Oakes, ND (NewsDakota.com) – The Region 3 Boys’ Basketball Tournament begins Monday at the Jamestown Civic Center, and the Oakes Tornadoes enter as the top seed from District 5 after winning that tournament last Monday. The first Tornado game is at 6 pm Monday against the Napoleon-Gackle-Streeter Imperials, and, if they win, they will play at 7:30 pm Tuesday. The Region Championship game will be at 7 pm on Thursday. All games can be heard on Thunder Country 98.3 fm, and the Tornado games will be simulcast on KDDR 1220 am/95.9 fm.
The seniors (Ashton Biesterfeld, Jaidy Gebhardt, Ethan German, Steele Hansen, Garret Meehl, and Dalton Schmit) from the Oakes team took a few minutes to answer a few questions and share a little bit about their senior years. (Key: bold text is the question asked, regular text is the answer given, and italicized text is background or extra information added in.)
Jaidy Gebhardt
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
My favorite part of my senior year was beating a lot of good teams and winning the district.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
Our biggest key is to keep playing as a team and play good defense because that is what has helped us win.
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
My plans are to attend NDSU next year, but I am still undecided on what I want to do.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
I would like to thank my parents and coaches. They have helped me the most leading up to my senior year.
Ethan German
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
The most fun part of this season has been every game we win, especially during Districts.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
The biggest key is to keep playing as a team. You need all five players on the court to play as a team.
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
I plan on going to Lake Area Tech in Watertown, SD.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
I want to shout out my family, friends, and coaches.
Dalton Schmit
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
The memories made along the way, like the game-winners and funny things people say at practice.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
We have to play unselfish basketball and win as a team, where we all play our roles.
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
I am going to attend Bismarck State College for graphic design and communications. I won’t continue my sports career in college.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
My mom and dad, grandpa and grandma, and Coach Kramer and Coach Lynch.
Ashton Biesterfeld, Steele Hansen, and Garret Meehl were all named to the District 5 All-District team, so they answered another question about that feeling.
Ashton Biesterfeld
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
Winning all the games that we have and playing with all of the seniors.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
Move the ball, run the floor, and play with confidence.
What did it mean to be named to the All-District team for District 5?
It was an honor, but winning the district was more of an honor for our team.
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
Play football and track/field at Valley City State University.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
All of our fan base and my family, and all of the families on the team.
On top of the All-District honors, Garret and Steele scored their 1,000th point during this season.
Steele Hansen
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
By far, winning the District Championship. We had good ball movement, defense, and all-around good ball.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
Move the ball, find the open man, and trust he’ll hit it. Limit turnovers and have good shot selection offensively. Defensively, give 110%, get out on shooters, and fly around.
You scored your 1,000th career point this season. What does it mean to you to reach that milestone?
Nothing. It means nothing to me because basketball isn’t about someone scoring 1,000 points. It’s about all five players contributing. Team is the most important part of the game.
What did it mean to be named to the All-District team for District 5?
If it weren’t for the team, I wouldn’t have even come close. In my opinion, my team is more deserving than me. They always found me in the right spots, and they made me look good. All glory to the team.
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
To stay on the farm and slowly take over the farm.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
My dad. He got me into the game, and I instantly fell in love with the game. And Steve Hansen. He always had good advice for me or the team and it helped us dramatically.
Garret Meehl
You guys have had a great season so far. What has been the most fun part of your senior year?
The most fun part has been getting the opportunity to play with teammates that I’ve been playing basketball with since I was little.
What is the biggest key for the team as you move into the Region 3 tournament, especially considering that you won the District 5 championship?
The biggest key will be playing as a team and starting fast. We can’t come out slow in any of the next three games. The team is at its best playing together and sharing the ball. Staying out of foul trouble will also be important.
You scored your 1,000th career point this season. What does it mean to you to reach that milestone?
I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates and coaches for helping me along the way.
What did it mean to be named to the All-District team for District 5?
There are a lot of talented basketball players in our district and region, and it’s an honor to be recognized with them.
Garret has a trophy room full of accomplishments, including:
- Named All-District in basketball three times
- Named All-Region in football four times
- Named All-State in football three times
- Named as Region 1 Senior Athlete of the Year in football
What are your plans for next year in terms of college and/or sports?
I will be attending Minnesota State University-Moorhead to play football and will major in finance in the fall.
Who do you want to shout out, thank, or recognize for helping you to get to your senior year and ready for the next phase of your life?
I want to thank my parents and my brother for their support and for all the travel they’ve done to watch me play my games over the years. I would also like to thank all of the coaches I’ve had through my high school career in all sports.