NOOKSACK VALLEY

PIONEERS

Coach: Tyler Mitchell (fifth season)

Last year: Tied for 12th in the Northwest Conference with a 2-11 conference mark. Lost in the 1A Northwest District Playoffs to finish with a 2-19 record overall.

Players to watch: Brandon Gwinner (sr. F), Bret Rediger (sr. G), Connor Beard (fr. G)

Outlook: Mitchell said he is expecting a pair of seniors to step up and have good seasons for the Pioneers. Gwinner was second on the team last year with 8.5 points per game, while Rediger averaged 2.9. "Both of them played a lot of minutes for us last year, and I think that prepared them for this year," Mitchell said in a phone interview. Beard is expected to make a big contribution at point guard in only his freshman year. "He just keeps getting better and better," Mitchell said. "He is a hard worker, and he listens to coaching." In fact, that's a trait Mitchell said the entire team shares, and that bodes well for the team. "We're going to improve as the season goes along," Mitchell said. "We're a young squad. I mean, we've got a freshman starting for us and a few sophomores playing key roles." Among those sophomores will be newcomer Curtis Handy at guard and forward Josh Gimmaka, who only got to play in three games before suffering an injury last year. Junior Seth Taron also is expected to take a step forward help the Pioneers get better.

ROSTER

No. Player Yr. Ht. Pos.

10 Brandon Turnberg Sr. 5-5 G

12 Connor Beard Fr. 5-8 G

14 Brandon Gwinner Sr. 6-2 F

20 Curtis Handy So. 6-1 G

22 Bret Rediger Sr. 5-8 G

24 Eben Rossmiller Jr. 5-8 G

30 Brady Wood So. 6-0 G/F

32 Tanner Myhre So. 5-9 G

34 Josh Gimmaka So. 6-3 F

40 Seth Taron Jr. 6-4 F

42 Aaron Bosscher Fr. 5-11 G/F

SCHEDULE

Nov. 28 at Granite Falls L 63-51

Nov. 30 Sehome L 81-39

Dec. 4 at La Conner L 67-51

Dec. 7 at Bellingham L 88-54

Dec. 11 Sedro-Woolley 7:15 p.m.

Dec. 12 at Meridian* 7:15 p.m.

Dec. 14 University Prep 7 p.m.

Dec. 17 Blaine* 7:15 p.m.

Dec. 22 at Friday Harbor TBD

Jan. 4 at Mount Baker* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 7 at Lynden* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 11 Burlington-Edison* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 15 at Squalicum* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 18 Ferndale* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 19 Seattle Academy 7 p.m.

Jan. 21 Anacortes* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 24 at Sehome* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 26 Lynden Christian* 7:15 p.m.

Jan. 29 Bellingham* 7:15 p.m.

Feb. 1 at Sedro-Woolley* 7:15 p.m.

*NWC game

Reach DAVID RASBACH at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2271.