Steve Prefontaine was an American long-distance runner who set American records at every distance from 2,000 to 10,000 meters between 1973-1975. He was a participant at the 1972 Olympics for the United States and was preparing to race again in 1976 when his life was tragically cut short in an automobile accident. He was an incredible competitor ... one who was known to be an aggressive front-runner with an unbelievably strong will to perform. To this day, the "Prefontaine Classic" is still run every year at the University of Oregon.

As we approach the home stretch of the fall season, I think it's appropriate to look at a few quotes from "Pre" that help us refocus on what's important:

"Success isn't how far you go, but the distance you traveled from where you started."

The scoreboard does not define our success. We do, by working hard every day to become the best version of ourselves that we can be. How good can we get in the time we have left?

"To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift."

Brickies are known for hard WORK WORK WORK. To compete is an opportunity ... a gift. One that requires us to give our very best effort. If we can do that, our success will be evident.

Runners to your mark ... set ... it's time for BricksCenter!

Girls

On Tuesday night, the Brickies hosted Kankakee Valley in a HUGE NCC SHOWDOWN! The visiting Kougars pushed their defenders all the way up in a unique tactic to limit breakaway scoring opportunities for our girls and it worked like a charm in the first half as neither team was able to find the net. In the second 40 minutes of play, Coach Provins made some adjustments ...the Bricks showed some poise in their attack and it PAID OFF BIGTIME!! Sophomore Addy Hendricks scored a GOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAALLL off a corner kick to give Hobart a 1-0 lead roughly 10 minutes in! After KV tied the game at 1-1 by scoring on a penalty kick, senior Piper Ellenberger got a sweet pass from sophomore Kurah Krucina and sent a shot into the back of the net for another Brickie GOOOOOOOOOAAALLL and a 2-1 lead!! The Brickie D-D-D-DEFENSE did the rest over the final 13 minutes of play to help our girls HOLD ON and earn an extremely HARD FOUGHT 2-1 VICTORY!!! This game was physical and challenging against a tough opponent and against Mother Nature (rain poured down for over half the contest), but the Brickies persevered and came out on top!!

Saturday morning, the wheels on the bus went 'round and 'round over to Porter County neighbor Wheeler for a non-conference matchup. The Brickies got it going early and often with 3 GOOOOOOOAAALLLS in the first 40 minutes of play to take a 3-1 advantage into the halftime locker room. Over the final 40 minutes of play, our girls would add 3 more scores to return to H-town VICTORIOUS in a 6-1 WIN!! Ellenberger and freshman Val Rodriguez each netted two goals ... Krucina and freshman Rylee Christman also scored a goal apiece and Hendricks chalked up two assists for the day! Senior goalkeeper Laila Perschau recorded 6 saves to help the Bricks match their win total from a year ago at 10 ... and we still have 3 more games to play before the postseason begins!! AMAZING!!!

Our girls are now 10-2-1 overall on the year ... WOW!! The Bricks have just 3 games remaining in the regular season before IHSAA Tournament play begins. YOU'VE GOT THIS GIRLS!! WE BELIEVE!!!!

Boys

Wednesday night, the Brickies headed South to DeMotte for a Northwest Crossroads Conference matchup with the Kankakee Valley Kougars. In an INTENSE BATTLE between two tough teams, our boys dialed up the D-D-D-DEFENSE against the hosts and pitched a shutout!! Freshman Michael Klaich was FANTASTIC protecting the net and he got a lot of help from his friends on the Hobart defensive front to keep the Kougars scoreless! With KV unable to find the net, Hobart got all the offense it needed from the Guess boys - senior Gavin and sophomore Cam - who each scored GOOOOOOAAAALLLS for the Brickies!! Junior Cooper Evans also sent a shot that hit NOTHING but the back of the net to help secure the 3-0 VICTORY!!

On Saturday afternoon, Hobart hosted Kouts in a non-conference matchup. The visiting Mustangs were galloping all over the field during the first half and opened up a 4-1 lead heading into the break. The Brickies showed some FANTASTIC RESILIENCY ... stayed the course and literally gave EVERYTHING THEY HAD over the final 40 minutes of action ... and TIED THE GAME at 4-4 with 3 second half GOOOOOOOOAAALLLSS!! UNBELIEVABLE COMEBACK!!! The D-D-D-DEFENSE was LOCKED IN ... didn't surrender a score ...and when the clock struck zero, this ended in a 4-4 stalemate. Definitely a Tale of Two Halves, but what COURAGE our boys showed to BATTLE BACK!! OUTSTANDING!!

Hobart is now 5-6-2 overall and will wrap up the regular season at home this week with games against Highland on Wednesday and Merrillville on Saturday morning. DON'T STOP NOW BOYS!!

#WEAREONE

Our boys were looking to wrap up the final week of the regular season with an ACE and continue building momentum towards IHSAA Sectional play, which begins on Tuesday right here at HHS!

On Monday, Sectional rival Merrillville visited The Friendly City for a non-conference match. The Pirates generally bring their "A" game when playing the Brickies, but this one was NO CONTEST!! Our boys earned a SWEEP and won in straight sets at ALL 5 VARSITY SPOTS for a 5-0 VICTORY!! Senior Levi Snyder trailed early, but battled back to win 6-4, 6-3 @ #1 singles ... junior Gabe Gutierrez didn't surrender a game and cruised 6-0, 6-0 @ #2 singles and classmate Cash Salunga controlled play from the start and won 6-2, 6-2 @ #3 singles!! In doubles play, the #1 team of sophomores Cash Ellenberger & Mason Mitchell won 6-1, 6-4 and the #2 squad composed of sophomore Angel Gomez & freshman Maverick Becerra stopped the Pirates by a 6-2, 6-1 margin!! WHAT AN EFFORT BY THE BRICKIES!!

Hobart was schedule to play @ Hammond Morton on Tuesday, but Mother Nature had other plans and washed the courts out. With the IHSAA Sectional starting next Tuesday, this will not be rescheduled.

On Thursday, the Brickies were on the road in the Hub City (Crown Point) for a non-conference match to wrap up the regular season. The Bulldogs had more bite than the Brickies in this one and won 5-0.

Hobart completed the regular season with an overall record of 10-5 .. WOW ... and will host the IHSAA Sectional beginning on Tuesday. GOOD LUCK BOYS!!

#SERVINGNOTICE

On Tuesday, Hobart played the role of host against the Munster Mustangs. Munster entered the contest undefeated in NCC play and holding steady in 1st place. The Bricks CAME OUT FIRING and pushed the 'Stangs to the limit in the first set! In fact, it was SO CLOSE, 25 points wasn't enough to decide the outcome as the two teams went BACK-AND-FORTH! Ultimately, Munster found a way to hang on and win 27-25. In the second set, the Brickies tried to maintain the same level of FIRE, but the visitors began to take control and won 25-16. Down 2-0, our girls NEVER QUIT! The 3rd set was very much like the first one with BOTH squads playing their proverbial tales off and BOTH surpassing the 20-point barrier AGAIN! Unfortunately, it was Munster once again that seized the advantage right at the end and won 25-22. Even though the end result was a defeat, WHAT AN EFFORT by our girls against a very tough opponent! WOW. Senior Brooke Cawthon was literally everywhere in this one ... she finished with 5 kills and team-highs for serving aces (3) & digs (12)! Junior Riley Weber recorded 6 kills and senior Kilee Hite had 13 assists in the loss.

Wednesday night was MIDDLE SCHOOL NIGHT as the Bricks hosted the Wheeler Bearcats. After our JV defeated the 'Cats 2-0, both the 7th & 8th grade teams from HMS were recognized on the floor for their effort & commitment to the volleyball program! After the recognition concluded, it was GAME ON! The last time these two teams met ... on 8/24 for the Hobart Invite Championship ... the Brickies came out on top 2-1 ... winning a thrilling come-from-behind final set for the title! This time, the Bearcats found their groove early and took the first set 25-17. In fact, the visitors kept their groove going the entire night ... keeping our girls off-balance on defense and making things difficult at the net ... which eventually added up to a 3-0 Wheeler win. Cawthon once again led the Brickies with 15 kills and 13 digs ... Hite & junior Maddie Lams also reached double-figures in digs with 11 & 10 respectably ... and junior Kalli Butcher finished with a team-high 13 assists.

Hobart is currently 9-15 on the year. The Bricks will be at home this week with contests against Munster (Tuesday) & Wheeler (Wednesday). WE BELIEVE IN YOU!!!

#CANYOUDIGIT

On Saturday, the Brickies were racing at the Highland Invitational ... a course that runs along the Erie Lackawanna Trail and finishes on the track around the football field!

Girls

Hobart ran REALLY WELL on a lousy morning for racing ... conditions were wet & a little chilly, but our girls SHINED!! Sophomore Amanda Guthrie was the top finisher for the Bricks as she crossed the finish line in 44th place overall! Freshman Liliana Lopez (58th), junior Millie Massey (64th), junior Audrey Turley (66th) and sophomore Grace Meagher (74th) rounded out the varsity scorers and ALL ran SEASON BEST TIMES!!! WOW!! In the team standings, Hobart placed 10th out of 21 schools represented!

Boys

The Hobart Harriers finished 7th overall as a team against 22 others and also ran a GREAT RACE in spite of the difficult conditions!! Senior Kolin Gladney cracked the top 20 overall with his 20th place finish in a BLAZING time of 16:29!! UNBELIEVABLE!! Classmate Felix Lopez also broke the 17-minute barrier to cross the line in 26th overall!! Juniors Durgon Click (47th) & Lu Cohen (57th) and sophomore Nolan Shaginaw (61st) rounded out the varsity scoring spots for the Brickies and all three broke the 18-minute barrier!! WHAT A DAY FOR THE BRICKIES!!

Hobart will be at Kankakee Valley High School next Saturday to compete in the Northwest Crossroads Conference CHAMPIONSHIP! LET'S GOOOOOOOO!!!

#GRATEFULLYDEDICATEDXC

This was a week of emotions for the Brickies as they swung the wrenches for the last time this fall at the IHSAA Sectional.

At Valparaiso Country Club on Monday, Hobart played 18 holes in the IHSAA Sectional hosted by Valparaiso High School. If you've ever played at the VCC, you know how challenging the terrain is ... particularly after raining all day on Sunday. In spite of the obstacles in front of them, our girls played well - finishing 6th overall out of the 9 schools represented. The FAB 5 on Monday were led by junior Lily Ullrich, who signed her scorecard with a team-best 108 ... just 2 strokes shy of advancing to the IHSAA Regional! Senior Hanna Balaszek was next into the clubhouse with a 117 respectively. Sophomore Makenzie Johnston, freshman Belle Zabrecky, and junior Alexis Rachau rounded out the Hobart lineup on the day. Unfortunately, only the top 3 teams advance to the regional, which means a memorable fall season of golf that saw our girls show consistent improvement from start to finish came to an end for our team.

CONGRATULATIONS to Coach Gary Roach, Coach Crisse Hairston, and all of our Brickie golfers for a TERRIFIC fall season! Our girls gave us plenty of chest-pounding moments of BRICKIE PRIDE as they navigated the last 8 weeks! THANK YOU LADIES! WE ARE VERY PROUD OF YOU!!!

#GRIPITANDRIPIT

... we're gonna roll those Devils on the side, on the side, ro-o-ooll, hey!

On Friday night, the Brickies visited The Inferno down at Lowell High School for another Northwest Crossroads Conference SHOWDOWN! Each of these traditional region powers compete with an enormous amount of pride ... needless to say, this was a BIG one if either wanted to stay in the race for an NCC Championship!

Early on, Hobart was looking good as our boys DOMINATED play in the first quarter and built a 14-0 lead. As I stated earlier, BOTH of these programs play with a great deal of pride, so it was no surprise that Lowell BATTLED BACK in the 2nd quarter and cut the deficit to just 1 score @ 14-7 with the teams heading to locker rooms at halftime.

Whatever Coach Schreiber said to the Brickies at the break should be bottled up and sold because our boys played INSPIRED FOOTBALL throughout the second half ... again DOMINATED both sides of the ball in outscoring the hosts 28-0 en route to a 42-7 VICTORY!! HOLY SCHNIKES!! WHAT A PERFORMANCE!!

There were highlights all over the field for Hobart ... here are some of the statistics:

Hobart outgained the Devils 354-140 in total offense!

Hobart was 4-for-4 on 4th down conversions!

Senior RB Willy "The Jet" Shearer - 17 carries for 151 yds, 2 TDs

Sophomore QB Aleks Tatum - 11 carries for 82 yds, 1 TD, completed 6-of-11 passes for 124 yds, 1 TD

Junior RB Max Pickett - 5 carries for 27 yds, 1 TD

Junior Logan Peters - 1 catch for 67 yds, 1 TD

Senior Dre Castillo - 7 tackles

Junior Josh Diaz - 7 tackles

Sophomore Nick Dozier - 7 tackles

Overall it was a GREAT TEAM EFFORT for the Brickies to win their 4th straight contest and stay UNDEFEATED in Northwest Crossroads Conference play! Hobart is now 4-2 on the year with another HUGE NCC game next Friday against Class 4A #13-ranked Hanover Central ... on DON HOWELL FIELD @ THE BRICKYARD!! Kickoff is slated for 7pm and it's SENIOR NIGHT for our football team! BE THERE!!

#PLAY15

No Events Scheduled

Tuesday

Boys Tennis @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Hobart High School)

Volleyball vs. Griffith

Girls Soccer @ Highland *

Wednesday

Boys Tennis @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Hobart High School)

Boys Soccer vs. Highland *

Thursday

Boys Tennis @ IHSAA SECTIONAL (Hosted by Hobart High School)

Volleyball @ Highland *

Girls Soccer vs. Merrillville

9th Football @ Lowell *

Friday

Football vs. Hanover Central *

Saturday

Boys Cross Country @ NCC CHAMPIONSHIP (Hosted by Kankakee Valley)

Girls Cross Country @ NCC CHAMPIONSHIP (Hosted by Kankakee Valley)

Boys Soccer vs. Merrillville

Girls Soccer vs. Victory Christian Academy

JV Football @ Hanover Central *

* = NCC Opponent