Hauser’s Gavin Keller drives to the basket against Jac-Cen-Del’s Darian Greishop (24) Feb. 14 at Hauser High School.
The Republic file photo
Coming off its biggest boys basketball season in nearly two decades, Hauser looked to keep the momentum going during the June period when coaches and work with their teams and play games against other schools.
The Jets went 24-4 last winter, winning Mid-Hoosier Conference, sectional and regional titles before falling to eventual Class A state champion Orleans by two points in the semistate semifinals.
“June was great,” Hauser coach Trent Moorhead said. “I feel like we have a ton of positive momentum around the program, and we have a group of guys that have a lot of experience and know what it takes to win championships.”
The Jets played 17 games between shootouts and leagues. In the Hauser Summer League, they fell to Jennings County and in sudden-death overtime to Columbus North before beating Lawrenceburg, Trinity Lutheran, Waldron, Austin and Greenwood Christian Academy.
Hauser went undefeated in the Bloomington Summer League against Greenwood, Martinsville, Bloomfield and West Vigo. The Jets also went 2-0 Charlie Hughes Classic, beating Floyd Central and East Chicago Central.
The Jets concluded their summer season at the Wabash College Shootout, where they fell to Northview and beat Martinsville and a team from Bloomington, Illinois.
“Of those 17 games, over half of those teams are 3A or 4A, so it gave us a chance to test ourselves against some good competition and make us better,” Moorhead said. “I would tell our guys our summer record is secondary to the work we put in.”“
Hauser’s Stryker Gill drives against Brown County’s Cash Harden Nov. 26, 2024, at Hauser
The Republic file photo
Incoming seniors Stryker Gill and Gavin Keller are returning starters and participated in the Top 100 Showcase. Incoming seniors Kam Blair and Waylon Harper came off the bench last winter and are moving into starting roles.
Junior Joel Bechtel and seniors Bill Miller and Tyler Deiwert played mostly JV and dressed varsity last year. Incoming juniors Jacob Bell and Braydon McFarland and incoming sophomore Chester Lonaker also are moving up from a JV team that went 19-1 over the winter.
Seniors RJ Foster and Jake Barriger played as freshmen and sophomores and have rejoined the program after sitting out last year.
“It was just fun to see some of those guys step into new roles maybe in ways they haven’t in the past,” Moorhead said.
