Despite having little to no varsity experience returning for last season, the Pinckneyville Panthers went 22-7 and advanced to the finals of the Pinckneyville 2A Regional.
This season the Panthers have three returning starters in seniors Shay Kellerman (6’3), Drew Dudek (6’0), and Nathan Morton (6’3).
“The biggest difference this year is we have experience coming back,” said Pinckneyville coach Bob Waggoner. “We have a lot of depth at different positions, and the competition at practice for playing time is only going to help this team.”
Waggoner is counting on his five seniors to provide leadership. Jake Bathon (6’0) and Landon Chandler (5’11) round out the Pinckneyville seniors.
“All of our seniors will have to contribute if we want to be successful,” said Waggoner. “We have to play as a team, and if we can do that, I like our chances this season.”
The varsity roster also includes four juniors and a sophomore. The junior class will give the Panthers even more size as Taylor Pyatt (6’3), Kyle Lamb (6’7), Steve Brueggemann (6’3), and Christian Shopinski (6’2) are all competing for playing time.
The lone sophomore on the squad is the quick and athletic Bryant Shute (5’9).
“We have good size throughout,” said Waggoner. “I feel that we have good size on the perimeter and the interior with this team. This team is more skilled than last year, and they have learned how to make plays. These guys have spent a lot of time working hard. One of our key strengths will be our good perimeter shooting and our defense.”
Pinckneyville has been known for many years for their tough pressure defense and Waggoner wants to continue that trend this season.
“Good defense comes from effort,” added Waggoner. “If the guys put the effort in, we can bed a good defensive team once again. Teams can have an off offensive night and still win, you can’t have an off defensive night an expect to win. Our length is good and should cause problems for other teams, especially smaller teams.”
Pinckneyville should be in the mix once again to compete for a conference title in the Southern Illinois River-to-River Division this season.
“This conference will be improved top to bottom from last year,” said Waggoner. “Every team will be improved from last season. You have to be prepared every night in the conference. If you overlook any team, you can get surprised. I think there will be a lot of parity this season.”
The Panthers open up the season with three tough home games. They face West Frankfort Friday, November 27, Gibault Friday, December 4, and Murphysboro December 8.