physicalness and their athleticism and you got to go compete.”

          Winslow says you have to stand up to them physically or they are going to take you to the woodshed.  “You can’t backdown because if that happens then they're going to run away with it.  So, I picture this as being a real physical contest and basically the team that wins the battle of the 50/50 balls, wins the battle of the paint, is going to come out on top of this game.  So, it's real important that you match physical with physical,” said Winslow.

Published 1/12/24

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Upper Building Momentum

          Upper Sandusky is on the road at Buckeye Central in a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Saturday night.

          They hammered Bucyrus (86-52) last Friday night in an “N10” game.

          They have won four in a row and coach Jeff Winslow says they have been playing consistent basketball.  “We've had a decent year all year really, but what we've done in that winning streak is we're playing four solid quarters.  There's no four or five minute stretch where we just lose it.  So, we've been pretty consistent throughout the game and it starts with our defense.  We defend and rebound pretty well and that keeps getting better and better.  We've done a better job getting out in transition to get some easy ones that I think we weren't quite doing early on and got the kids to run a little bit more.  So, we’re playing pretty well and hopefully we can keep that going Saturday night,” said Winslow.

          Upper (5-4,2-3) plays at Buckeye Central (3-6,0-5) on Saturday night.  The Bucks lost (64-28) to conference leader Carey last week.

          Winslow says this is a Buckeye Central team that has tasted some success.  “They're really young.  They have got a good sophomore class, a lot of good players in that class.  One of the things I did have in the scouting report is you know they've won three tough games.  I mean so it's not like they haven't won games.  They have three wins.  I mean they have won about as many now last year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “That's a group that knows how to win because they've won throughout the whole junior high life and now they've won some games as varsity players.  That's all they know is winning, so you have got to come out and play well and go beat them.”

          Winslow hopes they can win and continue to keep the momentum on their side.  “It can go one or two ways and it was pretty well for us. Our guys really bought in and focused on disciplined over the break and got their rest and ate right came in got a lot of work in and we got a lot better over the break.  It can go the opposite ways.  I've had to go both ways before so sometimes over the break with everything going on it's hard to keep them focused.  I think our kids were really focused and they brought in and we won all our games over break and this has made us a better team.  So, our kids made the most of the time off,” he said.

Published 1/05/24

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Upper Making Some Shots

          Upper Sandusky plays a non-conference game at Riverdale on Wednesday and at home with Bucyrus in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday.

          Last weekend, were likely their best two performances of the season when they beat Mohawk (50-46) in a conference game on Friday and Tiffin Columbian (65-55) in a non-league game on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they played well.  “It was a good weekend for the Rams.  Like I said before, our schedule has been pretty challenging to start out and we've been battling in games.  It's like well you have got to start beating good teams, can't just lose to all the good teams.  Came out against two good teams this weekend and played really well at both ends of the floor and came out with two wins.  Hopefully, it gets us kick started into being the team we can be.  I think we can be pretty solid here, we just had to get over that hump and feel what it is like to win some of those close games and we have.  I really like our team going forward,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says their improvement was simple, they finally made some shots.  “We put the ball in the basket.  I mean sometimes basketball isn’t really complicated.  When you're open you have got to make shots.  We've been missing a lot of point blank shots.  Every shot you could imagine we have not been putting in the basket and we have got some guys that are very capable of doing that and we just haven't been doing it,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “This weekend we did a lot better job of just putting the ball in the basket.  I think a lot of that started with we've really focused on let's get out in transition and get some easy ones and get going.  We haven't been doing very well getting out in transition.  We try to speed up play a little bit and play a little faster, make teams play a little faster.  I think that that also helped our offensive output.”

          Upper Sandusky (3-4) is at Riverdale (2-4) on Wednesday night.  The Falcons lost (53-51) to Kenton in their last game December 16.

          Winslow hopes they can hurt them with some pressure.  “Young and they can shoot the basketball from three.  They're very good from the foul line, so you can't put them at the foul line.  They've struggled with pressure this year, so hopefully we can apply the kind of pressure without fouling and giving up layups that can result in trouble for them that leads to easy baskets at the other end.  They've been playing better each game.  They had a real close one with Kenton the other night, last week, so we look forward to going over there and seeing how we play,” he said.

Published 12/27/23

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Upper Must Guard the Perimeter

          Upper Sandusky plays Thursday and Saturday in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference as they host Wynford on Thursday and play at Seneca East on Saturday.

          They lost their conference opener (40-38) to Colonel Crawford last Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they had every chance to win.  “It's too bad that Crawford game was a really good game.  We had a bad second quarter got down big and then chipped away at the lead and had the ball with 17 seconds left out of bounds down one and we turn it over.  We actually got the ball back again with the chance to take the lead turned it over twice.  We only turned it over 10 times the whole night and twice in the last 17 seconds.  So, it was a really, really defensive battle between two teams that hang their hat at the defensive end.  I thought we really rebounded well with them and gave ourselves a chance to win and it just didn't work out,” said Winslow.

          They did rally on Saturay night to win (57-51) at Ontario on in non-league play.

          Winslow says they gutted it out and really played outstanding defense.  “Saturday night, that showed the toughness of our kids after losing a big rivalry league game like that the way we did and come back the very next night at Ontario and just had a really good defensive performance holding them to 51 points and winning that basketball game.  It just showed the toughest of the kids.  I was really happy with the way we defended on Saturday,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (1-2,0-1) plays at home against Wynford (5-0,2-0) on Thursday night.  Wynford beat Buckeye Central (83-27) in their league opener.

          Winslow says they are loaded with kids that can do a lot of things.  “They're really good, they're long, they're athletic, they fill the floor with shooters.  They have got three really good players in Prenger, McMillan and McGuire, all tough to guard off the bounce, they’re shooting the basketball and all three of those guys are really athletic,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “Then there's other guys Warren and Johnson can really shoot the basketball.  They're good athletes as well.  So, they're a tough matchup, they're going to get out and half court trap you, mix in some full court trap.  They want to run with the ball and we have got to keep their athletes out of the paint, off the glass, as well as be able to contest the three-point shooters.”

          Seneca East (3-0,1-0) beat Bucyrus (76-53) in their conference opener.

          Winslow says they Tigers are better than people are giving them credit for.  “I just started looking at them a little bit (Wednesday). I know what they have coming back.  The Mason kid is a sophomore and Bordner, those two are good offensive players and they can put the ball in the basket with those two.  Then they mix them with three big, strong athletes that can do a few things as well.  They're going to surprise some people.  They are pretty solid.  The (Luke) Mason kid is really giving them something that they haven't had for a few years in a true point guards that can handle the ball and run offense and not turn the ball over and he's got them playing really good right now,” said Winslow.

Published 12/14/23

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Upper Faces Two Different Challenges

          Upper Sandusky has a double weekend and their opponents couldn’t be more different.

          They play at Colonel Crawford, a team that has been focusing on the half court game, in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.  They travel to Ontario, a team that wants to push the tempo, on Saturday night for a non-conference game.

          Last Friday, they lost (71-58) to Willard in a non-league game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow feels they played a good game against the talented Flashes.  “I thought we played pretty well.  We just had a bad spurt at the end of the first quarter, beginning the second, that kind of killed us.  Then played from behind.  We battled back a few times, but it's just too much Max Dawson and people forget the Cam Robinson kid and he’s really good.  They have got two of the better players in the area and those guys made some plays.  If you have any little defensive breakdown at all they're going to cash in on it.  Max and him did a really good job of when they needed to get buckets, they got buckets.  I thought we played pretty solid to tell you truth against a really good basketball team.  I’m not much for moral victories, but I think some of that stuff we can move forward that we did positive and then work on the stuff we have got to improve on,” said Winslow.

          Colonel Crawford (2-0) beat Crestline (66-24) and Northmor (41-34) in non-league games last week.

          Winslow says they are going to want to pound the ball inside.  “I just ran into Nate Hill just a little bit ago, the assistant coach over there, it's like man we got you Friday and Ontario Saturday, two totally opposites.  Crawford has just got some big, physical kids and they just want to win the battle of the paint.  They are going to pound it inside.  Their best offense is to go get it off the offensive glass.  If you don't rebound and keep the ball of the paint it's going to be real tough to beat them.  So, we have got to do a good job of rebounding the basketball, so that's the key to that one,” he said.

          Meanwhile, Ontario (0-1) lost its first game (105-94) to Crestview on Saturday night.

          Winslow says against the Warriors you can’t have a bunch of turnovers.  “It’s up and down.  They're going to press and trap and get after it.  They're going to get the ball out of the net and go the other way.  So, it's going to be a game where there's a lot of possessions.  The key to that one is you just got to be able to handle the basketball and pass and catch and if you do those things you can get a lot of layups on them, but if you don't then it turns into layups for them,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “The key is to be able to break their pressure with a layup and hopefully we can do that.  They have got some kids that can really put the ball in the basket from the three point line.  So, you have got defend that as well, but I say you have got to really take care of the basketball against them.”

Published 12/06/23

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Upper With Big Challenge in Willard

          Upper Sandusky hosts Willard in their traditional opening night game in non-conference play on Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow believes the Rams are starting to tighten up their execution on both ends of the floor.  “I like how our kids have fell into their roles and they kind of know what their roles are going into the first game and we fill up a little bit more depth with a couple kids that have stood out.  Defensively, I think we've gotten a lot better with each step of the way.  Offensively, we're starting to run our stuff a little better.  So, pretty happy with where we're at.  I just could tell the last couple days we're ready to play.  We have got to play somebody just to see, hey, where are we at and playing Willard that's going to show you real quick where we stand.  So, they're a really good basketball team and we'll see where we at our offensively and defensively after this game,” said Winslow.

          It is game one and Winslow says the atmosphere will be different and your never sure what to expect from most players.  “I just talked to my old JV coach, who is a head coach down south at Waverly and it's his first year coaching at that school, he just moved schools.  He just mentioned like this first game, you don’t know what to expect.  Your kids have looked this way through the preseason you get in game one and the lights are on, the popcorn is popping and you don't know what you're going to get.  So, that's the first game and we'll see what we're going to get and we’ll have to adjust from there,” he said.

          Willard, the defending Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division champion, comes calling on Friday night.

          Winslow says they have three seniors with a lot of skill.  “I mean number one (Max) Dawson, he's always the best player on the floor every game they play, so that gives an advantage right there, but the two Robinsons are really good.  I mean Cam Robinson, he's just a bulldog man, he's a lefty that gets to the rim whenever he wants to get there and he's really physical and a big, strong kid,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “Isaac Robinson, he's a really good shooter, who's really improved over the last few years and become a really good player for them.  So, with those three seniors that have played for three plus years for them, a lot of them, that's a good three to work around.  Their mixing in some young guys.  Those three are, it's not just Dawson, the two Robinsons are really good as well.”

Published 12/01/23

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Upper more Experienced, Physical

          Upper Sandusky is expecting a better season this year as the Rams are more experienced and they are more physical than they were a year ago.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they have matured a lot over the off season and that is going to help them this winter.  “We are really kind of young, but it is a veteran group because with some things that happened last year with injuries and whatnot, we played a lot of younger guys maybe I planned on being on the JV team were varsity players and now all those guys that have a tear of experience and growth and things under the belt.  So, all the guys we have got coming back pretty much did see varsity time last year.  What's really nice is when you walk into the gym, we don't look like a bunch of JV players we got some guys that have really grown and hit the weight room hard and I think athletically and physically will be able to compete better this year with the guys we have coming back,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says he likes what he sees from his players this month.  He says they are going to be able to compete better because they are more physical.  “It's been a good group, they've worked really hard and so far this season it's just a night and day difference with our ability to play physically and just more physically imposing.  We were always the skinniest, smallest team on the court it seemed last year and this year I think it's going to be the other way around,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday evening, “We're going to have some solid athletes out there with some size that and some skill too.  So, I really like this group.  Again, we’re still playing three juniors and a sophomore with a couple seniors mixed in, so it's still a little young, but they're all back.  I'm excited to be able to compete with some guys that are just physically bigger, stronger, faster than they were a year ago.”

          In the preseason here, Winslow says they have not had to do as much teaching because the players know where they are supposed to be and what they need to do.  “It's not so much review, I mean they've been through our system for a while and they know what's going on, so you’re kind of building each day starting from day one instead of starting back at scratch.  So, they have got a lot of experience with them and that that leads to us being able to put some more things in and add some things and just keep getting better,” he said.

Published 11/16/23

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Upper Locks Horns With Carey

          Upper Sandusky welcomes the rival Carey Blue Devils in Northern 10 Athletic Conference action on Friday night.

          Carey will win no less than a share of the conference title with a win.

          Upper won in dramatic fashion in a (48-42) win over Buckeye Central last week in conference play.  Quarterback Kaden Holman scored the game winner with :19 left.

          Coach Russell Hall says it was an exciting win for them.  “That was a fun game.  Talking with some of the assistant coaches, they pointed out that since he's been here anyway there's not a lot of the Upper teams that would have been able to come back from that.  We were battling a lot of injuries and everything.  We had some new guys step up.  Our kids just kept playing hard.  That's kind of our goal every week is to have a chance to win there in the fourth quarter and that's where we found ourselves to be.  It worked out good, but we've had too many of those super close games down to the last possession this year that's for sure, I probably aged about 10 years,” said Hall.

          Upper (4-4,3-2) is at home for Carey (6-2,5-0) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils lit up Bucyrus (63-0) last week.

          Hall says they are even better than a lot people think.  “They're much, much better than their record shows.  They started out 0-2, but I think a lot of teams would if they played their non league schedule.  Some teams looked to play some easier teams to get themselves established,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Hats off to Carey for looking to get challenged and lining up three really good teams to play to start the year.  Just looking at playoff points in regions, just curious to see where the area teams are and I notice they beat a pretty good Crawford team and I think they are, because of those two losses, ranked below them in their region, but they did very well against Crawford.
          Hall says Carey is big and physical.  “There are definitely a lot of teams you know that I've talked to pre league and our preseason from our league kind of picked Carey to push for the league championship and they're doing really well.  They're a very big team, a very physical team, a very well coached team and they execute exceptionally well in all three phases of the game,” he said.

Published 10/13/23

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Upper Plays Buckeye Central

          Upper Sandusky lands at Buckeye Central for a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game against the Bucks on Friday night.

          They were thrashed last week by Colonel Crawford (41-6) in a conference game.

          Coach Russell Hall says Crawford was in very good form.  “They executed very, very well.  They had a fantastic game plan on both offense and defense.  They definitely made it pretty difficult for us on both sides of the ball, that's for sure.  So, hats off to them.  They're a very, very well coached team and like I said they executed to the upmost of their ability,” he said.

          Upper (3-4,2-2) is at Buckeye Central (2-5,0-4) on Friday night.  The Bucks were handled by Wynford (45-0) last week.

          Hall says the Bucks might not have a league win, but they have good players.  “Buckeye Central is a pretty solid team.  They don't have a lot of numbers, but they've got some tough kids.  They're lineman are playing both ways.  I’m really impressed with #52 Bren Jones, it seems like he's been starting for a couple years, a senior, he does a fantastic job, 6 foot, 244, they move him around and yeah he’s a force, he's a good lineman on both sides of the ball.  #3 (Heath) Jensen, senior wide receiver, 5’11”, 155, fantastic, super fast, great hand eye coordination, those games that they won early on he just really pops out on film.  He's got that extra gear, that pull away gear once he catches the ball.  You definitely have got to know where he is,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “#7 is another guy that really pops out on film for him.  They moved him around from slot to outside receiver, he even played quarterback for them last week against Wynford.  #7 Jack Phillips 6 foot, 180, great athlete right there and a super competitor whether it's you know offense, defense, going to get the ball, coming up to tackle.  He just does a fantastic job.  So, I mean you could tell they're very well coached.”

          Hall says Buckeye is going to give great effort and that means they need the same thing.  “They don't have a lot of depth, but we don't necessarily have a ton of depth either.  They're a very hardnosed football team and if you watch them and their players effort from snap one until the last snap of the game there's no change.  They compete and take pride in their performance and effort that's for sure,” he said.

Published 10/06/23

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Upper Sandusky Has to Believe

          Upper Sandusky has good vibes going into their home game with Colonel Crawford in Northern 10 Athletic Conference play on Friday night.

          They upset the Eagles in overtime last year.

          Last week, they scored late to beat Mohawk (39-34) in conference play.

          Coach Russell Hall says this time they made the plays they had to.  “I mean that was that was a lot of fun.  It's a lot more fun than a couple weeks ago where we had a chance at the end of the game to win and this time we were able to execute.  We were able to make one more play that we needed to take the lead and get the win,” he said.

          Upper (3-3,2-1) hosts Colonel Crawford (5-1,2-1) on Friday night.  The Eagles fell to “N10” leader Carey (27-7) last week first loss.

Hall says they are loaded with talent again this year.  “They're a typical Crawford team for the last couple years, which is very good.  They're very big up front, they're strong, they have a very good athlete that plays quarterback and in the secondary for them there, they've got really good running backs as usual.  There must be something in the water over there at Crawford because it seems like they always seem to have those things there, the athletic quarterback, the big, physical line and the big, fast, physical backs,” said Hall.

          Hall says that big win they got last year has got to help them this week.  “You have to think so.  I remember talking to a coach one of my first years, or early years, as an assistant coach about 15 years ago.  Their program had not had very much success in the previous years and they were having a pretty good year.  That was back before we did “Huddle” exchange and we could actually meet up and you know trade DVD's.  Of course, as a young coach tended to get volunteered for that quite often.  I said coach, because he was their head coach, what's changed?  I mean you guys are having a heck of a year and he said, half the battle in high school sports is believing that you can do what you can do.  He said this season you know my team believes that they can play with anyone and it's it shows on the film,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday evening, “That's the nice thing about these seniors, they were part of last year and that was the mentality last year.  We thought we could play with anybody.  We may not win, but we could play with anybody and to have that experience, even the guys that didn't play and maybe we're in the stands or the guys didn't play and they were on the sidelines, they got to witness that.  So, I think that's definitely a positive anytime a program can get a big win because that was huge for us last year.  We had just come from losing pretty bad to a good Mohawk team coming in.  A lot of people had crossed us off as a team that was going to be even remotely good.  To get that win against a state ranked team and at their place was huge, that was very big for our program.  I think definitely helped convince some more people that maybe Upper Sandusky football can play you know with more teams and with good teams and hold our own, maybe not win every time, but compete.”

Published 9/29/23

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Upper Has to be Better

          Upper Sandusky came within a whisker of a win last week and on Friday night they play at Bucyrus against the Redmen in play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Seneca East edged them (46-44) in a shootout last Friday.

          Coach Russell Hall says it came down to the end.  “It was a really fun game until the very, very end.  I wish we could have made one more play on offense or defense.  It was a very close game, a very back and forth game, a very competitive game.  Both sides just kept going in attack mode there.  I'm sure it was a great game to watch and it would have been a lot more fun if our boys could have made just one more play,” he said.

          This week in practice, Hall says they have to concentrate on being more consistent so they are the ones making plays at the end.  “That's what we talked about after the game as well as Saturday morning was we had a really good practice Monday, we had a really good practice Tuesday, Wednesday we could have been a little better, and Thursday was pretty good.  I said that's pretty good, but it was one play not good enough.  We have to continue to keep getting better.  It doesn't matter who you're playing you have got to try and keep getting better each week.  I asked them like we did after Northmor to watch themselves on film and find something that that they feel they're struggling with.  We've got to focus on trying to fix that to improve ourselves for sure,” said Hall.

          Upper (1-3,0-1) is at Bucyrus (0-4,0-1) on Friday night.  The Redmen lost (56-6) to Colonel Crawford in league action last week.

          Hall says the Redmen are showing improvement each week.  “Their non-league schedule is top and then open up with Crawford is pretty tough too.  I believe their opponent’s record is 12-4 right now with two of them undefeated.  So, they're non-conference it's not really no joke.  When I watch Bucyrus, I see a team that is improving each and every week.  They're a dangerous team.  They go for it a lot on fourth down.  They gamble and you can tell they're having fun doing it.  Their kids play hard and they do everything they can you know to give themselves the best chance to compete with whoever it is they're playing,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday evening, “Whether it's throwing the ball deep on fourth and 19 or 12 or whatever it is.  They're just having fun and going after it and not holding anything back.  Hats off to their coaching staff and their players.  Each week's film you can tell each group, whether they're the lineman. the linebackers, the running backs, the quarterback, the receivers they're improving.  They're improving, which is I'm sure good for their coaches to see.  Obviously, like us they wish we had some more W’s.”

Published 9/12/2023

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Upper Has to be Clean

          Upper Sandusky will begin play in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Friday night as they are home for the Seneca East Tigers.

          Last week, Gabe Ivy ran for a school record 372 yards and four scores as Galion bludgeoned Upper (41-6) on Friday.

          Upper coach Russell Hall says they knew Galion was good, but they were even better.  “They were very good up front.  That's something it kind of stood out on film and then was magnified.  They played a very good clean game up front as far as their run blocking assignments and it showed unfortunately for us.  We were giving up some size and strength up front on the lines it was kind of a mismatch there.  I was hoping that our speed could help overcompensate that difference, but unfortunately they're big guys weren't only big and strong they were also fast.  Their running back did a nice job of reading and hitting the hole extremely fast before we could close in on him.  Just looking back, Galion, I knew they were good before we played them and they're better, they're better about halfway through the first quarter I realized film did not do them justice,” said Hall.

          Seneca East, like Upper (1-2), was beaten (40-21) by Monroeville, surrendering more than 300 yards on the ground.

          Hall says theyTigers are good as always.  “They do a great job over there.  They still have another Foos boy that's a senior this year.  They've got several players kind of like Galion that have multi year experience, which is definitely an asset for them.  It's a typical Seneca East team.  They have got big guys, they have got fast guys.  It's a nice mix that they have there.  I was talking to some of the coaches I wasn't sure the last time we actually beat Seneca East, maybe 2013?  It's been a while… it's been a while.  Just hats off to them over there.  They're a program, they've been one of the top three teams in our league for what seems like years,” he said.

          Hall says to beat Seneca East, they have to improve their execution.  “We're going to have to play a clean game.  We can't make mental mistakes like we did last week.  We lined up wrong a couple of times on defense unfortunately.  Every once in a while, I make bad calls.  I'm far from perfect.  I can't do that to put our kids in a bad situation.  Just battle breakdowns, oh I think I have got to do this. oh wait, no it's that, but the problem is the play is going on, so it's too late for that,” he told Swankpnsports.com on Wednesday evening, “To beat them we're going to have to play a clean game, we're going to have to execute on offense, defense and special teams.  Like I said don't let their 1-2 record fool you.  They're definitely a solid team.  I believe almost every poll I've seen had picked them to be third in our league and that's for a reason.  They have that tradition, they have that commitment, they have a solid coaching staff and you can tell they're a very well coached team.”

Published 9/07/23

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Upper as to be Fundamental

          Upper Sandusky plays at Galion on Friday night in a matchup of former Northern Ohio League schools in non-conference play.

          Last week, Upper beat Mt. Gilead (26-12) as Kaden Holman threw four scoring passes.

          Coach Russell Hall feels the pass was there against the Indians.  “It was great resilience by our boys.  Our quarterback Kaden (Holman) and the receivers spent a lot of time watching coverage and everything like that and did a fantastic job of preparing themselves and our quarterback did a great job of analyzing and taking what was there.  He felt that throwing the ball was there more than the run and it worked out where he ran the ball a little bit, but he had some good success there with the pass as well,” said Hall.

          Galion (2-0) beat Carey, like Upper of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, (21-14) last week.

          Hall says the Tigers have three things all very good teams have speed, size and experience.  “Experience jumps off the page.  Their quarterback, running back, their best receiver number #1 there (Elijah) Chafin there.  I mean they they've been there it seems like for a long time, although I'm sure they're thinking the same thing about some of our skill guys we've been rotating it since they were freshmen,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Experience, speed, size, those are three good things to have on your team and Galion, in my opinion, is very fortunate to have a lot of those three things on their side, which is a big reason why I feel that they are 2-0 beating two really good football teams so far this year.”

          Hall says to win they are going to have to be very fundamental in their approach on both sides of the ball.  “To win this thing we're going to play a clean game.  We're going to have to protect the ball, we're going to have to be solid on special teams, offense and defense.  We're going to have to try and make less mistakes than them to give ourselves a chance to win in the fourth quarter,” he said.

Published 8/31/23

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Upper Trying to Bounce Back

            Upper Sandusky travels to Mt. Gilead for a non-conference football game on Friday night.

          Last week, the Rams lost (42-21) to Northmor to open the season.

          However, coach Russell Hall says they were a lot more competitive than that score might indicate.  “It was absolutely anybody's game halfway through the fourth quarter.  Unfortunately, we had some problems with some ball security and some bad timing and kind of put us behind the 8 ball there.  Then towards the end I think everyone in the stadium watching or listening on the radio knew we were going to be throwing the ball and they were able to really lay their ears back and send some pressure and drop people with the coverage there to get two late pick sixes to push the game out of our reach there,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “I was really impressed with our effort.  There was no quit or anything like that, like I said we fought the whole game, we didn't quit after we actually fumbled the opening kickoff return there.  We went out and we were pretty close to stopping them there, unfortunately had a pass interference call there, so I guess you know just depends on your angle and which team you're rooting for that call.  They ended up scoring on that drive.  Our kids still hung in and like I said I was proud of them.  It was halfway through the fourth quarter and we were still right there with the chance to win.”

          Hall says the kids understand what they have to do to be better and they are applying that.  “It's pretty much practice usual still.  I let them know on Saturday obviously the game didn't turn out as we wanted.  I said now some good news is half the teams in the State of Ohio lost this weekend, so everybody's not going to go 10-0 or 15-0 or what have you.  We were back to practice as usual.  (Thursday) we actually practice the morning because of the chance of really warm temperatures and stuff like that.  So, that was a little different, but they responded well and I thought we had a pretty good Thursday practice,” he said.

          Mt. Gilead earned a win in their game, (15-8) over Triad. 

          Hall says this is a big game for the Rams.  “They are an improving program for sure.  Coach (Mike) Reid over there, reining division VII coach of the year, is doing an amazing job.  Their numbers are up.  You look and they have got skilled guys. They have got a giant offensive line.  They're definitely on a program that’s going to win a lot of games this year.  That's something we stress that this is very important.  Those that followed us last year, and Mt. Gilead last year, we got some secondary points from them that helped give us our week one matchup.  We're probably not in the playoffs or we’re last seed in sort of thing.  We got a lot of points last year and this is a big game for us that's for sure because they're a very good program,” said Hall.

Published 8/25/23

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Upper Hosts Talented Northmor

          Upper Sandusky, a team with the talent to contend in the “N10” this season, hosts Northmor, likely one of the best in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference, in a non-conference game on Friday night.

          Coach Russell Hall likes the way the Rams improved during the preseason.  “That's always great to see as a coach and it sure makes a lot of fun when the kids are super coachable and take the coaching to heart and do everything they can to try and fix their problems and keep getting better,” said Hall.

          Kaden Holman returns at quarterback, he led the “N10” in passing yards last season.

          Hall says he has a lot of guys to throw to.  “I would say our wide receiver corps is just solid from top to bottom and that's going to make us tough to defend because any one of them could kind of go off as far as number of catches and yards on any given night,” he said.

          Hall says Northmor is a very talented team that is both athletic and experienced, especially in the skilled positions.  “They're a very experienced team very similar to us last year.  They've got a ton of guys with a lot of experience coming back.  Their all state quarterback is also a returning guy.  Their running back that had to fill in when they had an injury last year is back and most of their receiving corps is back as well and they have several good experience solid lineman on both sides of the ball.  So, like I said it reminds me a lot of us last year when we had a lot of guys coming back as juniors and seniors with varsity game experience and when you watch one film it shows.”

Published 8/16/23

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Upper Sandusky Can be Good

          Last year was a breakthrough season for the Upper Sandusky Rams as they finished in the top half of the standings in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          Coach Russell Hall says the players have come out this season ready to play and continue to get better.  “I feel we've had a great camp and two a day session so far.  Obviously, we have got a long way to go.  Last year’s senior class they're not coming back and we need guys to step up and replace them.  We've been very fortunate as a program all offseason and through now while our numbers aren't quite as big the work ethic and dedication that these boys are showing and coachability is amazing.  It makes coaching so much fun just being able to see the growth in the weight room seeing guys literally put on 15 pounds of muscle in the offseason,” he told Swankonsports.com, “Seeing we had a safety who jumped leaps and bounds in both his regular reads, his forward breaks, his turn breaks and even in the run game to come trigger up and be a plus one there in the run box, it's just fantastic.”

          Hall says the kids that have the helmets and shoulder pads have the right attidude.  “It's everywhere, this group of players and athletes have a very businesslike mentality where they take things very seriously.  They seem to understand practice and it's importance to keep improving if we want to have a year like we did last year or even a better one.  It's going to take hard work, it's going to take dedication and so far I've been nothing but pleased with the work ethic and dedication of these young men,” he said.

          Upper kicks off the season on August 18 against Northmor.

          Hall says they lost some kids to graduation, but the new kids have stepped up and ready to perform.   “You have got to look at the positions themselves.  We had four senior offensive lineman and we had a ton of senior defensive lineman and it's great that year and then the next year they're gone.  So, then it's time for new people to step up and do everything they can to try and fill those shoes.  Our skill guys, we lost our starting tight end Brady Hart, we lost our leading receiver Evan Hill, but the younger guys have done a great job stepping up to fill in for those guys.  So, we've got a lot of the receivers and quarterbacks coming back, which is fantastic.  Our secondary, we lost our free safety Karson Stombaugh, but other than that our other safety you know Kaden Holman and Gavin Frey and Ethan Hill are back there in the secondary, which is good,” said Hall.

Published 8/04/23

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Upper Has to Make Own Breaks

          Upper Sandusky returns to action on Thursday night as they travel to Bellevue for a non-conference game.  They play at Seneca East in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday night.

          The Rams (2-11,2-6) just haven’t gotten many breaks this year.  Last Friday, Wynford scored seven points in the last 30 seconds of regulation and then beat Upper (77-73) in overtime.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says in basketball you have to make your own breaks.  “I said that after Saturday's game we're not catching a break, but at some point you have got to make your own breaks.  Just a lot of defensive possessions where we give teams too many easy looks.  The breaks your not getting turned out to hurt you.  So, you have to shore that up and play a little bit better defense.  The game of basketball sometimes things just don't go your way and right now they're not.  We definitely have got to shore up our defense.  We give up 77 on Friday and then we give up 62 on Saturday and that's just too many points.  We have got to keep teams in the 40s.  So, we worked really hard this week shoring that up.  So, you have got to make your own breaks at some point,” he said.

          Bellevue (10-3), #4 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, awaits the Rams on Thursday night.  They are in a share of second in the Lake Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference.

          Winslow says they are an outstanding team and they have very good balance.  “They only have three losses and two are to Sandusky, who is state ranked.  So, they are really, really good.  They have won nine of the last ten games.  They're really athletic and physical.  They have the Martin twins that are 6’3”, 6’4” wings that are super athletic and then they got the Ray brothers that are the guards that are extremely quick and can shoot the ball.  They're big guy down low can step out and shoot it or post you up.  They're really well balanced if you watch them.  I think the one Ray kid averages around 10 or so and everybody else is at six to eight range.  So, they really share the ball well and really defend well and (coach) Ed (Rich) just does a good job of putting them in situations to make everybody the most successful.  It doesn't seem like anybody on their team cares who is scoring and getting the credit they just want to win games.  They are doing a really good job with that this year,” said Winslow.

          Seneca East (9-5,4-4) beat Upper (59-38) the first time they played on December 10.

          Winslow says they are going to have play better defense.  “Well, they're pretty explosive offensively with the two Mason brothers.  They can score many ways.  I have some other guys outside of that are shooting the ball well form them.  They are just playing with a lot of confidence.  They got a lot of wins early on and they are playing a lot of confidence.  We just got to do a better job of limiting the younger Mason kid, Luke, the first time we played and we lost him quite a bit and he got open quite a bit on looks and he really just shoots the ball well,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “So, we have got to keep them off the line because that's where his older brother lives. You have to make sure to contest the two shooters.  Again, do a better job defensively.  We can't get give up 60 plus points again expect to win the games.  So, hopefully we can limit their transition baskets and their open threes and keep them off the line.”

Published 1/19/23

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Upper Not Making Shots

          Upper Sandusky is at Wynford on Friday night for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          The Rams are still searching for success, but they played one of the better games of the season, if not their best, in a (47-45) loss to Colonel Crawford on Saturday night in conference play.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were pretty good on defense, but they just didn’t make enough shots.  “We were pretty solid.  We just again, it was the first half this time, we go through a period of time where we don't score the basketball forever reason.  So, we have got to eliminate those long droughts.  The second half we played pretty well.  I thought we did a really good job defensively limiting Baker’s opportunities as well as Maddy’s inside and we rebounded the ball well. Offensively, we came down got some good looks.  So, just a little short in the end, but pretty solid overall,” he said.

          Winslow’s program at Upper has been known for it’s defense.  He says the kids are making strides in the way the play man to man.  “We've really worked hard at that and I tell the kids it has to be our bread butter.  We played a lot of zone early with some of these younger kids and we just decided that hey let’s just go play man to man and learn how to play defense the correct way,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “The kids have bought in and we're doing a lot better job of defending.  So, we just have got to keep that up and then on the offensive end start making some shots.  We're just really inconsistent shooting the basketball for a team that's got a lot of guys that can put the ball in the hole.  So, keep getting better defensively and start making shots the offensive end.”

          Upper Sandusky (2-9,2-5) entertains Wynford (8-3,4-2) on Friday night.  The Royals beat Buckeye Central (60-49) in a conference game on Saturday night and added a (79-34) win over Mansfield St. Peter’s in a non-conference game on Tuesday night.  It was (62-51) Wynford the fist time these teams met.

          Winslow says they can’t allow the Royals to get open three point shots.  “They're a really nice basketball team.  They have got some guys that can put the ball in the basket.  They're long and athletic.  The first time, we played a lot of zone.  We were missing some guys, so they made 15 threes against us.  We can't have that happen again.  We have got to do a better job taking away the three ball and then limit them to one and done.  Going down the other end scoring some in transition.  They're a tough matchup because they have got multiple guys that can put the ball in the basket.  Defensively, they pose some problems that 1-2-2 with their length and athleticism.  We have got to handle that and try to get good shots and layups off that,” said Winslow.

Published 1/13/22

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Upper Must Take Advantage of Size

          Upper Sandusky hosts Buckeye Central in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Thursday night.

          Upper got off to a poor start and they were hammered (55-27) by unbeaten Carey in an “N10” game last Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they did not handle Carey’s physical play very well last week.  “It was 9-6 with 1:30 to go in the first and they closed out with a 12-0 run and went up 21-6 and we just kind of never recovered after that.  So, we went into a little bit of offensive funk, but they really defended well the other night,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We didn't handle their physicalness very well, so for the next time we play them we'll be able to handle that.  They are the most physical team we've played so far and gave us a little bit of trouble, so we have to handle a little better and put some points on the board.”

          Upper Sandusky (1-8,1-4) plays at home against Bucyrus Central (4-6,1-4) on Thursday night.  The Bucks got their first conference win in beating Bucyrus (67-53) last Friday.

          Winslow says they are getting healthier and they are making some more shots.  “They have had some injuries here and they're starting to get healthy. The (Tyler) Sanderson kid is a really nice player.  He does a lot for them, he likes gets the basket pretty well, he is as nice playmaker.  You have got to keep him out of the paint and make some other guys earn it from the perimeter.  The key for us would be rebounding the basketball.  We need to dominate the paint area.  We are going to have a nice size advantage.  We need to at both ends be able to dominate that paint,” said Winslow.

          They have three guys around the 6’5” range and Winslow says they need to take advantage of that.  “We haven't been doing a good enough job of getting the ball inside.  I mean we're not getting to the line very often and the main reason is we're shooting a lot of threes.  We have got a team that can shoot the ball, but we still need to live inside out and we're kind of not doing that here recently.  So, we have got to get back to basics and get the ball inside to get some easy ones and open up the three-point shot for us,” he said.

Published 1/04/23

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Upper Plays Physical Carey

          Upper Sandusky is down the road at Northern 10 Athletic Conference leader and rival Carey on Friday night.

          On Wednesday, the Rams fell to Marion Harding (65-53) in a non-conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they did a lot of good things, but one thing they didn’t do was rebound.  “We played pretty well.  Harding is a pretty good basketball team.  They are just so much more athletic than we were and we struggled on the glass with them.  So, we gave up too many offensive rebounds, 24 second chance points, and that was the game.  Other than that, we were pretty solid defensively I thought made them take some tough shots, did a pretty solid job offensively, we turned them over more than they turned us over. We're getting better, we're close, we're right there again.  We just to have a spurt there where we don't score, we give up some easy ones with some turnovers.  If we eliminate that spurt like that we're going to be okay.  So, I thought overall we played pretty well.  I talked to the kids (Thursday) morning we are definitely not satisfied.  I mean that was a very winnable game.  If we commit a little harder on the glass and then a couple less turnovers.  We just have got to shore those things up so we can play 32 minutes of basketball and then beat one of these teams.”

          Upper Sandusky (1-7,1-3) is at Carey (6-0,4-0), #2 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Blue Devils last game was last Tuesday when they beat Willard (61-50) in non-conference play.

          Winslow says Carey is physical and they shoot the ball very well.  “They have really good guard play and there two post players are extremely strong and physical.  So, the three guards can all shoot it and quick enough to get to the paint off the dribble.  They shoot it really, really well, those three and then the one post player (Alexander) Putnam, he's shown the ability to hit threes as well as taking it down low and go inside with a strength and physical play,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “So, they are an athletic group that gets after you and I would think playing Carey all these years one of the best shooting teams he has had with those four guys that can really shoot the three.  So, it makes it rough have to take away penetration and the three-point shot as well as the physical play of the post.  Then defensively they set the tone with their physical on ball defense and then try to take you out of everything.  So, we are just going to have to handle the basketball.  We are going to have to be ball strong all night and guard to three-point shot.”

          Upper and Carey are neighborhood rivals and Winslow says that brings a little extra to the game.  “It's a big time rivalry because we are only 5, 10 miles apart.  A lot of the people either have relation in either town or they're real close friends with people, so everybody knows everybody and they see each other throughout the year all the time.  You'll see a lot of Carey people in Upper and a lot of Upper people in Carey.  It's pretty close knit two communities that when they get out on the court you know it's a huge rivalry for bragging rights.  So, now that we're in the same league it's got a lot of league implications and it's turned into a really fun rivalry.  It's a packed house, it's a really fun it's a really fun game to play in and hopefully we can come on top,” said Winslow.

Published 12/30/22

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Defense Leads to Points For Upper

          Upper Sandusky plays at home against Buckeye Central in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          Last Saturday, the Rams (1-6,1-3) picked up their first win of the season in blowing out Bucyrus (73-44) in a conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were able to pressure Bucyrus into some mistakes.  “We played really well on Friday night and kind of panicked down the stretch and then I thought we carried our good play into Saturday just looked really well especially at the defensive end.  We got back to pressuring people and try to make life a little rough on the offensive end for them.  We got some turnovers and easy baskets.  Ethan Kessler played really well for us all weekend scoring 22 points each night.  So, hopefully we're getting healthy and all these guys back.  We have got to hang our hat on defense and we were pretty good defensively all weekend,” said Winslow.

          It is Upper’s plan to play tough defense and Winslow says that leads to a lot of their offense.  “Our defense has to make our offense.  We scored pretty good on both those nights this weekend and that's because our defense leads to our offense.  Whether it's a steal or just getting a stop and rebounding getting out on transition.  Now, that's big for us too getting rebounds and getting out transition and not taking it through the net all the time.  We really rely on our defense creating a lot of our offensive opportunities,” he said.

          Upper hosts Buckeye Central (3-5,0-4) on Friday night.  The Bucks lost (46-20) to “N10” leader Carey on Saturday night and they have some injury issues.

          Winslow says again the key for them is defense.  “I saw Sanderson has a bumb knee and he played, but didn’t play the whole game.  I can't pronounce the other kids name and he's got like an ankle injury and he didn't play at all.  So, they're playing some younger guys and struggle a little bit.  Carey’s defense has a little bit to do with that too.  They're pretty physical get after I saw them play (Tuesday) night,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “I hope we can play Friday night because we're starting to play well and we're getting a groove and gettting in habits here.  So, we’ve got to again like we just said have our defense create offense and hopefully we can do that against Buckeye Central.”

Published 12/21/22

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Upper Has to be Really Good on Defense

          Upper Sandusky has two games this weekend in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, both at home, with Mohawk on Friday and Bucyrus on Saturday.

          The Rams, normally, one of the best teams in the area, have gotten off to a slow start and are still looking for their first win.

          They lost (59-38) to Seneca East in an “N10” game last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says again was a scoring draught that did them in.  “Seneca East is a really solid basketball team.  We came out pretty well, had a nice little lead there and then we were 1-17 for the next quarter and a half.  So, we really struggled to put the ball in the basket and had some turnovers and Seneca East made shots.  They took advantage of our mistakes and we made too many mistakes,” he said.

          Upper (0-5,0-2) entertains Mohawk (6-0,2-0), #3 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.

          Winslow says Mohawk has a lot of offensive skill led by outstanding senior A.J. Hess.  “Number one, A.J. Hess is really good.  He is 6’6” and can handle it, shoot it from anywhere, posting up a lot more this year, which now makes him a tougher guard because he goes inside, out.  That really stands out to me.  They can put five guys on the floor they can shoot the three or take you off the dribble, so that makes them hard to guard and just they're really aggressive defensively,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “They reach and claw and push and slap and they really get their active hands on a lot of passes.  So, you have got to take care of the basketball, have got defend the three and somehow you have to defend Hess three ways, you can't let him post you up, you can't let him shoot the three and you can't let him take you off the dribble.  It is such as a tough assignment there.  It’s a match up problem with them with the way he plays.”

          Both schools are located in Wyandot County and have been longtime rivals.  Winslow says there is always a lot of intensity.  “It’s a really good rivalry, we are only 10 minutes away, so a lot of the kids know each other.  It’s usually a sellout crowd and both teams are usually in the top of the league running for the league.  It’s a fun game and it's a game you hate to lose and you really want to win.  So, I think it's going to be really competitive and we'll go over there and battle and I'm sure they'll be ready to battle as well,” said Winslow.

Published 12/15/22

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Defense is Going to be Big for Upper

          Upper Sandusky is going to be tested again this week as they host Tiffin Columbian on Thursday in non-conference play and Seneca East on Saturday in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game.

          The Rams fell (62-51) to Wynford in an “N10” game last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says again their play was not as consistent as it needs to be.  “I told the kids (Wednesday) that we are just a few minutes away from being 3-0.  We led by 11 at halftime with Willard, we were up one with two minutes to go against Galion and then led at halftime against Wynford and just had a bad stretch in the third quarter where too many turnovers led to easy ones.  We have to play a 32 minute game instead of a 24 minute game.  We were missing three guys.  We have been sick.  We have had some flu going around.  We only had five guys in practice (Tuesday) night for the total program.  Going through some sickness issues, I thought our kids being shorthanded missing three starters did a pretty good job staying in that gave versus Wynford.  We just had a stretch in the third quarter where we turned the ball over nine times in the first 12 possessions.  That’s the ballgame,” said Winslow.

          Upper (0-3) is at home for Tiffin Columbian (2-0) on Thursday night.  The Tornadoes are coming off a (54-49) win over Willard on Saturday night.

          Winslow says they will have to handle pressure and will have to handle one of the best players in the area in Logan Beaston.  “They are really good.  They are athletic.  They are big.  (Logan) Beaston might be the best player in the whole area.  He is a really good player.  What I am impressed about him is he is such a good leader.  It’s just like having a coach on the floor.  He doesn’t force anything.  He gets his teammates involved.  You have the Roggow twins that are really talented.  They are going to get out and pressure you and try and turn you over and have their defense lead to offense.  They are going to get the ball to Beaston and have him make a play whether he is shooting it or finding an open guy.  They are going to be a load to handle (Thursday) night.  Hopefully, we can handle the ball without turnovers against their pressure defense and stay in the ballgame,” he said.

          Seneca East (3-1,0-1) lost (65-54) to Carey in a conference game last Saturday.

          Winslow says they are an excellent offensive team that is really tough to contain.  “They had a really bad stretch in the third quarter there against Carey or they would be undefeated.  I have seen them a couple of times and what they have this year is a point guard, Isaac Mason’s brother, he is able to handle the ball and not turn it over and he can really shoot it and find the open man.  They have struggled with turnovers in the past, but now having a true point guard, he really settles them down and gets them into stuff,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “So, you have the two Mason brothers that do a good job of handling the ball and getting them into their offense.  They don’t run a whole lot of set stuff, so you have to be really ready for their motion offense and their high ball screen.  You have got to keep them out of the paint.  They score a lot and really get to the rim in the paint.  We have to do a good job of playing one on one defense and not allowing your man to get in the paint.”

Published 12/08/22

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Upper Has to be More Disciplined

          Upper Sandusky goes in search of its first win of the season as they at Wynford for their Northern 10 Athletic Conference opener against the Royals on Saturday night.

          The Rams lost (72-63) to Galion in a non-conference game on Wednesday night.

          Upper coach Jeff Winslow says the Tigers made the plays at the end of the game to win it.  “Some of the credit has to go to Galion.  They are much improved.  They have really good guard play that they haven’t had in the past and they can shoot the ball really well.  They have a kid that came over from Mt. Gilead that is a really good player.  The Kent kid can really shoot the ball, one of the better shooters in the area.  They shot the ball well and they played with energy.  They executed down the stretch.  We had a one point lead with three minutes to go and they out executed us,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says right now they are young and they just aren’t very consistent and that is costing them.  “I hate when people say this, but we are playing three sophomores in our top seven and we are kind of learning on the fly with some things.  Even in scrimmages, we don’t put four solid quarters together.  We will have a stretch where we are really bad, whether we are turning it over or giving up layups.  We did that and Galion took advantage of that.  We have to get rid of that stretch,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “The same thing happened against Willard in the third quarter and the second and third quarter against Galion.  Turned the ball over and gave up some layups and some silly fouls to put them at the line.  We have to learn and be more disciplined and not do that.”

          Wynford (1-1) lost (63-54) to Hopewell-Loudon on Tuesday night in a non-conference game.

          Winslow says this the best Royals team they have had for a while.  “They are much improved.  I really like their team.  I think they are really good.  They are long, athletic, they really get after it.  They have some kids that can shoot the ball.  It’s a tough task for anybody to go over there and win against that group.  It is going to be tough for us.  Hopewell-Loudon went in there the other night and beat them, but Hopewell-Loudon is really, really good.  It is going to be quite the test to go over to Wynford and come out with a “W”.  We need to find a way to put those four quarters together without that stretch to beat them,” he said.

Published 12/02/22

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Upper Locks Horns With Willard

          Upper Sandusky rolls into Willard to face the Flashes on Wednesday night, now the opening night of the boys’ basketball season, in a non-conference contest.

          The Rams will be a more inexperienced team, at least at the beginning of the season, but coach Jeff Winslow says they are starting to come together.  “Honestly, it has been up and down.  We have a lot of young guys playing.  They haven’t been real consistent yet.  As you go and they get accustomed to what you are doing and get used to the varsity speed and varsity practices they become more consistent, but right now we have to be patient and just work through some of the days that are bad days and have some days that are good days.  Hopefully, you have more good days than bad,” said Winslow.

          Willard is going to be a big challenge for his team, according to Winslow, because they have kids that can score the ball.  “Well, the Max Dawson kid is really, really good.  He is going to average 25 or 30 a game.  He does not miss an open shot.  He has good length and really good basketball smarts.  He is going to a really tough guy to match up to and try to limit,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “The Robinson kids, I believe they are twins,  Cam Robinson is just a really strong kid that gets to the basket.  He is lefty and that makes it difficult sometimes if you’re not used to it.  He is really physical.  Then his brother is a good outside shooter from the perimeter.  They have two other role players that can spot shoot and do their thing.  They seem to be not really deep, but those five really know what they are doing.  That gives them five really solid players on the court and it is going to be a tough matchup for us.”

          Of course, Upper Sandusky and Willard were both in the Northern Ohio League for years and they had a great rivalry in the late 1970’s.  They have kept playing a non-conference game since Upper left that league 20 years ago.

          Winslow says it is always a good test.  “It has been a good rivalry game, the first game of the year.  I wouldn’t mind if we pushed it back a little bit, a little bit deeper in the season.  Being the first game of the year, it is always a packed house, lots of intensity.  Both teams are usually really good and win or lose both teams have good seasons.  We are back in the same division again, so it could be a matchup in tournament play like we had in the past with them.  It is always a lot of fun to play this game,” he said.

Published 11/22/22

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Upper Sandusky Learning a lot

          Upper Sandusky will feature a younger basketball team this year and one that is going to have to be able to rebound to win.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says he like the progression he is seeing from his players so far.  “It is a really young group this year. We are just trying to get to know them and what they are going to be able to do at the varsity level.  We had a scrimmage (Tuesday) night and I think we have gotten better every scrimmage at something.  That is what we are trying to gain right now, is get a little better each night out,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “We are really starting to understand it better at the offensive end.  I thought we got better again defensively (Tuesday) night.  It is a team where we are going to have to shoot a lot of threes and make a lot of threes.  Our big battle every night is going to be rebounding the basketball.  So, if we can rebound the basketball, I think we will be pretty solid.”

          With a lot of younger kids playing, Winslow says they have to get used to the speed and physicality of varsity basketball.  “Our first scrimmage the kids noticed, we are playing four sophomores, just the speed of the game.  The physicality and the speed of the game is so much different as a varsity player.  A lot of their mistakes, they are just not used to that speed.  Once they get a little more comfortable.  You can’t replicate that in practice against your JV or scout team.  They just have to get their feet wet a little bit and get used that speed of the game factor.  Once they do that they can settle in and sometimes it takes some kids longer than others to get used to that.  I think our kids so far have done a really good job,” said Winslow.

          Upper opens the season they day before Thanksgiving at Willard against the Flashes.  They play their first game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference at Wynford on December 3.

          With a winning tradition at Upper Sandusky, including four “N10” titles, Winslow says his players know what it takes to win.  “The kids expect to win when they put on that uniform.  They have seen the kids above them and what it takes to win.  Our seniors every year hold our other kids accountable to those expectations.  Those kids kind of just teach that way all of the way through so that you develop that winning culture and that will to win expectation and those are good expectations to have you play with a lot of confidence,” he said.

Published 11/16/22

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Upper Sandusky Plays Balanced Clear Fork

          Upper Sandusky is in the playoffs in division IV for only the third time since 2004 and they play at Clear Fork, the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champion, in a first round game on Friday night.

          The Rams (5-5) made the playoffs after a (17-14) win over Wynford in North Central Conference action on Friday night.

          Coach Russell Hall says they had tremendous focus last week.  “It was a great example of playing in a tough game and not panicking.  We did a great job shutting them out in the second half.  This is my 15^th year and this is the first time we have won on an end of the game field goal.  So, it is nice to know too that we have that in our pocket should we need it again.  I was really proud of the boys in what we knew would be a challenge.  Their offensive line was very big, very physical and very talented last week,” he said.

          Clear Fork (9-1), #4 in the Swbankonsports.com football coaches poll in the large school division, belted Highland (42-7) last Friday to claim the outright “MOAC” title.  They held the league’s leading rusher Dane Naumann to only 77 yards in the process.

          Hall says Clear Fork is talented at almost every position.  “They are a very talented team.  There is a reason why they won the “MOAC”.  They are a very nice, well balanced team.  They have big, strong linemen that move, they have a couple of different running backs, they have nice receivers, their defensive line is very physical, their linebackers read and fill well and they are great in coverage.  Their special teams are fantastic.  It seems like every game when you follow Clear Fork it seems they had a special teams, kickoff or punt for a touchdown.  So, they are a very, very, very good team and they are ranked where they are because of that,” said Hall.

          The Upper coach says they really have not played a team like Clear Fork this year, but they have seen elements of the Colts from different teams.  “It is a combination actually of Carey’s offensive line with Crawford’s defensive line with some of the best running backs that we have played this year, there was a handful of them.  The same thing with their defense.  It is pretty much like pooling some of the best we have played our entire schedule.  So, we are kind of familiar with how they play. This is probably the most talented team we have played this year, at least on film,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “I not trying to put down anybody else that we have played.  They just seem very solid.  Their play at different positions definitely jumps out that we have seen this before, but it was this team’s strongest asset sort of thing.  We have definitely seen the style before.”

Published 10/25/22

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Upper Sandusky in Unique Position

          Upper Sandusky has a chance to do something they have rarely done and that is make the postseason playoffs.

          Other than the COVID year (2020) when everyone made the playoffs, the Rams have only qualified once (2012) since 2004.  Overall, the school has only made six appearances.

          They will do it this year with a win over Wynford in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Friday night.

          Coach Russell Hall says have shown week to week improve this season.  “Every week our kids have worked hard and the coaches have worked hard and the team truly has gotten better every week.  They players have really bought in to the mentality of controlling what you can control.  A lot of that is effort and preparation and it really shows.  You look at our record and we are 4-5, but at the same time we have been in every single game that we have lost and had our opportunities, unfortunately we just didn’t make enough plays to win those other games,” said Hall.

          Probably their key win this year came three weeks ago when they beat Colonel Crawford (30-29) in overtime.

          The Rams (4-5,3-3) play at home against Wynford (2-7,2-4) in a conference game.  Upper lost (20-14) to unbeaten Carey last week.  Wynford lost (32-31) to Seneca East on the last play of the game.

          Hall calls Wynford a big, strong team, that wants to run the ball.  “They are a very, very big, physical football team.  Their strength is definitely with their line, they have some very big guys, 250, 260, 270, 6’8”, 6’5’, they have a lot of big guys on their roster and they just play really, really hard.  They two nice running backs, they are a wing-T based offense and they just try and get after people and play a physical game and hopefully when the dust settles they are up.  They are definitely a much improved team watching them.  Every week they are continuing to get better as well,” he said.

          Hall says this is an opportunity they want to take advantage of.  “That is what we have been telling our boys Monday and (Tuesday) that we control our own destiny.  We haven’t gone 9-0 like everybody would have hoped, but it is nice to be in a situation where you still control your destiny.  That has just not happened a lot traditionally at Upper Sandusky High School,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “This is my 15^th year as a coach, my fifth year as a head coach and this will only be the second time we have earned a playoff berth.  The exception would be in 2020 when everybody got in.  There haven’t been a lot of .500 seasons.  It is really exciting to coach with these boys that have really bought in and see their hard work paying off.”

Published 10/19/22

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Upper Sandusky Has to be Patient

          Upper Sandusky, the runner-up in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, faces Norwalk, of the Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division, in a division II sectional final on Friday night at Willard High School.

          Upper (14-8) did lose its last three regular season games to Carey, Shelby and Colonel Crawford, but coach Jeff Winslow says there is no doubt they are a very good team.  “One thing that I told my players was and I wasn’t trying to make excuses, but the three teams that beat us all of the games were on the road and their combined record for the year was 55-11 and in the second half of the season those teams were 33-3, so it was going to be a rough stretch going in we knew that, especially playing on the road.  We didn’t exactly play our best every game, but some of that had to do with those other teams, which are pretty good basketball teams that are all going to make long runs in the tournament,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “We can’t sit there and feel sorry for ourselves and think we are not a very good team because we are still a good team.  Our opponents at the end were really, really tough and we just didn’t get it done.  So, we switch gears and it’s a new season on neutral court playing another team.  Hopefully, we can play a little better and come out on top.”

          Norwalk (12-11) edged Bellevue (42-37) in a semifinal at Willard on Tuesday night.

          The Truckers have played in 11 games this season when the winning team has scored 50 points or less

          Winslow says the Truckers want to limit the possessions.  “At the district meeting the other night they ask who was in favor of shot clock and coach Gray raises his hand and I thought what the heck are you doing.  He likes to slow it down and have it be a half court like game.  They are good at that because they are big and they are physical.  They really offensive rebound the ball.  I think maybe that is their best offense, shoot it and go get it.  Defensively, they are just so stingy.  They are going to try and take away your best players for sure.  They are going to try and limit you to one and done.  They are really physical.  Playing them is probably going to be that 40 point game and we just have to find a way to make a few more plays than them at the offensive end,” said Winslow.

          When the Rams have the ball in the half court, Winslow says they have to be patient and get a good shot.  “No matter what you are running a motion offense or sets, they are going to take away the early options because they are a really good defensive team.  You have to make them work, move the ball side to side and get them out of position a little bit.  Not only do you get a better shot, but you have a chance to rebound it.  If you just take a quick shot and miss, they are going to be in rebounding position.  It’s really important against a good defensive team you have to be a little more patient because you are not going to get an easy one as quick in the clock,” he said.

Published 2/24/22

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Upper Needs Four Quarters

          Upper Sandusky is the last team with a chance to beat Colonel Crawford in the regular season and spoil the Eagles chance of going 22-0 for the second year in a row.

          They meet in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game in North Robinson on Friday night.

          The Rams did not play well in loses last weekend to Carey (62-40) in an “N10” game on Friday and (81-58) to Shelby in a non-conference game on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they didn’t shoot well from the perimeter and they did not defend well at all.  “We knew that was going to be a rough weekend going in playing both of those guys away and two good teams.  We didn’t shoot the ball well and then to combined that, especially against Shelby, we didn’t defend very well.  I know Shelby did some good things offensively, but we have to put together a better effort than that.  I guess that was tough coming off that Friday loss and we never shook that off defensively.  The first six quarters this past weekend we were 3-29 from three.  We are a team that has got to make threes to be successful and we did not.  So, we have gotten after it this week defensively.  If we shoot like that, we can’t let the other team score,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (14-7,11-2) plays at Colonel Crawford (20-0,13-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Friday night.  The Eagles beat Seneca East (79-52) on Monday to claim the outright title.

          Winslow says they get good shots and they don’t let you have many.  “They are really good defensively.  They stay in front of the ball really well, so you are not getting any penetration on them and they do a really good job of rebounding it.  The key offensively is you have to be patient and move the ball quick and make sure you are taking what they give you instead of taking quick shots.  Their point guard Studer is really, really good, they have other weapons, but he makes them go.  He controls tempo and what kind of shots they are getting.  You have to keep them out of the paint and have hands on their shooters.  You have to hope they don’t shoot as well as they can and rebound it, so you can limit them to making threes and keep Studer out of the paint then you have a chance to rebound it and go down to the other end,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “The first time we played them, we had a bad stretch at the end of the first quarter that really cost us.  The rest of the game we were fine and the beginning of the game we were fine.  We have to make sure we play a full 32 minutes.  That is the only way you are going to beat them is you have to play a full 32 minutes at both ends.  You can’t have that three, four minute lapse.”

          With Eagles claiming the outright title this game is not as interesting, but Winslow says they are still excited to play and will play with confidence.  “You have to go in and believe you can win and believe in yourself and I think our kids do.  They love this game and love the atmosphere because it is going to be packed, sold out.  It is going to be loud.  They get excited for it and I think we will go over there and play with some confidence.  We just have to rebound the basketball and limit paint opportunities and keep ourselves in the game with a chance at the end.  We look forward to the opportunity,” he said.

Published 2/16/22

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Upper Must Keep Up

          Upper Sandusky trails Colonel Crawford by just a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference standings and they play the Eagles next week, but first they play at talented Carey in a conference game on Friday night.

          To keep pace with Crawford, the Rams beat Buckeye Central (72-42) on Saturday and Bucyrus (81-53) on Monday in conference games.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they did a lot of good things on both ends and both nights.  “Both games we played pretty well after the initial beginning.  Both teams came out and played well early on and then and then we settled down offensively and defensively and played well the last three quarters of both games.  Defended and shot the ball well, moved the ball well.  Really liked how we played in both games,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (14-5,11-1) plays at Carey (10-7,6-4) on Friday night.  The Blue Devils just beat Leipsic (63-54) on Tuesday night in a non-conference game.

          Winslow says Carey has found its game and are playing a lot better than when they beat them (53-45) on December 29.  “I just got back from the Leipsic game.  Some things that I noticed to no surprise they are shooting it better and they are more patient offensively.  They are playing to their strengths offensively a little better.  They really like to pressure you and be physical in the halfcourt defense.  They are playing a lot better,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “They are going to be a load to beat.  So, to go over there and come out with a win you are going to have to really play well.  It’s always a fun game, a big rivalry game.  The place will be packed and we look forward to playing.”

          Winslow says there is no question their focus needs to be on Friday night or next week doesn’t have near the meaning.  “If we don’t beat Carey that game really isn’t going to matter.  So, we have to concentrate on the Carey Blue Devils.  They are a way better team that 10-7.  If they would have had a full set of practices they would be right in this mix for the conference title as well.  They just got off to a slow start due to the lack of practices and things.  They are a really good team.  We have to really concentrate on them because if we don’t beat them that last game is not that big a deal,” said Winslow.

Published 2/09/22

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Upper Wants to Play Fast

          Upper Sandusky, a game back in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference standings, has two league games this weekend if the weather allows, both at home, with Bucyrus on Friday and Buckeye Central on Saturday.

          They kept themselves right behind Colonel Crawford with a (56-45) win over Mohawk last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their performance was excellent, especially on defense.  “We played really well.  I was really excited after the game because we pretty much dominated the game for the most part.  It’s a tough place to play going over there because the gym is so small, a little different than a lot of gyms.  They are a really good team and they have been playing very good, especially the (A.J.) Hess kid, he is shooting lights out and to come out of there with a double digit victory it was really good for us.  We were really upset with our effort against Ontario, give them credit when we played them, they played really well, but we gave up 71 points and that is not something we normally do and we weren’t really happy with that.  So, we had a few tough days of practice and I thought we really defended very well.  They had I believe 22 points after the first three quarters and they erupted for 23 in the fourth, but they hit some really tough shots to do that though, especially the Hess kid.  Zach Sheaffer, our all purpose guy, had 18 rebounds.  So, it was a really good effort,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (12-5,9-1) is at home for Bucyrus on Friday night.  If they can’t play Friday, the game likely will moved to Monday.  Bucyrus has lost its last five, including (68-61) to Wynford in conference game on Saturday.

          Winslow says they have to make them uncomfortable.  “They keep getting better, he is doing a good job.  I think the key to them is you can’t let them get comfortable and you have to speed them up a little bit and turn the ball over a little bit.  If you let them get comfortable they do a really good job getting to the rim and making open shots.  In the second half over there we took our press off a little bit and they got comfortable and played a really nice second half.  We half to make sure defensively that we really get after it and try and speed the pace up and make them play at a pace that we like to play at,” he said.

          Upper beat Buckeye (43-29) on December 22, but Winslow says they really don’t want to play that kind of game, they want to play fast.  “(Coach Howell) is just doing a really good job.  Every time you watch film it’s like the other team didn’t play very well against them.  He does a really good job of taking away your strengths and making the game ugly for you.  So, we have to a better job this time around of being a little more patient offensively.  They really clogged up the paint for us last time and I thought we took some rushed threes.  We need to move the ball with the pass a little more,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “It would help if we would make some open shots that we didn’t make last time.  We can’t have the careless turnovers.  We have to stay in front of them.  They did a good job of getting to the paint against us and got some easy ones early on.  They want to play at their pace and he does a really good job of slowing the game down and all of the sudden you are in a half court battle with them an they keep it tight.  We want to speed it up and try and make them play a little faster than normal.”

Published 2/04/22

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Upper Wants to Build on Saturday

          Upper Sandusky, in second place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, plays third place Mohawk on Saturday night, but first they must travel to Ontario to play on Tuesday night.

          After losing (66-53) to Bellevue on Thursday night in a non-conference game, the Rams responded with a (63-50) win over Seneca East in “N10” play on Saturday night.

           Coach Jeff Winslow says they played well on defense against the Tigers.  “I wasn’t very happy about our performance against Bellevue.  I didn’t think we played real hard.  We turned the tables on that Saturday night.  I thought we really got after it an made life tough.  Seneca East has the Mason kid averaging 32 a game.  We held him to 20, I guess he had 22, he shot two free throws right at the buzzer.  Six points in the second half for him,” he told Swankobnsports.com on Monday evening, “We did a really good job defensively I thought to hold them to 50 points.  Still have to clean up some of offensive stuff, but defensively we were a lot better.’

          Upper will visit Ontario Tuesday night, weather permitting.  The Warriors (4-11) have had trouble scoring.  In only four games have they scored more than 55 points and they are (3-1) in those games.

          Winslow says they have to limit their dribble penetration.  “They have struggled a bit.  They are guard oriented.  They pretty much put four guards on the court.  You have to keep them out of the paint and can’t let their shooters get going.  They play a little better over there.  We have to go play sound defense and they have struggled to score and that’s because teams have taken away their dribble penetration.  Hopefully, we can play (Tuesday) night.  We were not allowed to practice on (Monday),” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (11-4,8-1) plays over at Mohawk (11-4,7-2) on Saturday night.  Mohawk beat Buckeye Central (59-47) last Saturday in a conference game.  Upper won the first meeting in a nail biter (63-61) in overtime December 17.

          Winslow says it’s an important game for both sides.  “They are a really good basketball team.  Their only two conference losses are to us and Crawford.  They are in the top three in the league and they are trying to stay in the league race.  I’m sure they know they have to win to stay in the league race.  It’s a big rivalry game.  We are only less than 10 minutes apart, so the communities know each other very well.  The game will be packed.  Two good basketball teams it should be fun,” said Winslow.

Published 1/25/22

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Upper Sandusky Back in Gear

          Upper Sandusky, the second place team in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, has started another winning streak and they get two more chances this week with games against Bellevue and Seneca East.

          They beat Wynford (68-49) in a league game on Friday and added a (59-42) win over Kenton in a non-conference game on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says he has a smile on his face again.  “Going so long without losing you never know how your kids are going to react.  Sometimes they have a little hangover for a couple of games.  So, I was really happy to get back at it and have a double weekend and played well both nights and came out with two double digit victories.  So, it was good to get back on the court and get some wins and get that good feeling about ourselves again,” he said.

          Upper hosts Bellevue (6-7) on Thursday night.  The Redmen beat Perkins (50-37) in a Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division game on Friday night.

          Winslow says they have all of the elements of a very good team.  “It is probably to the best team he has had since Ed (Rich) has been there.  They have some athleticism, they are long, and they have some guys that can play basketball.  Their starting five is really good with the sophomore twins they have, the Ray kid is really nice player, and the 6’7” kid in the middle, so they pose problems with their length and athleticism.  They have multiple of guys that can put the ball in the basket.  It is going to be a nice test for us for them to come over here and see what we are made of,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (10-3,7-1) entertains Seneca East (6-8,1-6) on Saturday night.  The Tigers have won three of their last four.

          Winslow says they have Isaac Mason (31.2 ppg) per game and that means they are always dangerous.  “When you start getting some wins it makes you start feeling good about yourself and about your play.  Any team with a guy like Isaac Mason on their team has got a chance to win.  He can go off for 40 or 50 on any given night.  He is such a tough player to guard because he is just a bulldog getting to the hoop and hitting the three.  He just draws so many fouls and it is tough to not foul him,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “He has shot over 175 free throws on the year and that is more than a lot of teams have shot.  We have to try and slow him down in transition and keep him out of the paint and not foul and also contest his shot and it makes life really tough.  He is unselfish with the ball too and they have a couple of shooters he can kick it to.  Anytime they have that kid they have a chance to win.”

Published 1/20/22

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Upper Has to Reset

          Upper Sandusky after losing for the first time since the first week of the season needs to refocus as they head for Wynford Friday night for a game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          They now trail Colonel Crawford by a game after losing (64-53) to the Eagles last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says it was a big spurt by Crawford that did them in.  “We got off to a good start, we were up 8-6, and then with about three minutes left in the first quarter they went on a big run and that is where the game was lost.  We really battled the first part of the first quarter and the rest of the game.  You just can’t let a spurt like that happen.  Some of that is because Crawford created the spurt it is not all that we were bad.  You have to give them some credit,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday, “A couple of costly turnovers, some missed shots, and some and ones we gave up and it just kind of spiraled out of control there for a little bit.  Once we settled down, we made some runs in the second half and we got it down to single digits, but couldn’t quite get over the hump.  When you play a good team like that you can’t have them go on a spurt.”

          Winslow says they can’t let the loss to Colonel Crawford linger.  He says they have to be ready to play an improved Wynford.  “We talked about it and we showed some stuff we have to improve and then let’s forget about the game and move on.  Everything is in our control right now.  We control our own destiny for league title, seeding and tournament runs and things like that.  It’s just one loss that happens during the year.  We will get another chance at them, so we have to keep improving and play a little better.  It all starts Friday.  We can’t come in and have this letdown game.  Nobody is going to feel sorry for us.  We can’t feel sorry for ourselves.  We have to get better and play well on Friday night to get back on the winning track and start a new streak.  Go on our mission to win a league title, which we still control our own destiny,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (8-3,6-1) plays at Wynford (3-6,2-4) on Friday night.  The Royals beat Buckeye Central (54-51) in an “N10” game last Saturday.  In the first meeting of the season Upper dismantled Wynford (68-35) on December 4.

          Winslow says Wynford is clearly improved.  “I told the kids (Wednesday) night as we looked at some film and went over the scouter again that this is not the same team.  The (Jaron) Filliator kid is really scoring the ball well and they are shooting the ball much better.  They are playing with more confidence and they have won three of their last five.  They are playing at home.  They play much better at home.  We have to go over there and we have to really defend well to come out of there with a “W”, so we have to play well to go over there and win,” he said.

Published 1/13/22

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Co-Leaders Upper and Crawford Square off

          Upper Sandusky is at home for Colonel Crawford in a huge early season game between co-leaders in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Saturday night.

          Upper has won eight in a row, including (54-45) over Carey in an “N10” game on last Wednesday and (72-64) over Marion Harding in a non-league on Thursday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they have improved, especially on defense.  “We had a rough first weekend, but those two teams are a combined 14-4, so they are really good.  We have kind of gotten better each game, each day from there.  We are playing pretty solid basketball right now.  I think defensively we are doing a really good job of mixing things up and giving teams some trouble.  Hopefully, we can keep that up on Saturday night,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (8-2,6-0) entertains Colonel Crawford (8-0,5-0), #1 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the small school division, on Saturday night.

          Winslow says the Eagles really defend well and and offense they have tow special scorers in Carter Valentine and Mason Studer.  “Well, defensively they are so good.  It is one and done.  It is one shot and they rebound it because they are so big and athletic.  They just do a really good job of defending.  They have a 6’6” wing that can go out there and guard any player and that makes life rough.  They make life rough for you in the paint.  That defense is what really stands out.  Of course, you have the two dynamite players in Studer and Valentine.  They are as good a two players playing on one team as you will find in the area,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday evening, “The point guard is really underrated, he is really, really good.  He makes them go in transition.  He is always making the right read.  He can go the whole game and not score and still be the best player on the court.  We have our hands full with those two guys and they have some shooters around them.  They play big and physical and it will be a tough test come Saturday night.”

          In order to score against Colonel Crawford, Winslow says you have to work the ball to get great shots.  “I think it is important that you stay patient.  You have to make them work a little bit.  I have seen too many teams taking quick shots.  They are really good the first 30 seconds of a possession and sometimes you have to get deeper in the possession and make them work a little bit and get them out of position and get the look you want and a chance for an offensive rebound.  It seems like when you take a quick shot it seems like they are always getting a layup at the other end.  So, I think it going to be important to work the ball around and get a really good look.  Hopefully, our kids understand it might not be one, two passes, you have to got to move the ball side to side,” said Winslow.

          When the Eagles have the ball, Winslow says they have the personnel that can stretch your defense.  “That is what makes them so tough.  Everybody they put in it seems like, maybe other than their five man, can really shoot the basketball.  You have to concentrate so much on those big two.  You know you don’t want to give those shooters open looks because they put them down most of the time.  They are big too, so they can offensive rebound and go inside off the bounce a little bit.  They just have a really good team.  They are tough for anybody to guard,” he said.

Published 1/05/22

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Upper Sandusky Clashers With Carey

          Two of the three leaders in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference face off on Wednesday night as Upper Sandusky is at home for the Carey Blue Devils.

          Upper (6-2,5-0) beat Buckeye Central (43-29) last Wednesday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their offense was not running on all cylinders, but their defense gave them the win.  “We came out a little sluggish on the offensive end, but anytime you can hold somebody to 29 points you would hope you could win the basketball game.  We did a good enough job defensively to win the basketball game,” he said.

          Carey (1-1,1-0) just got their season started last week after a football season that culminated in a state championship the first week of December.  They beat Bucyrus (68-35) in league game and lost (56-46) to Willard in a non-conference game.

          Winslow says the Blue Devils are going to be physical.  “I have seen both games.  They are really athletic hardnosed kids that really have a lot of fight in them.  They are very physical and it is going to be a challenge.  So far, their shooting is a little off and on because they haven’t been in the gym very long,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday, “They are really a good team now, but they are going to be better as they go along when they get more practice.  They are talented and they have a lot of athleticism on the court.  It’s going to be a challenge for us Wednesday night.”

          Winslow says the key to winning for them is limit turnovers and get more of the loose balls.  “The biggest thing we talked about is we have to be ball strong.  Whether that is a rebound or a loose ball, pivoting or passing or catching, we have got to make sure we secure the basketball because they come after it.  They are not scared to push you down to get it.  The biggest thing is to be ball strong all night long,” he said.

Published 12/28/21

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Upper Wants Tempo Quick

          Upper Sandusky, the co-leader in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, pays a visit to New Washington to take on the Buckeye Central Bucks on Wednesday night.

          The Rams have won five straight games, including “N10” wins over Mohawk (63-61) in overtime last Friday and (76-48) over Bucyrus on Saturday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they are playing better every time out.  “That is one thing that I love about this team is that even though we are a younger group I can just tell every day we get better.  We come in the gym and they are excited about playing the game and doing the things that we do.  We just seem to get better every day.  I thought we had another two good days of practice this week and hopefully we continue that trend,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (5-2,4-0) plays at Buckeye Central (2-5,1-2) on Wednesday night.  The Bucks have their own modest win streak as they have won their last two, beating New London (44-37) in a non-league game and Seneca East (72-67) in an “N10” game on Friday.

          Winslow says he Bucks have players that are starting to do some good things, especially on defense.  “They have won two in a row.  They also played some good teams like Crawford and Mohawk really well.  (Coach) Tommy (Howell) I have known him from way back in his New London days, he is just a really good coach.  He has them headed in the right direction,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday afternoon, “They have a couple of wings that can shoot the ball.  The big guy inside McDougal seems to play pretty big, strong and physical.  He can also step out and shoot the three.  They have a point guard that handles the ball really well and doesn’t seem to turn it over much.  They are playing really good defense.  It is going to be a tough task for us to go over to Buckeye Central and come out of there with a win.

          Winslow says they want to push the tempo of this game and get the Bucks playing faster than they want to.  “They are going to come down and try and be really deliberate and run their stuff and take their time.  One of our goals is to try and speed them up and take some quick shots, so we can get up and down the floor.  I think we would be a little better in that pace of the game.  I think we can play both ways.  We want to speed it up and I think that is going to be one their goals to slow it down,” he said.

Published 12/22/21

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Upper Plays Aggressive Mohawk

          Upper Sandusky plays at home against rival Mohawk on Friday night in Northern 10 Athletic Conference action.

          They also play at Bucyrus on Saturday night in an “N10” game.

          Last Saturday, they beat Seneca East (57-53) in an “N10” game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they didn’t shoot it very well and still won the game.  “For the first three quarters we did a really good job defensively.  The got 26 points and then in the fourth quarter they scored 27.  We started fouling, maybe we were a little tired I don’t know, didn’t move our feet.  We had command of the game and kind lost command there in the fourth.  We made enough plays in the end to win.  We didn’t shoot really well.  It is nice to see a team go out and not shoot really well and still find a way to win and I felt we did that at the defensive end for the most part,” said Winslow.

          Upper (3-2,2-0) hosts Mohawk (5-1,2-0) on Friday night.  The Warriors beat Buckeye Central (52-47) in their last league game on Saturday.

          Winslow says this is a team that is really aggressive on defense.  “I like their group.  They are an athletic group.  They play so hard and they are aggressive on both ends of the court.  Thy are slapping and reaching and jumping and clawing.  Offensively, they have a bunch of guys that get to the rim driving hard to the basket,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “The have one the best players in the area in the (A.J.) Hess kid.  He is a 6’5” guard that can score in every way possible.  He is a matchup nightmare for us.  So, they are playing well.  Coach (Paul) Dunn has them doing a lot of good things and they stay aggressive.  We are going to have to have that aggressiveness on Friday night.”

          Winslow says Mohawk will change defenses a lot, but he says whatever they are in they are going to be aggressive.  “What they really like to do is they pressure in different ways.  They will go 1-2-2 all of the way up to full court on the ball, they will back into that 2-3.  Then if you have success breaking that they just stay in their halfcourt 2-3 zone.  No matter what defense they play they switch up quite a bit and they are really aggressive in it.  In the half court they like to play that aggressive 2-3 zone, but they like to get out in the full court with presses.  They have a lot of length and athleticism and they give teams trouble with that,” said Winslow.

Published 12/15/21

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Upper Sandusky has to Control Mason

          Upper Sandusky visits Seneca East for a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday night.

          The Rams (2-2,1-0) won their conference opener by destroying Wynford (68-35) last Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says good defense led to some transition hoops for them.  “I would say we played pretty well Saturday night.  It started at the defensive end where we made things tough on them and did a really good job on (Jaron) Filliater, rebounded the ball, and got out in transition.  Got off to a good start.  Jackson Smalley came out as was super aggressive and got us going.  I thought it was a really good game overall for us,” he said.

          Seneca East (2-1,0-0) has not played a conference game yet.  They would have played Carey last Saturday.  They are coming off a (57-56) overtime win over Plymouth last Saturday.

          Winslow says they can score points, especially junior guard Isaac Mason.  “They have played some interesting games.  Scored 97 points in the one and then held on and won at the buzzer against Plymouth.  They have won two in a row.  Isaac Mason is a really good player.  He is averaging 33 a game right now.  He has already shot 50 free throws.  I haven’t looked, but I’m not sure we have shot 50 as a team, but he has already shot 50.  He does a lot of good things that are tough to guard and you can’t foul him to top it off.  I think he has the kids excited over there and playing hard and having some fun.  Winning makes it fun and they are winning right now, so we have a tough task to go over to Seneca East and try and come out of their with a “W,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says Mason is such a tough guard because he has so many talents.  “He is really crafty, not super quick, but just crafty.  He figures out a way to get the scoring opportunities.  He can shoot the three from anywhere, but he really doesn’t relay on that.  He gets to the rim well.  He posts up some, so he scores in so many different ways.  He has really good body control.  He goes in there to avoid charges and makes you make contact.  It is a skill he has that not everybody has.  He got fouled a lot last year as a sophomore and more this year,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday, “That’s a tough assignment because you don’t want to go in an not foul him.  If you worry about not fouling him, he is shooting layups all night long.  You have to be disciplined to stay down and stay big and you really have to move your feet and make him take tough shots.”

Published 12/08/21

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Upper Getting There

          Upper Sandusky plays its first game in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference on Saturday night.

          The Rams lost a pair of games over the weekend to good teams in Willard (66-54) and Tiffin Columbian (84-49) and then rallied to beat Galion (79-41) on Wednesday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they are starting to find their grove.  “Nothing against Galion, but we knew those first two opponents were really good going in.  I know Columbian is really good.  I didn’t exactly put our kids in a real good situation to succeed against them the way we approached playing them.  If I had it to do again against them, I would do some things differently.  I thought we really got going in the second half with (Trent) Beamer and (Jackson) Smalley, they finally started to get their games going.  They are going to be our leading two scorers and they were struggling the first game and half and I thought they got going.  They just took that into Wednesday night and led the way for us with Beamer inside and Jackson Smalley outside,” said Winslow.

          Wynford (0-1) was handled by Old Fort (71-38) in their first game last Wednesday.

          Winslow says the boards are going to be a key factor in the outcome of this game.  “They have only played one game against Old Fort, who is really good and I think they are going to make a nice tournament run when it’s all said and done.  They have a little bit of everything.  So, they struggled a little bit against them.  (Jaron) Filliater is a really nice player, a good athlete, left hander, he can shoot, he can post you up, he can take you off the bounce a little bit, I really like his game and he is going to be a tough matchup,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday afternoon, “I think we have to keep him under control.  The key is going to be the glass.  The last couple of years they have given us some fits on the offensive glass.  If we keep them off the glass, I think we stand a pretty good chance.”

          Wynford has expressed a willingness to push the pace of the game and Winslow says that’s alright with him.  “Wynford has some athletes over there and we are trying to get accustomed to that.  If they want to do that is will be a fun game, so we are looking forward to the opportunity to hopefully do that.  With a new coach they have a new feel about getting up and down.  We will see how that goes Saturday night,” he said.

Published 12/03/21

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Upper With Tough Double Weekend

          Upper Sandusky, always one of the best teams in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, starts the season with a pair of tough non-conference games this weekend at home with Willard on Friday and at Tiffin Columbian on Saturday.

          The Rams have some new guys this year and this weekend will tell them if those kids are ready for varsity play yet, according to coach Jeff Winslow.  “We say when the popcorn starts popping we will see who shows up at that point.  We are really young and have some new guys and until that popcorn starts popping you don’t know how we are going to react, good or bad, so both teams are in the same boat and both teams will find out what we are made of on Friday night,” he said.

          Willard won the Bay Division of the Sandusky Bay Conference last year.

          Winslow says they are back with another really good team that has excellent guard play.  “Paxton and Dawson their two guards are back.  They are really, really good and can shoot the ball well.  What makes them really tough is they can get to the rim.  Those two are going to be tough night in and night out with the way they play the game.  Then the big kid Weiss in the middle that is a big, strong, athletic, physical kid that can do enough offensively, he can hit the open shot and crash the boards and things like that, he is a presence in the middle.  Those three guys are going to pose problems all year long,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday afternoon, “They have a bunch of younger guys that have had success throughout their careers and we will see how they are at the varsity level.  They look like they have a lot of skill and athleticism.  I think those kids at some point, if not game one, will fit in nicely with that group they have.”

          Columbian shared the “SBC” Lake last season and they have most of their guys back.

          Winslow says they are athletic.  “Columbian is really, really good.  They lost basically the one kid, but other than that they have everybody back that are multiple year starts.  Beaston is one of the best players in the area.  They are big, athletic kids that are all really skilled.  They have so many kids that can shoot the ball and take you off the bounce.  Defensively, they really get after you.  Out of the frying pan into the fire from Friday to Saturday night.  Columbian is going to be a tough out for anybody,” said Winslow.

Published 11/25/21

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Upper Sandusky Back to Normal

          Upper Sandusky is returning to it normal fare this year of up tempo basketball peppered with outside shooting.

          The Rams open up next weekend with a tough double weekend at home with Willard on Friday and at Tiffin Columbian on Saturday in non conference games.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says he has a young team that has shown improvement during the preseason.  “We have a young group, so it has been fun because they are young and eager to learn.  Every day it seems like they are getting better.  We are a little inconsistent when we are playing other teams.  Some quarters we look really good and some quarters we don’t look so good and struggle to score at times because of that.  I really like the group that we have.  I think it’s a team that is going to keep getting better every day,” he said.

          Last year, the Rams featured trying to stick the ball inside a little more, but Winslow says this season it is back to more run and gun.  “We will be a little bit more like normal.  We have a bunch of athletic kids that are mostly guards.  We have the one big guy in Beamer, but we are mostly guards.  We are going to be a tempo like team and pressure all over the place and look to run with the basketball and try and get into a transition game.  A little more fast paced than last year.  We still tired to push it a little last year, but just had a little bit different makeup of the team with those two bigs.  Now, we are back to mostly guards and you will see us play up tempo most of the time,” said Winslow.

          Upper wants to run the floor, but Winslow says it is going to be very important to take good shots while playing fast.  “One big thing is shot selection.  That is sometimes tough playing with the speed that we play and get, especially young kids, to know what is a good shot and what is a bad shot.  We just can’t play fast for the sake of playing fast.  We want to bring it up fast, so a team’s defense doesn’t get set and then take a good shot,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Right now, we are going through some moments on the offensive end during our scrimmages where we struggle to score.  I think a lot of it has to do with shot selection.  I think that is one of the big things.  Early on it was rebounding as well, but the last scrimmage we rebounded really, really well, so that has come on.  Those are the two things I think we really need to get better.”

Published 11/18/21

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Execution Key for Upper

          Upper Sandusky travels to Norwalk to play the Truckers Friday night in a division II sectional final.

          The winner will advance to play either Ontario or Mansfield Senior in next week’s districts at Ashland High School.

          The Rams won the district last year and coach Jeff Winslow says this is an exciting time of year for everybody.  “If you have had a real successful season, won your league or something, you have other goals you are shooting for and those teams that haven’t really been in the league race now there is a reason to play.  When you win sectional and district championships you get to cut down nets.  It is just an exciting time where everybody has a 0-0 record.  If you win and move on it is all people remember.  Tournament time is just a lot of fun for everybody,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (14-8) plays at Norwalk (15-8) in a section final on Friday.

          The Truckers downed Galion (68-31) on Tuesday night in a semifinal.  They shared the Lake Division title in the Sandusky Bay Conference this season.

          Winslow says they are well coached and have three players especially with special skills.  “It all starts with coach (Steve) Gray, he does such a good job.  That is a team that doesn’t beat themselves.  They are going to defend you really well.  No matter who they play, they hang around in the game long enough to give them a chance to win.  It is just really impressive.  Then you have the two big boys, especially (Garrett) Chapin, seems like he has been playing for like 25 years there.  He is a load to have to guard off the dribble, and rebounding, and posting up, he does a variety of different things,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “(Will) Gehlhausen kid lit it up last year against us and he has been lighting up all year long from three.  He is a pretty solid ballhandler and can get to the hoop.  The (Ian) Minor, the other post, can shoot the ball a little bit and gives you some problems on the offensive glass.  Those three guys are really good players.  The role players do exactly what they are supposed to do to help them win games with defense, rebounding, taking the ball to the hoop.  It is a tough task to go over to Norwalk and try and come out with a win.”

          In order to win on Friday night, Winslow says the must handle the ball and they have to make the Truckers work for their points.  “First, we have to not turn the ball over.  Just some games we just have some silly errors.  We have to take care of the ball.  We definitely have to rebound.  We can’t let Gehlhausen get off and get open looks.  Everything he gets has got to be tough.  If he starts knocking down shots and we are not in his face it is going to make a long night for us.  Then offensively, we just have to execute and get the ball to our guys in scoring positions where they are successful.  We have to make sure we put the ball in the basket once we get it there,” he said.

Published 2/25/21

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Upper Sandusky Must Execute Against Mohawk Zone

          Upper Sandusky will finish alone in second place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference if they can beat rival Mohawk at home on Friday night in a conference game.

          They put two wins in league play together last week when they beat Seneca East (56-46) on Friday and Bucyrus (79-50) on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow thinks they defended well and got good ball movement resulting in open shots.  “We had a nice weekend.  I thought defensively we played really, really well.  We moved the ball a lot better and limited our turnovers and really shot it.  Saturday, we made 11 threes and Cade Adams didn’t make any of them.  He is a guy that is shooting 50 percent from three and had 12 assists and only took two shots.  That is pretty good moving the ball and other guys start feeling it.  We have multiple guys that can shoot the basketball.  With our two bigs it makes us that much harder to guard.  So, pretty happy with our progress over the last few weeks and hopefully we can keep it going this week,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (14-7,12-3) plays host to Mohawk (14-6,10-5) on Friday night.  The Warriors split their “N10” games last week in beating Wynford (83-44) on Friday and losing to Seneca East (71-60) on Saturday.   

          The Rams won the first game between the two, in one of their better performances of the season, (63-47) on January 15.

          Winslow says they are going to have to execute against that Mohawk zone.  “The Seneca East score really didn’t surprise me because we played them the night before and they are playing really well.  They really pose problems because they can put four guys on the floor that can shoot the three, so I knew that was going to be a battle, especially over there.  Mohawk, our league is really good this year, and they are a good basketball team,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night,
“We played really, really well over there the first time and to beat them we are going to have to do that again.  They are different than a lot of teams because they play a 2-3 zone, but it is not typical 2-3 zone.  They really get out and extend it and pressure it and really put some pressure on the ball.  Their guards really fly around.  It is something you don’t see a whole lot and they are really good at it, so that is something.  What’s nice is we have a whole week to prepare for it because we are going have to be able to run our zone offense to have a chance to beat these guys.”

          Winslow says against Mohawk’s defense, you end up getting different kinds of shots.  “Especially us with the way we shoot the basketball, just a lot of teams don’t play zone.  They do a really good job defending the three out of it.  It is basically like a matchup, switching man.  They do a really good job with it and you end up getting different looks than you do in man.  You don’t see stuff like that a whole lot and it is hard to simulate in practice and they are really successful at it.  We have to be prepared for that, no doubt,” he said.

Published 2/16/21

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Upper Sandusky Bounces Back

          Upper Sandusky had lost three games in a row, all to good teams, before sweeping weekend games in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference last week.  They have two more this week.

          They play at Seneca East on Friday and at Bucyrus on Saturday.

          Last week, the Rams buried a couple of opponents in Ridgedale (66-26) on Friday and Buckeye Central (80-43) on Saturday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says their ballhandling was solid and that led to a lot of chances to score.  “I thought we had a really good week of practice leading into those games.  We really handled the ball.  I think we had seven turnovers Friday and six on Saturday.  When you do that, the way we can score the basketball you are going to score points.  I thought we did a good job of not turning it over.  Defensively, I thought we created a lot of havoc and rebounding wise.  So, pretty happy how we came out of last weekend.  We have had a good week of practice the week, so hopefully the light bulb has gone off and we have turned the corner,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (12-7,10-3) is at Seneca East (10-8,6-7) on Friday night.  The Tigers lost to unbeaten Colonel Crawford (69-48) on Saturday in an “N10” game.  In the first meeting with the Rams, Upper won (86-59) on January 2.

          Winslow says the Tigers are competitive and capable to big numbers.  “They are dangerous because they are big and athletic and they have four guys that can flat out shoot the basketball from three and a couple of them can take you off the bounce and score.  After watching the film of the Crawford game they were in it through most of the game until the very end,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “They are a good basketball team, they got out to like a 12 to 15 point lead on us the first time and we can’t do that this time, especially over there.  We have to be able to guard the three point line and rebound the basketball with those guys in order to come out with a victory.  This is a game looking at it that is going to be a real tough one to go over there and battle.”

          Bucyrus (4-14,2-11) is the opponent on Saturday night.  Upper won the first game there too, (79-35) on January 9, but Winslow says the Redmen are vastly improved.  “They are playing a lot better.  They have some wins and had some close games against some pretty solid teams.  Coach Egan has them playing really well right now.  It was a young team last year and basically everybody is back and they are still young.  They are just learning how to play varsity basketball at the speed that it takes.  They are not a team you can overlook anymore.  They are playing really well at this time,” he said.

Published 2/12/21

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Upper Sandusky Working on Being More Physical

          Upper Sandusky is preparing for a week that includes a Wednesday night game with Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference leader Shelby, and Northern 10 Athletic Conference games with Ridgedale on Friday and Buckeye Central on Saturday, all at home.

          They lost (59-53) to Carey in a conference game on Saturday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says the Blue Devils were the more physical team and they turned it over way too much.  “Carey is a really good basketball team.  I thought going in, I talked to the refs before the game, they were asking some questions, that I thought it would be a pretty equal game.  I thought both teams were comparable.  I thought it would be a close, good game and that’s how it turned out.  They made a few more plays than we did.  They played really physical and that is kind of the M.O. on us right now it looks like, people are going to try and play us physical.  We didn’t respond well enough to it.  Then we turned the ball over too much, just some careless turnovers in clutch times when we made runs and were right there to tie the ballgame up or take the lead and just too many turnovers.  That kind of spelled the end and they finished the game,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says they are working on developing the right attitude when then it comes to being physical.  “I think it is an attitude.  Being physical is an attitude.  It does sound weird but being physical is mostly mental.  I think the week before Crawford came with that attitude and Carey came with that attitude and when we played Willard, they came with that attitude and they just imposed their will on us with physicality.  We somehow have to figure that out.  Part of it is maybe we are young and playing against some older teams and they are just naturally more physical than you are.  We try and make it as physical as we can in practice.  We have to do a better job of developing that mentality somehow,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (10-6), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at home against Shelby (11-2), #4 in that poll, on Wednesday night.

          Winslow says the Whippets have two outstanding players, a solid surrounding cast, and they are going to be aggressive on defense.  “They are really good.  (T.J.) Pugh and (Cody) Lantz are two of the better players in the area and they are both guards.  Pugh is 6’6” and Lantz is about 6’3” and they are both really athletic.  It is tough to guard those two guys and then the surrounding guys they have with them have some height and some athleticism and they have a bunch of guys that are really good spot shooters.  So, they create a lot of tough matchups for you defensively.  Then they get after it with their athleticism and their size.  They are going to trap you a little bit, get out and press you, that’s how they have played for a while here,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They try and make life tough you getting into your offense.  It is going to be quite the task to try and compete with those guys, but it is going to be fun.  They are going to be the number one seed in our district the way it looks.  If we want to compete and again try and get out of our district this would be a good game to see where we are at because this one of the teams you are probably going to have to beat to get out.”

Published 2/02/20

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Upper Sandusky Can’t Get Pushed Around

          Upper Sandusky will move into a share of first place in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference with a win at conference leader Colonel Crawford on Thursday night.

          They trail the Eagles by just one in the conference standings.

          They earned a big (63-47) win over Mohawk last Friday.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they executed very well.  “It was just a huge win last week against Mohawk.  They are really good basketball team and they had been playing really well.  I think they were like 10-2 at the time and going over there.  They came out firing early.  They hit six threes in the first and we withstood that start and our kids hung in there tough and clamped down defensively and played really basically for four quarters against them.  It was a really nice win, pretty convincing too, which kind of surprised me because of how good Mohawk is, but I just though we did a really good job of executing things we wanted to execute offensively and defensively as well as make shots and put the ball in guy’s hands where they wanted it,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (10-4,8-1), #5 in the Swankonsports.com boys’ basketball coaches poll in the large school division, plays at Colonel Crawford (13-0,9-0), #1 in the small school poll, on Thursday night.

          Crawford whipped Buckeye Central (91-31) last Saturday night.

          Winslow says the Eagles are very talented and they form a solid team that works well together.  “All of their players just fit well together.  You have the big three.  Studer is just a great point guard that doesn’t turn it over and handles the ball, can shoot the rock and makes great decisions.  Valentine is a tough matchup with this athleticism and his height and the way he can shoot the ball and go to the rim.  He poses problems defensively for your guards because he is so big.  Then Walker, this summer my twins played “AAU” with him, and he is just a great kid and a great player and just such competitor and just a physical and mentally tough kid.  He gives them that toughness and he is really physical inside,” he told Swankonsports.com on Wednesday night, “Then all of their role players just really fit.  The (Brock) Ritzhaupt kid is much bigger than he has been.  He really baulked up and grew a few inches.  He is just really athletic on the glass and he does a great job of screening for them, and defending for them.  All of the other guys come off the bench can shoot the rock and you have to concentrate so much on those big three, all those guys have to do is catch and shoot it and they are really good at it.  All of them are pretty good defenders.  You are going to get good defensive teams out of a Dave Sheldon coached team anyway.  I just think they really mesh and play well together.”

          Now, Colonel Crawford blew out the Rams (70-44) in the first meeting back on December 10.

          Winslow says they must compete physically with Crawford.  “The main thing is we have to be more physical.  They were just really physical and beat us to every loose ball, beat us up on the glass, beat us up in the paint.  I thought maybe we backed down a little. We have grown quite bit since then, but we have to match their physicalness I think is the biggest thing that I took away from that game.  It kind of got away from us.  It was an ugly game for Upper Sandusky, but a big credit to how Colonel Crawford played that night and hopefully this Thursday we can sure up a few things and make it a little bit better contest,” he said.

Published 1/21/21

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Upper Sandusky and Mohawk Battle to Stay in it

          Upper Sandusky and Mohawk both trail Northern 10 Athletic Conference leader Colonel Crawford in the standings and they play each other on Friday night at Mohawk in what could amount to an elimination game in the conference race.

          After losing to Willard (79-63) in a non-conference game last week, the Rams would respond and beat Bellevue (69-55) in a non-league game on Thursday and Bucyrus (79-35) in a conference game on Saturday.

           Coach Jeff Winslow says they were able to get back on the beam right away and that was good.  “One thing that is nice about basketball is you play a game like we did against Willard, they are a good team, and they played very well and had something to do with how we played, but we played really bad as well.  It was nice to get back on the court a couple of days later and play well and get a win.  Bellevue, I know what their record is, but they are way better than they were over last couple of years.  They have some guards that can put it in the basket and they defend much better and we went over there and played really well.  Then we played well on Saturday as well.  It was nice to get that behind us and move one and start playing well again and move forward,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (8-4,6-1) makes the short trip to Mohawk to play the Warriors (9-2,6-1) on Friday night.  Mohawk got past Seneca East (69-62) on Saturday night to stay in the race.

          Winslow says this is a very good basketball team.  “Coach (Paul) Dunn has done such a great job since he has been there.  They had a real nice year last year after they started slow and they got all of those kids back.  They are just a couple of possessions away from being in first place by themselves because they had a chance to beat Crawford at Crawford.  If we want to stay in this year race between us, Mohawk and Crawford this is a game we have got to win and I’m sure they feel the same way,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “It’s a big rivalry game, we are only a few miles down the road and a lot of the kids know each other.  These games have been real fun the last few years.  You look forward to playing in games like this.  So, our kids are excited, I think our fans are excited, so it should be a fun time.”

          Upper Sandusky won the title last year and Mohawk won it two years ago.

          Mohawk is known for its 2-3 zone and Winslow says they are very aggressive in it.  “Not too many teams play much zone anymore and not too many really dedicate their defense and that is what they play and they do.  What they do, and their guards out top especially, are just really aggressive in it, so they are almost like man to man and then the back side has zone principles.  It is different that most zones you see and you really have to be ball strong in it because they do a good job of creating turnovers and getting tipped balls.  They have nice personnel to do what they are doing.  They have a 6’4” kid in the middle.  You have to have your offense ready for that zone or it could be a long night,” he said.

Published 1/15/21

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It is One Game at a Time for Upper

          Upper Sandusky lost for just the second time in their last seven games on Monday night, but they still have two more games to play this week.

          They travel to Bellevue for a non-conference game on Thursday and host Bucyrus in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference game on Saturday.

          They suffered a (79-63) setback at the hands of Willard in non-league play on Monday night.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were not up to the challenge against a very good Willard team.  He says the Willard guards took it to them.  “It was disappointing, I thought we had turned the corner and it felt like we took some steps back, but Willard played really well.  Their three guards or four guards, how many they run at you, were just really big and physical and really tall and it was tough for our guards because they are so much bigger than us.  I thought that was the difference.  Early on we settled for too many one pass threes and didn’t utilize the paint at all and it kind of got out of hand on us,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “Give credit to Willard, they got after it, we came out flat.  That was our fifth game in nine nights and we did not handle that very well.  There are lots of teams going through that and I have talked to them all year long that that is the type of adversity that you are going to have to face and the teams that are the toughest are going to survive it.  We didn’t do a very good job of handling that on Monday night.”

          Upper Sandusky pays a visit to Bellevue (0-5) on Thursday night.  Winslow says they could present some matchup problems for them.  “They play a lot of guards and they are not very big, but they have some good quickness and they have some guys that can shoot the basketball.  They have not won a game yet, but they have been in a lot of games against some good teams. We have some big post players and some of those guys are going to have to guard some of the guards.  It will be an interesting matchup to see how some of our bigger guys can handle guarding those smaller, quick guys.  On the other hand, we should be able to utilize those guys inside at the other end.  So, it is going to be a battle at either end to see who can make the adjustment with the differences in style.  We are still going to get up and down the court.  When we are on defense, sometimes matchups aren’t in our favor on the ball depending on when it’s our big on their guard.  It will be interesting to see how that goes,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (6-4,5-1) hosts Bucyrus (2-6,1-4) on Saturday night in an “N10” game.  Trailing Colonel Crawford by a game in the standings, Winslow says they have to keep winning.  “We look at it like we still control our own destiny, but we have to take care of business.  All we have to do is just win one game at a time.  If we keep winning one game at a time we will be no less than a conference championship.  None of these games are going to be easy, there are a lot of good teams in our league, but just one game at a time, just win that game, you can’t worry about what anyone else is doing and hopefully we stay focused.  I thought we had been doing that up until Monday night.  Played really well against Seneca East and had been playing really well and hopefully we get back on track here.  You just have to go out and win your game and move on to the next,” he said.

Published 1/06/21

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Upper Sandusky Continuing to Play Well

          Upper Sandusky is doing its best to build some momentum this season and hopefully they will get three chances to play this week.

          They host Tiffin Columbian in a non-conference game on Monday and play at Buckeye Central Wednesday and at home against Seneca East Saturday in Northern 10 Athletic Conference games.

          They beat Wynford (66-58) in their last outing on Tuesday in a conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says getting some practice in has allowed them to fix some things.  “We have some practice under our belts with all of our guys here lately and our guys playing and getting in a little rhythm and getting some work done.  It was nice to play some games early on because we didn’t have those scrimmages and figure out what we need to get better at and I think we have gotten better at those things.  We are not perfect yet, but we are playing a lot better right now,” he said.

          The Rams entertain Columbian (4-1) on Monday night.  The Tornadoes are coming off a (73-61) win over Bellevue in Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division action last Wednesday.

          Winslow says they play a lot like his team has over the years and they can light up the scoreboard.  “They are really good.  The (Logan) Beaston kid, sophomore, as soon as he walks in the gym it is within his range.  He can really shoot the basketball and he is good other than that too, he can take you off the dribble and things like that, so he is a tough guard.  They have a bunch of guys that can drive, shoot it, and are athletic.  It is interesting, they are kind of playing like we have played for the last few years,” he told Swankonsports.com on Sunday night, “They get out and run and jump up and trap you and push the basketball hard and take you off the bounce.  They play five guards for the most part.  The (L.J.) Reaves kid is really good too, he is as really good scorer and the (Bryce) Burns kid, he can really shoot from the outside.  It is going to be a tough matchup for us because they are really athletic and playing well right now.  It will be a good non conference test for us.”

          Upper Sandusky (4-2,3-1) pays a visit to Buckeye Central (3-4,1-2) on Wednesday night in “N10” play.  The Bucks lost a non-conference game to Crestview (53-45) last Monday, but had won their last two before that.

          Tom Howell has taken the reins there and Winslow says he has already started to turn them around.  “I have known Tommy (Howell) for a long time.  Back when I was coaching in the Firelands he was coaching at New London.  He always did a great job there and it was a great hire by them.  He really has them playing, sound, fundamental basketball.  They have some size and some athletes and he is doing a really good job with them.  They compete, it doesn’t matter who they play, it is going to be a competitive basketball game.  I watched the Colonel Crawford game and they are right in the ballgame in the fourth quarter.  It kind of got away in the end.  They are a lot more competitive now and he is doing a really good job and it is going to be another tough assignment for us going over there,” said Winslow.

Published 12/28/20

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Upper Sandusky Finding its Rhythm

          Upper Sandusky is starting to put things together and that means watch out the rest of the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

          They play at Wynford in a conference game on Tuesday night.

          The Rams had a couple of very nice wins over the weekend in hammering Carey (68-53) on Friday night and dismantling Ridgedale (76-26) on Saturday in conference games.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were ready to play.  “We played really well for the weekend and I just felt we had a really good week of practice before that and that led to that.  It starts with just having some consistency being able to practice with your guys there.  We are not the only team battling that, but we have had our guys now for a week and you start to look better when you get back into the routine that you normally do.  It is just a screwy year.  Hopefully, we can keep doing that and getting better every game,” he said.

          Winslow says in the face of COVID-19 he wants to get back into some sort of normal order of events.  “I am routine guy, that’s for sure and all of this is messing up my routine and I think we have had some bad practices because I get out of my routine and I am not planning very well.  I tell my kids all of the time that basketball is a game of mistakes and whoever makes the less mistakes is the winner.  In order to develop those habits so you don’t make those mistakes you have to practice every day and get some sort of routine down.  It’s a game of habits and you have to get good habits and hopefully we can get into some kind of routine where we do that.  I thought we did that last week and it showed,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (3-2,2-1) plays at Wynford (0-3,0-2) on Tuesday night.  Th Royals did not have a good weekend in losing (53-48) in double overtime to Ridgedale on Friday and (70-45) to unbeaten Colonel Crawford on Saturday in league play.

          Winslow believes that the Royals are about week behind them in terms of readiness and he thinks they will become a good team.  “I know how they feel because we were in that boat going into our first two games.  They played one game and got quarantined and then they practice a few times and play a double weekend.  I mean it is just going to be ugly and they are just trying to get back into some normalcy and practices and things.  We are both in the same boat in that we have different teams.  They have some guys back, but they are in a different role because there isn’t a (Josh) Crall out there anymore,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “They have some nice athletes and some good pieces and I think they will play better when they get practices and games in.  They need to get back in that grove.  Hopefully, they wait one more game before they do that.  I think the key against them with their size and athleticism, we have to do a good job of pressuring the basketball without fouling and then rebound the ball because they can really rebound the ball.  If you let them run their stuff, they are going to be pretty good, so that is our goal going into the game.”

Published 12/22/20

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Upper Sandusky Faces Carey in Big One

          Upper Sandusky, the defending champion in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, needs a couple of wins this weekend to stay in the race as they host Carey on Friday and travel to Riverdale on Saturday in league games.

          Scoring points in bunches has always been the forte of the Rams, but last week they lost (70-44) to Colonel Crawford in an “N10” game and (70-55) to Toledo Christian in a non-league game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they need cut down on turnovers.  “I think the big thing is we have got to quit turning it over.  It’s tough to put it in the hoop when you keep throwing it to the other team.  Crawford and Toledo Christian are both very good basketball teams and we are not there yet.  I think we have a chance to be pretty good.  I thought both of those teams were the aggressor and did a good job of turning us over a little too much.  I think we have done a good job this week of trying to straighten that out.  We have a couple of guys back, not trying to make excuses, but a couple of guys back is going to help out a little bit, and I think we will be okay offensively,” said Winslow.

          Upper Sandusky (1-2,0-1) plays host to Carey (4-1,2-1) in “N10” action on Friday night.  Carey lost to Colonel Crawford (53-50) in a conference game on Saturday night.

          Winslow believes the Blue Devils are an outstanding team.  “I think they are really good.  They are really athletic and Carey teams always play hard and they are scrappy and they are physical.  They do a really good job defensively getting up in you.  They run with the ball well and they have a bunch of guys that can score, shoot it and take it to the hoop,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “I think they have five guys averaging double figures, if it’s not five it’s almost five, the fifth guy is right there and they have a bunch of guys you have to guard on the perimeter as well as take it to the hole.  They are a tough team to have to try and defend right now.  Defensively, you have to be able to handle their pressure.  I like their team a lot, I think they are really good.”

          I guess you never have a must win game this early in the season, even this season, but Winslow says Friday night this is one they almost have to have.  “For both of us if we want to stay in the race where we still control things, we have got to win this game.  The loser falls two back and it’s always tough to come back from two down, you wouldn’t be able to lose again for sure.  If you win, you are still in the thing and control your destiny, if you lose you are two back two games in for us.  It’s a pretty good game league wise, so hopefully we can get off on the right foot and give ourselves a chance to win,” he said.

Published 12/18/20

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Upper Sandusky vs. Colonel Crawford, Round One

          Upper Sandusky and Colonel Crawford have been the two most consistent teams in Northern 10 Athletic Conference history and they meet for the first time this season on Thursday night at Upper.

          The Rams have played once this year so far and that was last Wednesday when they beat Galion (64-47) in a non-conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they were happy to just get a chance to play.  “It was nice to get on the court and compete against somebody else and see where we are at.  The kids where all excited.  It was up and down a little bit, we had some good times and bad, but at least we got to go out and play.  We get sick of beating on each other after a while.  It was good to play somebody else.  Then we were supposed to play again on Saturday and that one got shot down because of COVID again, so back in the same boat, so looking forward to Thursday to get back on the court,” said Winslow.

          Winslow says there are still things they can improve going into the big matchup with Crawford, like rebounding, turnovers and defending without fouling.  “I felt like we didn’t take care of the ball as well as I would have liked.  A few too many turnovers, tipped passes, things like that.  Rebounding needs to be better.  We have a big team and we gave up 11 offensive rebounds.  A lot of that was because we were in a zone because we got in foul trouble.  We can’t give up double digit offensive rebounds.  Those are the two biggest areas.  We have to learn not to foul, it’s always a problem you first couple of games maybe, your first game, but we have to be able to defend the way we guard without fouling,” he said.

          Upper Sandusky (1-0,0-0) is at home for Colonel Crawford (3-0,1-0) in “N10” play on Thursday.  The Eagles are coming off a (61-42) win over Buckeye Central in a conference game on Saturday.

          Winslow says the Eagles are very good again this year and they really stretch the floor.  “We have had a lot of good games over the years here.  They are a really nice team again.  They have the big three (Mason) Studer, (Carter) Valentine and (Chase) Walker and those three are as good as anybody in the league and then the rest of their guys are roles players.  For them what’s nice for them is they can all shoot the three,” he told Swankonsports.com on Tuesday night, “You spend a lot of time trying to guard the big three and you are helping off those other guys and they kick it to them and they knock down wide open threes really well.  They have a nice combination of size and athleticism.  They have a guard, a wing and a post.  They are going to win a lot of basketball games, we just hope it’s not Thursday night.”

          Studer has assumed the point guard responsibilities this year and Winslow says he does a lot of things to help the Eagles.  “He is just so solid, he is such a smart player.  He plays a lot of basketball and I saw him a lot this summer.  Talking to him he just knows the game really well.  Nothing flashy, but he handles the ball well and gets you in an offense, he can shoot the open three, he gets to the paint and to the rim.  He just does all kinds of nice things.  You can’t foul him because he makes every free throw it seems.  Anytime you have a point guard like that that can control things you are going to be pretty good.  He’s a good one and he still has a couple of years to go here,” said Winslow.

Published 12/09/20

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Rams Just Want to Play

          Upper Sandusky advanced to the regional tournament last year, but never got to finish its season due to COVID-19 and its first game was scratched this season for the same reason.

          They energized to play Wednesday night as they play at Galion in a non-conference game.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they just want to play someone wearing another jersey.  “Yeah, we are ready to play.  We had so much time off and then we finally got back in the gym and now it seems like we have been practicing for years without playing a game or playing another team, so we just want to get out there and compete and see where we are at and have some fun playing a game.  We are all really excited about playing Wednesday,” he said.

          Winslow predicts it could be a little sloppy early in the game, but he says they will find their grove.  “You are so excited to play that you have all of that adrenaline.  You will probably have to calm kids down keeping them early on from fouling and throwing the ball all over the court.  I am sure early on it could be a little bit ugly, but hopefully you settle down, get in the grove and get back into things.  Our kids are just so ready to play.  We are just sick of playing against each other.  We want to see where we are at, where we need to get better, and Wednesday night we’ll see,” said Winslow.

          Wednesday will also be Galion’s first game of the season and Winslow says it has been difficult to find out much about the Tigers this year.  “They are kind of in the same boat as us.  They haven’t really scrimmaged, they had one early on, but where missing some guys and then they were quarantined for a couple of weeks like us and I think they got back to practicing the same time we did.  I don’t know a whole lot about them to tell you the truth.  I know they have five guys back that played varsity.  A couple of their guards are pretty good shooters, but just don’t know a whole lot about them.  I think they are running some different things this year.  I don’t know how much man they play or zone, if they press,” he told Swankonsports.com on Monday night, “I have been telling our kids it is going to be a little different than normal years we are just going to have to rely on our base defense, fundamentals and what we do offensively.  We just have to control us.  We won’t know their players as well or what they are running.  We are just going to have to get after it and play hard, play fundamental defense and see what happens.”

Published 12/01/20

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Upper Sandusky in Quarantine

          Upper Sandusky, the defending Northern 10 Athletic Conference champion, is sidelined for two weeks due to, you guessed it, COVID-19.

          Coach Jeff Winslow says they are not allowed to practice until November 23.  “We started to hit the grove with practicing.  We hit the grove with six practices and we got hit with a team quarantine.  We had to cancel all of our scrimmages.  Our kids had looked so forward to playing again and you get in a grove and get shutdown, it’s pretty disappointing,” he said.

          They still plan to play their first regular season game against Willard the day after Thanksgiving.

          Of course, Upper Sandusky was one of two schools in our coverage area two not lose their final game last year, but not win the state title, when the pandemic all started on March 14, the very day they were going to play Lima Shawnee in a regional semifinal.

          Winslow says it’s very frustrating to believe COVID-19 is doing it to them again.  “We have a few kids back and they are chomping at the bit to play and not getting to finish out the season last year and to have this happen again, I feel really bad for them.  They worked their tail off to get into these situations.  You only go through high school once and for it to be delayed again I feel really bad for them.  I have twins (that are seniors at Norwalk St. Paul) and I talk to them every day, it’s their senior season and they are extremely disappointed, upset and worried that they aren’t going to get to play.  I can understand how our kids, our seniors, are right now,” he told Swankonsports.com on Thursday night, “Like I told our kids though, the toughest is going to survive, whoever handles the adversity to the best is going to be the team that comes out on top in the long run.  I told them I thought that was the main reason we had such a successful season last year was we handled adversity so well.  It is going to be another year when there is going to be all kinds of adversity you are going to face.  We are going through that right now and our kids are home, but most of them have barns that they can shoot in and workout in, so they are staying in shape working on their own.  It is what it is, so you have to make the best of it and hopefully when we get back at it, we will be ready to go.”

          Upper has won four of the last five “N10” trophies and Winslow believes they can be pretty good again this year… if they get to play.  “They put a lot of work in in the fall too, so they are just really ready to play another team.  They didn’t get to play another team all summer.  My assistant coach and I said we are really ready to play somebody else and we couldn’t wait to see how, and we think we are going to be pretty good, we really want to see us against another team.  You go against your scout team, your “JV” team, a lot and your could see we could be really good, but you want to see them against a varsity team to see where we are at and we think we can be pretty good and we are really excited.  Hopefully, in a few weeks we get to get back at it,” he said.

Published 11/13/20

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