TEAM: McLouth Bulldogs/Lady Bulldogs

CLASSIFICATION: 2A

LEAGUE: Northeast Kansas

COLORS: Purple & Gold

SOCIAL MEDIA: N/A

2024-25 SCHEDULE:

12/6 vs Central Heights
12/10 at Pleasant Ridge
12/13 at Jeff West
12/17 vs Oskaloosa
12/20 at Jackson Heights
1/3 vs Valley Falls
1/7 vs JCN
1/10 at Valley Falls
1/14 vs Troy
1/17 at Riverside
1/20-25 McLouth Invitational
1/31 vs Pleasant Ridge
2/4 at Oskaloosa
2/7 vs Council Grove
2/11 at Horton
2/14 vs Jackson Heights
2/18 at ACCHS
2/21 at Maur Hill-Mount Academy

Northeast Kansas League game

GIRLS

HEAD COACH: Victoria Johnson (2nd year, 1-20)

2023-24 RECORD: 1-20, 0-16 in NEKL

2023-24 IN REVIEW: The 2023-24 campaign was a tough one for Lady Bulldogs basketball, as first-year head coach Victoria Johnson and a largely inexperienced roster struggled throughout the season and managed just one victory. A difficult Northeast Kansas League schedule certainly did them no favors. One bright spot was the play of junior Calleigh McColley, who earned honorable mention All-League honors.

2024-25 OUTLOOK: It’s Year Two for coach Johnson, and the expectation is that experience and numbers will both increase. That alone will help this group on a nightly basis. McColley is one of three starters returning for the Lady Bulldogs. Lilly Mahon and Donna Schupp also return to the lineup. This is a team that understands there are no nights off in the NEKL and that they’ll have to be on their toes each night. Increasing their win total overall is a good starting point for the Lady Bulldogs, but how much it increases by will depend on just how much they improved last season and over the summer.

FROM THE COACH’S CLIPBOARD: “We will be a much more competitive team this season. We will have the bodies to help get us through the long games. We will have a good mix of younger and experienced players to compete in every game. We’re gonna look to control what we can and attack when we have the opportunity.” – Victoria Johnson

BOYS

HEAD COACH: Jacob Larsen (1st year)

2023-24 RECORD: 3-18 (league record N/A)

2023-24 IN REVIEW: After winning just one game in the 2022-23 season, the Bulldogs showed slight improvement last season, though nowhere near the level they had hoped for with some experience coming back. The Northeast Kansas League was tough last season and is typically unforgiving to programs in the building process, and McLouth continued learning that lesson.

2024-25 OUTLOOK: A new coach with a winning background takes over in McLouth this season. Jacob Larsen has been an assistant coach with Lawrence High and Free State teams that have made it to the state tournament, so he knows what it will take to succeed at that level. It will help having three returning starters who have formed the core of the team over the last three years. Gage Fields was an honorable mention All-League selection last season and joins Jerrick Chenhall and Judd Holwick as the Bulldogs’ big three. A successful season on the gridiron should only whet the appetites for this group of Bulldogs to continue to strive for victories on the hardwood this winter.

FROM THE COACH’S CLIPBOARD: “I have been very encouraged with the participation and the energy in the gym during our summer workouts. We have a great core of seniors that are going to be tremendous leaders for us this year. I am also excited to work with our younger players who have made huge improvements over the summer due to their strong worth ethic.” – Jacob Larsen

–Dan Lucero

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