Hillsboro girls return all five starters
Staff writer
The Hillsboro girls’ basketball team will return all five starters from last season along with two returners off the bench.
“We are led by our two all-conference backcourt juniors, Amyah Werth and Ella Potucek,” coach Micah Ratzlaff said, “two dynamic combo guards who can score the ball at all three levels and really guard on the defensive end of the floor.”
Last season, Werth averaged 13 points, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
Potucek averaged 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
“They are not very big, but they are smart, tough, and love to compete,” Ratzlaff said.
Senior Kingsley Ratzlaff returns as a four year starter.
“She has the ability to stretch the floor with her shooting ability as well as defending multiple positions at a high level,” Ratzlaff said.
The two other senior returning starters are Talia Jost and Addison Jost.
“Talia will give us length down low and has proven to be a solid player and a strong rebounder and defender,” Ratzlaff said.
She averaged five rebounds a game, one block and one steal.
Other returning players to watch for are Daisy Klein, Mackenzie D’Albini, Maren Reed, and Riley Richert.
“Klein returns as a sharp- shooting junior who delivers an immediate scoring threat with her shooting ability,” Ratzlaff said, “and junior D’Albini will again bring toughness to the court.
“Senior Maren Reed and junior Riley Richert along with a solid freshman class will look to compete for backup minutes as well.”
The Trojans opened up their season on the road Friday, beating Sterling with ease, 49-19.
This week, Hillsboro will be traveling to Moundridge for an in-season tournament Friday and Saturday.
“I am looking forward to competing in a very strong league and non-league schedule,” Ratzlaff said.
Boys’ basketball
The Trojans will take to court five new starters this season with no returners from last season.
“This year we have a lot of new faces on varsity, and without significant varsity experience, the focus will be on building solid defensive principles and using our athleticism to create some havoc,” coach Kyle Kroeker said.
This will be Kroeker’s third year as head coach for Hillsboro, and he brings with him returning players Braxton Hiebert, Brayson Amstutz, and Koehn Janzen.
“Offensively, we will build on their knowledge of our system to create opportunities at the rim and on the perimeter,” Kroeker said. “It will be exciting to see these young players get an opportunity to grow and develop this season.”
The Trojans opened up the season Friday on the roa against Sterling, losing a lopsided battle, 84-35.
“The keys to success will be our ability to adjust to the speed of the varsity game and maintain our focus on our offensive and defensive system,” Kroeker said.
Hillsboro will be back on the road Friday and Saturday against Moundridge and Lyons for an in-season tournament.
Wrestling
Coach Scott O’Hare has been coaching for 32 years, 23 of which have been as head coach for Hillsboro wrestling, seven years as assistant at Hillsboro, and two years in Ellis.
O’Hare brings with him returning state qualifiers William Andreas (2025), Aaron Hein (2023 and 2024), and Jaxon Chrislip (2024 and 2025).
“We will lean on these state qualifiers to provide positive leadership going into the season,” O’Hare said. “With several sophomores returning that competed in the varsity line up last season and a good size incoming freshmen class, we should have some depth and hopefully be close to filling the weight classes.”
Andreas and Chrislip are Canton-Galva student athletes who’ve joined Hillsboro through a cooperative.
Other Hillsboro starters are Seth Schafer, Copeland Krause, Lucas Sorensen, Phoenix Fickes, Magnusson Cathey and Jackson Kleiber.
On the girls side, O’Hare is looking at a boost in numbers.
“We’ve been hovering around three to four girls on the team over the past several years,” he said. “It looks like we will have at least three incoming freshman, along with possibly a couple of others ready to give it a try, joining up with our three returning girls.”
The three returning starters are senior Claire Morey, junior Aimee Kelly, and sophomore Anna King.
“Our girls group will not be highly experienced, but it will be fun working with them and watching them progress,” O’Hare said.
The Trojan wrestling team opened up its season on the road Thursday, competing in a double dual against Minneapolis and Halstead.
“We need to get great leadership from our experienced wrestlers, see marked improvement from our other returners, and hopefully a few of our experienced freshmen can show that they are ready for the jump to high school competition,” O’Hare said. “Overall, we are pretty excited to see how this team progresses throughout the year.”
Top newcomers to watch for are Hudson Rogers, Mason Bartel, McKenzie Parson, and Riley Cummings.
Hillsboro wrestling will be back in action Friday at Ellis.