HOISINGTON — Injuries can ruin a high school season, sometimes for a single player and other times for an entire team.
The Hoisington boys’ basketball team has been through more injuries than some teams experience in an entire year, and it has only played five games thus far.
First, Taylor Crawford was sidelined by a blood clot in his leg.
Then, 6-foot-8 junior center Cody Stetler was injured. What was originally thought to be a severe ankle sprain may be more according to Hoisington head coach Kyle Haxton.
Stetler still leads the Cardinals with 18.3 points and 12.0 rebounds per game. He also averages 4.5 blocks per game.
“He went back to the doctors this week, and now they think there could be chipped bone fragments around his heel,” Haxton said. “So now he’s going to have to see a specialist. That is not the news we were wanting to hear.
“I think that we won’t be getting Crawford or Stetler back until the second or third week in January.”
On top of that, Anthony Broeder, the team’s No. 2 scorer with 14 points per game, injured two fingers on his left hand. He played the final games of the preseason with his fingers taped.
Broeder also has 4.4 rebounds per game.
Derrick Kaiser, the team’s No. 3 scorer with 13.8 points per game, played with a foot injury. He also averages 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.
All four players were starters at the beginning of the season.
Against all of that, the 4-1 Cardinals are ranked No. 6 in Class 3A in the latest Kansas Basketball Coaches Association poll.
“We feel pretty fortunate to be able to pick up that win in Larned,” Haxton said, referring to his team’s final game before the Christmas break.
Hoisington has had to rely on some of its bench players to step up and become starters.
“First off, Jacob Durrett has been huge for us,” Haxton said. “After we lost Crawford, he was starting for us. He stepped up and showed a lot of poise and did a great job for us. He even chipped in nine points against Larned (at the Keady Basketball Classic).”
Hoisington has also relied on sophomore Trent Schremmer, Darin Poland and Cody Richter.
“Schremmer has been helpful,” Haxton said. “I thought he might have been our starting point guard before the season started. It was between him and Ryan Becker, and Ryan got the starting job.
“I’d have to say that Darin Poland and Cody Richter were more of a surprise. Richter is kind of an undersized post player at 5-10, and he has been great defensively. Both of them have rebounded well for us.”