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MISHAWAKA, IND.--On Tues., Oct. 16, 2018, a press conference for the men’s and women’s basketball season was held in the Wiekamp Gymnasium, on Bethel’s campus. The event was split into two portions, one for the women and one for the men.
The women’s team, coached by Eric Gingerich, had seniors Kristen Mohn and Kamala Glenn, and sophomore Kelsey Brickner, attend the event to be available for questions.
To start off, Gingerich, who is in his third season with the Lady Pilots, said how excited he is for the upcoming season. “There is a big freshmen class, with a lot of good energy,” said Gingerich. He spoke on behalf of the seniors on the team and explained how they would like to have the best season of their careers. He further elaborated about the seniors and how much they have influenced the incoming freshmen to play their best. “Everyone has high expectations for this team,” Gingerich stated. He believes the several road trips in the team’s schedule should help with team building. He also spoke about the importance of non-conference games. It is important because the freshmen need that kind of game experience, and these games help build team confidence. The women’s portion of the event concluded with open questions. The men’s team, coached by Ryne Lightfoot (who is starting his first season as head coach after six seasons as an assistant coach), had three seniors, Paul Foreman, Trey ’Day Covington and Ryan Lutz, and one sophomore, Trevion Crews, in attendance. Lightfoot began by speaking about how he has changed his mindset from being an assistant coach to a head coach. He has focused on building relationships with them off the court. “I have tried to have more deep conversations with the guys and just help them with what comes next,” Lightfoot said. As his first season as head coach, he is focused on building team relationships. He let the seniors speak about how they have seen him change as well. They said the pressure on him has been tough, but he has worked past it and has become more relaxed.
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