Lake Shore Teams Combine For 23-0 Record, Two Rec League Titles

The Lake Shore boys club basketball season ended in February with coach Matt Stone’s teams completing undefeated seasons and taking home championship trophies in both the 9/10 and 11/12 divisions.

The 9/10 team of Michael Stone, Daevon Crampton, Ryan Hege, Ian Goehl, Nate Whetzel, Donovan Jurich and James Clark, coached by Matt Stone and Barry Jurich, went 10-0 in the regular season and 2-0 in the playoffs. The team outscored the opposition 192-49 in the regular season and 39-18 in the playoffs, winning the championship game against Lake Shore – DiGiorgio, 10-8.

A key victory for the 9/10 boys came in early February against the same DiGiorgio team they eventually beat in the championship. Coach Stone’s team came back from a halftime deficit to win and spark a dominant run all the way to the title.

Coach Stone’s 11/12 team of Gabe Stone, Nate Busch, Logan Horner, Jacob Leonard, Dylan Leonard, Nolan Thompson, Ty Flores and Alex Paciello, coached by Stone and Lee Gorsche, went 9-0 in the regular season and 2-0 in the playoffs. The team survived a nail-biter in the final to win over Lake Shore – Henry by a score of 30-28.

The core of the 11/12 team had been to the championship game in each of the last two seasons without winning it all, and they decided in the first practice of the season that the common goal was to win this year’s championship.

Stone employed common themes in coaching both teams to a combined 23-0 record. The teams received shirts with unifying hashtags — #TEAM, #GiveAll and #ByWillWeWill — that captured their team-centric mentalities and playing styles.

The togetherness and work ethic of the teams helped propel them to undefeated seasons and championships.

“I'm most proud of the effort the boys showed all season — the drive and determination to chase their goals and achieve them,” said Stone. “I’m proud of the families for giving their unyielding support to the boys and the coaches — the coaches who are all ‘old school, we are loud, we demand effort, we don’t accept excuses, and we demand accountability’ — as individuals and as a #TEAM. We pushed them harder than they’ve ever been pushed, just to prove to them that they are capable of amazing things if they take one more step.

“The last four years coaching Lake Shore rec basketball have been some of the greatest of my life,” he continued. “Going out with two undefeated championship seasons is a fairy tale. I still catch myself looking at the posts on social media from the parents and players to make sure it’s real. This year was absolutely perfect. The teams gelled together, the families gelled together, we felt every emotion together, sweated together, cheered together, cried together and worked through all challenges together. As a #TEAM.”