April 4, 2018 at 5:30 p.m.
Duck Ponderings: Hauser boys advance to regionals
I am in the process of reading "David And Goliath" by Malcolm Gladwell. Undoubtedly, Oldenburg was favored to win. However, for those of us who have been around a few years and as Malcolm points out in his book, there are many examples of Davids conquering Goliaths.
I was not the only Hauser fan attending the game; there were many. The Hauser Nation, thanks again Sam Simmermaker, was well represented! Oldenburg was also well represented. There was much enthusiasm on both sides of a packed gym. You could feel the special atmosphere!
Both teams got off to somewhat of a slow start. Then, Hauser started clicking while playing the inside/outside game almost to perfection and jumped to a 10-3 lead forcing Oldenburg to call a timeout. At the end of the first quarter, it was 13-3. Both teams scored an equal amount in the second quarter with the half time score being 27-17. Hauser had a great third quarter and pushed the lead to 46-31. I looked at my good friend, Ken Seim, and suggested the fourth quarter could be interesting because Oldenburg would have to pull out of their zone and press, that they might gain some momentum. Sure enough, they slowly closed the gap by scoring 30 points. But, Hauser hung in there by hitting enough free throws down the stretch to prevail 64-61.
Pictures were then taken before the team, coaches, and cheerleaders were rushed by the student cheer block as well as the fans. Then, a circle formed around the entire gym with a voice trying to project over the joyful noise with the word "amen" echoing through the hearts of all at the end. During the floor celebration, I saw Mr. Nobbe embracing Mr. Roth. There are many within our area who are well aware of this story among many stories of Hauser basketball this season. And, it wasn't the first time for the circle forming on the floor, and we are all glad it won't be the last time.
As the net was being cut down, I remembered getting a piece of the net as a seventh grader when our eight grade team won the Jennings County Championship. The Lovett Cubs were not expected to win. In fact, our gym was an outside basketball court while most schools had real gyms. We never played a home game! I still have that piece of net as well as a small trophy.
It is a memory I will never forget; the Sectional Championship win is a memory that will remain with all the players on the Hauser Jets team. Even though several did not actually play on the court, each played the game with all their hearts and made a positive difference! Hauser is a team that understands the importance of roles, whatever they might be for a particular game. It is one of the reasons why I like our chances as we proudly advance in the 2017 IHSAA Class A Tourney.
I believe there is a senior on the team, possibly all the seniors, that recall a poem I stressed in our fifth grade classroom by Shel Silverstein. Within it, Shel states that "anything can be." Yes, I was fortunate enough to have Pete, Clayton, Owen, and Connor before retiring. I missed Mason, A.J., Joe, Caleb, Matt, Sam, Brad, Justin, Sean, & Alex. But, it is obvious all of you are dream chasers. I look forward to you continuing in chasing and catching them; I will be right there as well as the entire Hauser Nation. Was that a long and beautiful caravan that followed you back home with all the lights and horns? We can't thank you enough for once again proving that dreams come true, even for the Davids.[[In-content Ad]]
