Elsbernd pleased with Wildcats progress this summer

As the calendar pushes into the summer months many high school students are taking the time to relax and enjoy some down time before school begins in August. But for the Pendleton County Wildcats basketball team, the past several weeks have been all about hard work.
  Head coach Sam Elsbernd, now entering his third season leading the program, has had his squad spending plenty of time on the hardwood and the weight room as they look for every advantage they can to begin next season ahead of their competition in the 38th district. The team recently played a series of summer scrimmages and have been focused on transforming their bodies before the statewide “dead period” goes into effect beginning in July.
    “I’ve been impressed with the development of the guys. We are trying to play a little faster this year, and probably shoot the three ball a lot more. Our seniors really set the tone for how hard we need to work. Our younger guys are really bought in as well. We have a very good sophomore class and a couple freshman I could possibly see helping on the varsity level next year. With that being said we still have a lot of work to do, and we will continue to do so after the dead period,” Elsbernd said.
    “The biggest improvement is our overall strength and conditioning. Coach Mason Monroe has taken complete control of the weight room, and the kids can’t wait to get in there and get stronger. We are starting see the changes in their bodies. It will pay off in the long run for our program,” he continued.
 The Wildcats finished 7-12 last season in an abbreviated schedule that was obviously impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. As next season appears to be looking like it’ll return to “normal” conditions in all phases of play, Coach Elsbernd says his team will be focused on putting together a winning season.
    “After the way last season ended we have set two goals to start with: Be the number one seed in the 38th district and win the district championship. We host that next year and we want to cut down the nets on our own floor.”