Although making it to the state tournament is a common goal for many high school teams, the Yutan boys basketball team went beyond that goal by medaling and placing fourth at the Class C-2 state tournament. 

“It is always cool to qualify for state, but this year, we all wanted a lot more than just to make it to state,” senior Carson Jurey said.

In order to reach this goal, the team prepared mentally throughout the season by bonding off the court.

“I think that was a big part of our success. We’d eat team meals after practice and play games before our basketball games,” senior Maddox Wentworth said. 

Preparing well and getting to trust and know each other did not prevent challenges that came along the way.

“Kale Hoffer sat out some games for an injury, so we had to figure out how to play without our biggest player. We were usually undersized, and every team we played in the state tournament had a player 6’7” or taller,” head coach Jesse Gardner said.

Despite challenges, Yutan had a strong season with a 19-2 regular season record, which gave them hosting privileges for subdistricts, where the Chieftains defeated Clarkson/Leigh 77-39 and Johnson-Brock 49-47 in overtime. The team was then able to host districts, beating Fillmore Central 56-43.

“I would say one of the biggest highlights of the season for the team was when we won the district final in front of our home fans. It was really special for us as a team and for the community,” sophomore Kale Hoffer said.

After learning from the district final, the team began preparing for specific things they could face at state.

“We tried to spend more time improving our offensive execution and timing. We wanted to be ready to face any defense we might see,” Gardner said.

Although it was state, the players went into each game as if it were a normal, regular-season game.

“My mindset was to play my role to the best of my ability. Don’t try to do anything you haven’t done all year,” Wentworth said.

Yutan went into the tournament as the one seed, and in their first-round game, Yutan defeated eighth-seed Exeter-Milligan-Friend (EMF) 62-40, setting the tone early by scoring soon and playing well.

“Ryan Maguire took over and controlled the game offensively. He had a great game rebounding for us, and Isaac Couch started the game really well and made his first five baskets,” Gardner said.

Maguire felt that his performance reflected that success.  

“I feel like my performance in the EMF game was good because I had a career high in rebounds, as well as 20 points, which is pretty good,” Maguire said.

Winning against EMF set up a second-round game against Norfolk Catholic. Yutan led most of the game but fell behind in the last couple of minutes, ultimately losing to fifth-seed Norfolk Catholic 49-47.

“The Norfolk Catholic game was a very tough and grueling game. Having to play games where you were incredibly undersized is a very hard thing to overcome. We did try our best and refused to quit, no matter what,” Hoffer said. “Even though the game didn’t end how we wanted to, it was a very exciting game, and we showed that we are all willing to do whatever it takes to win.”

Gardner reflected that message and shared how well the team was able to bounce back and refocus against Freeman for the third and fourth place match the next day.

“It was a tough loss to Norfolk Catholic, but we told the guys that you don’t have much time to dwell on anything, so I was proud of how they refocused, stayed together and came back ready to compete in that next game against Freeman,” Gardner said.

Even though Yutan was down most of the game and fell short at the finish, losing to Freeman 39-36, the team was still grateful to play in the state tournament.

“The whole state tournament was really a huge highlight,” Hoffer said. “We know it wasn’t the way we wanted to be known, but we had to be grateful that we were even in that position in the first place.” 

That sense of gratitude and reflection wasn’t unique to Hoffer, as others on the team shared a similar perspective on the season.

“I think this season was the best year of my high school career, and the record reflected that,” Jurey said. “We had tons of skill this year, and even though we didn’t make it as far as we wanted, it was very memorable.”