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Coach Bultema returns to lead Barry Co. Barracudas

Brett Bremer
Sports Editor
Of the 11 swimmers who
scored more points than
Jack Kensington and Devin
Pacillo at the 2020-
OK Rainbow Conference
Tier II Championship last
winter seven were seniors.
The duo, back for their
junior season with the Barry
County Barracudas, both
earned all-conference hon-
ors a year ago. Kensington
was fourth in the confer-
ence in the 200-yard free-
style and the 100-yard free-
style. Pacillo was right
behind in fifth place in that
200 freestyle and placed
third in the 500-yard free-
style at the conference
meet.
They’ll have a new head
coach, but not one who is
new to the program. After
two seasons away from the
program, Tyler Bultema
returns to guide the
Barracudas with the help of
Michael Schipper and div-
ing coach Todd Bates.
“I am real excited about

the skill level that these kids have and that we can obtain,” Bultema said. “It is kind of new to me again so it is kind of fun.” While being a head coach again feels a bit new there

won’t be much new to his approach. The Barracudas will open the season working on their conditioning. “We will have to prog- ress into the finer points of the strokes, some of the lit-

tle details that will help them drop time,” Bultema said. “I think a majority of the kids, when I had them do a little IM the other day, could do all the strokes. That is definitely a benefit

to have to be able to move kids around as needed.” “I have coach Schipper running a lot of the work- outs and I’ll help with stroke improvements, start improvements and turn improvements,” he added. Bultema is happy to have Riley Shults, Matthew Smith, Isaiah Randall, Camden Reynolds, Jake Gheradi, Nathan Cross and Hunter Cisler back with the program, and likes what he has seen from freshmen Nolan Send, Donald Kuck and Hunter Tietz who all come to the program with some club swimming expe- rience. The diving group is solid, led by senior Blake Sheldon who placed third in the conference a year ago. He is joined on the board by freshmen divers Ethan Kooistra and Quinton Stafford. The Barracudas are slat- ed to open the season with a non-conference dual at home Dec. 9. They will

head to the Ottawa Hills Invitational Dec. 11, and then host meets with Ovid- Elsie Dec. 14 and Fremont Dec. 16 before the holiday break. The conference season begins when the Barracudas visit Grand Rapids Union Jan. 13. Coach Bultema said he expects Catholic Central and Ottawa Hills to once again be the class of the OK Rainbow Tier II. The Bengals won the conference meet by 39 points over the Cougars a year ago and had a number of under- classman put together out- standing times. Those talented young Bengals included junior Jonathan Hoffman last winter who won the 100-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke at the conference meet last winter while also being on a pair of vic- torious Bengal relay teams including the 200-yard medley relay team that set a new conference record.

TK coach looking forward to leading special senior class

Brett Bremer Sports Editor

After 13 years with the
Thornapple Kellogg varsity
girls’ basketball program in
a coaching position of some
sort, Brandi James finally
gets to settle in to her first
“regular” season as the head
varsity girls’ basketball
coach in Middleville.
She took over the pro-
gram for what was a con-
densed, pandemic altered
2020-2021 season and guid-
ed her girls to a winning
record at 9-7.
The top returning ball-
players from that squad are
senior all-conference power
forward Hailey Campbell,
starting senior point guard
Kiah Nichols and power-
house centers senior Tristen
Cross and junior Alana

Compton. James also brings back junior Peyton Pratt who her coach expects do a little bit of everything play- ing every position on the court. Campbell averaged 9. points per game and 6. rebounds per game as a junior last winter. “I have a closeness with this team that makes this year special,” coach James said. “My little sister is on the team as a senior this year, so I have always had my eye on this class. They are a special group of girls to me and I will give them all I have to help them suc- ceed and I know they are ready and willing to work for it.” Coach James likes much of her team’s chemistry,

especially the way she has seen Cross and Compton working together on the floor. The TK coach sees some strong shooters, but the team will also look to turn defense into offense as quickly as possible. Junior guard Emma Webster is a “defensive monster” accord- ing to her coach and should help with getting those tran- sitions started. The Trojans will have to improve their focus running through offensive sets if they’re going to take advan- tage of their outside shoot- ing skills. James expects South Christian and Grand Rapids Catholic Central to be a couple of the toughest teams to beat in the OK Gold

Conference this year. “Our conference is all over the board,” James said. “It will be tough on us, but I know the seniors have their sights set on the conference title and if they put the work in now, I think it is obtain- able.” Outside of the OK Gold Conference, the TK ladies fell 49-33 in their season opener Tuesday at OK Red Conference foe Grandville. The Trojans were set for a non-conference ballgame at Lakewood last night and will have a week to prep for its Battle of Barry County ballgame against Hastings Dec. 10. The OK Gold Conference season starts when the TK ladies visit South Christian Jan. 7, 2022.

Jack Kensington

Hailey Campbell

SN 12-4-2021

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