Van Dyke, Hunsucker join standout on first team
By Mike Ramczyk
Sports Editor
The temperature was a balmy 30 degrees Tuesday afternoon at Riverside Park in Burlington, but that didn’t matter much to Burlington High School senior Frankie Hozeska.
The muscular, 6-foot-3 basketball junkie wore tight blue jeans, a Burlington hooded sweatshirt and shoes suited more for the team banquet than the asphalt basketball court.
The first place he took a shot was from 3-point land.
Swish.
The next attempt?
Nothing but worn, ripped net.
Not bad for a guy who only drained five of 12 triples all season, 23 games, but still managed to average nearly 15 points per game.
“If I catch it and I’m open for three, I can’t just sit there and shoot,” the 18-year-old said with a grin on his face. “I have to take it to the hoop.”
This season, nobody in the area penetrated to the rim with more efficiency or creativity than Hozeska.
For his scoring ability, down-low tenacity, defensive presence and overall court leadership, Hozeska has earned the player of the year award for the All-Area Boys Basketball Team.
Hozeska is the fourth straight Demon to earn the area’s top prize, preceded by Ben Geiger (2014), Carson Biedrzycki (2013) and Eric Gerber (2012).
Like his Demon standouts before him, Hozeska has the innate “it” factor, the ability to flip the switch and simply go off.
His 14.5 points and 7.6 rebounds were both second in the area, and Hozeska often was the best player on the court.
Look no further than a late flurry of points, including a buzzer-beating layup to defeat Mukwonago in a big win for the program.
Or how about Hozeska scoring his team’s final 12 points and almost willing the Demons to victory on the road against the conference champions, Lake Geneva Badger?
His stellar season included a string of four straight 20-point games in the middle of the season and eight straight games scoring in double figures to end the season, a stretch where Burlington finished 6-1.
The Demons registered wins over Badger, Waterford and Wilmot and Division 1 squads like Kenosha Bradford, Franklin and the aforementioned Mukwonago, a team that has owned the Demons through the years.
Merely hours away from one last hurrah with players and coaches at the team banquet, Hozeska articulates how he will be playing in a Racine County vs. Milwaukee County All-Star game in April. Also, he beams when talking about his desire to play college hoops, as state schools like UW-Whitewater are on his radar.
The newly-minted top player has already been named first team all-Racine County and all-Southern Lakes Conference this offseason.
“It feels great, I’m honored to be accepting all these awards,” Hozeska said Tuesday. “It wouldn’t be possible without my coaches or teammates. It feels good to know all my hard work has paid off.”
Overcoming adversity
Hozeska began playing as a toddler, thanks to an introduction from father Doug, and it has been his “escape” ever since.
The road to success hasn’t come without hardship, though.
In the past few varsity seasons, Hozeska said he has battled anxiety and depression on the court, and it has affected his game.
The talent has always been there, but Hozeska would at times question his ability.
He’s getting better at the mental aspect each day.
“I would always question my basketball ability, which lowered my self-esteem. Then I would play poorly, so most games I had to talk myself out of thinking that way.”
During this past season, the Hozeska family was hit with a bombshell. Frank’s mother Cheryl was diagnosed with cancer. Frankie shaved his head as a show of support.
“Most of the season it was hard to focus on basketball because of what my mom was going through,” he said.
This offseason, Hozeska said he is working to improve his game, which he said has gotten better throughout high school.
He attributes his ability to get to the rim and his court vision as his biggest assets on the court.
You can find Frankie at the gym most days, working to perfect his outside shot or fine-tuning his handles.
A contributing player as a sophomore on the Demons’ conference title team, Hozeska has been a star the past two seasons.
He has a bit of advice for young kids hoping to follow in his hard-to-fill footsteps.
“You need to put in the work if you want to be a great player,” he said. “And just make sure whatever you’re doing you enjoy it.”
“I miss high school ball every day, but I don’t regret anything during my high school career and I enjoyed every second.”
First team
Alex Van Dyke, senior, Union Grove
The lone true center on the team, the 6-foot-7 Van Dyke became an unstoppable force down low for the Broncos.
Less than two years removed from chemotherapy treatment for leukemia, something he endured for three years, Van Dyke enjoyed a breakout season for Union Grove.
He led the area with 14.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, and the lengthy lane disrupter added 1.8 blocks per contest.
Van Dyke was a second team all-conference pick.
His game has improved by leaps and bounds, as he is equally effective under the hoop as he is when stepping outside for a 15-foot jumper or beyond.
“He improved tremendously from his junior year to senior year and emerged as a force to be dealt with on our team,” said Union Grove coach Dave Pettit. “Alex was our leading scorer and Co-MVP of the team with Grant Beck.”
Trace Hunsucker, senior, Waterford
The long, athletic point guard did just about everything for the Wolverines.
He helped lead a team that many didn’t believe would do much in the SLC to a solid third-place finish.
Hunsucker bucketed 13.3 points per game, grabbed 5.3 rebounds and dished out nearly three assists per game.
Hunsucker’s postseason accolades include first team all-SLC, second team all-Racine County and an alternate on the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association all-star team.
Hunsucker has quickness to storm into the lane and power past taller opponents with swiftness.
“Trace was our heart and soul and led us in nearly every category in addition to battling through a two-month bout with a torn tendon on his index finger of his shooting hand to start the year,” said coach Mikkel Mala. “He is a 4.0 student and a high-character kid to boot.”
Spencer Wilker, senior, Catholic Central
Wilker transformed his body from junior to senior year, and the benefits were seen all over the football field and basketball court.
Catholic Central coach Kyle Scott said defenses often game-planned around the 6-foot-2 Wilker, who is a true stat stuffer.
He was second team all-Midwest Classic Conference thanks to 12.2 points and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists.
Wilker not only ran the offense at times, but he can knock down a barrage of triples, take the ball to the rim, pass and rebound with force.
“Spencer was able to spread the floor with his shooting ability, as well as post up inside,” Scott said. “He was a consummate leader and example for the younger kids of our program to follow.”
Grant Beck, senior, Union Grove
Talk about a world-class athlete.
The 6-foot-5 Racine native could soar well above the rim and do things with the basketball only seen in the Harlem Globetrotters.
Beck’s 13.7 points per game were fourth in the area, and he added 4.6 boards to boot.
A second team all-SLC selection, Beck was named co-MVP along with Van Dyke.
“He can get to the rack, elevate, and make plays with his quick leaping ability,” Pettit added. “Grant Beck has
a great pull up jump shot, which made him tough to stop, especially in the second half of the season. Grant was our captain and was Co-MVP of our team. “
“If we needed a basket at the end of the game, the ball was going into Grant Beck’s hands so he could make something happen.”
Honorable mention
Ben Heiligenthal, junior, Catholic Central
A natural scorer, the 6-foot-3 guard will most likely vie for player of the year honors next year.
Through a struggle of a season for the Toppers, Heiligenthal was the most consistent piece, scoring 14.5 points per game and helping to lead a second-half string of victories.
Along with 6.6 rebounds per game, Heiligenthal earned second team all-MCC honors.
“Ben could do a little bit of everything for us,” Scott said. “He was the focus of every defense, yet continued to score and lead our team on and off the court.”
Nathaniel Sibley, senior, Burlington
The heart and soul of the Demons, Sibley, also a cross country star, laid everything on the court every minute of every game.
His rebounding prowess and non-stop motor allowed him to out-hustle taller, more athletic players.
Sibley pulled down 6.7 rebounds to go along with 8.2 points per game.
A lot of times, Sibley’s scoring came on offensive put-backs and transition hoops. Sibley’s running ability gave him an advantage up and down the court.
Sibley was an honorable mention all-county pick.
Ross Gunderson, senior, Waterford
Not too many players hit bigger shots in more crucial moments than the gritty, scrappy Gunderson.
The guard averaged 10.9 points, led the team in 3-point shooting (31 percent) and could get after it defensively.
Gunderson was a major X-factor in Waterford’s biggest victory of the season, a home upset over Burlington.
Chris Saltzmann, junior, Waterford
When junior Collin Chart suddenly left the Wolverines in February, the team needed to fill a scoring and rebounding void.
Enter Saltzmann, a powerful 6-foot-3 forward who stepped up in a major way.
Saltzmann, who can finish high up near the rim, took over a large scoring chunk and finished the season with 10.4 points per game.
Always money from the foul line, Scott connected on a whopping 83.5 percent from the charity stripe (71-85).
“Both Saltzmann and Gunderson could really score the ball on a given night and were big reasons for our successful.’
Both Saltzmann and Gunderson were honorable mention all-Racine County.
Zac Melendrez, senior, Union Grove
Perhaps the most unsung player in the area, Melendrez may not have been the No. 1 option, but when did shoot, he made the most of it.
Melendrez was lights out from three land, converting an eye-popping 51 percent of his triples.
Also, his three assists per game was one of the top marks in the area.
Melendrez was an honorable mention all-conference pick.
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