Cuts

I think the toughest thing I've had to do since coming back to coach at the high school level, is to make cuts!  Kids who have worked hard on their game but just don't have what it takes.  It is very hard as a coach to sit down with your staff and go through each player and make a determination if they can help the team or not!  I do think it is better to cut an older player who may not play much at all, keeping a younger player who you can try to develop for the future.  We are now 5 practices into the season and have only 7 practices before the first game.  With limited time it is hard to get everything in and to get ready to play!  But on Wednesday November 27 the Beaver will travel over the mountain to play @ Valley.  GO BEAVER!

Quick update on the volleyball team.  We had a very good year going 3-1 at the STATE tournament and taking 5th place.  Last year we took 3rd.  I am so proud of this bunch of seniors who came to practice everyday ready to work and always gave their best effort.  We had 3 girls make the ACADEMIC ALL-STATE team and 2 players invited to play in 2 different state all-star games.  Also last Wednesday our outside hitter signed her National Letter of Intent to play Division I volleyball at Southern Utah University.  All of her hard work, on the court, in the weight room and in the classroom has paid off.  She is a great role model for the young girls in our community!

I will try hard to keep everyone updated on the basketball team as this season gets going!

Homecoming & Dealing with freshmen.

Homecoming can be a very tough time for coaches, there are daily activities bonfires, parades and all kinds of distracting events.  I tried to keep our volleyball team focused on the job at hand for the week and that was to be ready for our very tough match.  We talked a lot about still eating & hydrating properly and of course making sure the got their rest!  Basically getting them to focus as we hit the floor for practice and preparation then they could relax and enjoy the Friday night game and Saturdays dance.  But every day we had to have a little discussion on the important thing for homecoming was not your dress, but compartmentalize everything and pay attention to the task at hand.
Due to all the activities I did shorten practice by 15 minutes a day if they came in and worked hard, a little reward for them!  Work hard stay focused and they would have a little extra time to prepare for the evening events for that night.
We did play pretty well and won our homecoming match.

FRESHMEN:
O.K. where do I begin??  I truly believe you have to be positive and patient.
Those might be the two most important words in dealing with freshmen.  They forget, they will make the same mistakes over and over!  But every once in while the light goes on and they look like you have worked with them and they are getting it.  But stay on your toes because like a summer thunder storm as quickly as they look like the get it, they lose it just as quick and revert back to testing your patients and your positivity.  As my boss at Gonzaga University use to say all the time about freshmen, "There are only 2 good things about freshmen, 1) they were not here last year. 2) they will be sophomores next year."


Quote for today;  When asked at a booster meeting about next years team, college basketball Coach Abe Lemons said," I've got good news and I've got bad news! The good news is, we return everyone from last years team. The bad news we return everyone from last years team."

Go out and make it a good week

Coach Joe Hillock

Coaching a new season.

Well school is back in session and it goes with out saying that it is good to be back having a team and on the sidelines again for another year.  Coming into this volleyball season I thought it was VERY important to work on team chemistry.  I have done more with our seniors and I have asked them to do a lot more this year, for each other and for the team.  I know a good team can do some outstanding things if everyone is on the same page and working for the same goals. Working on getting everyone to think about their teammates more than they think about themselves!

Quote of the week comes from John R. Wooden.
"It is amazing what can be accomplished when nobody cares who gets the credit"

Have a great year.

Coach Joe Hillock

FREE THROWS

I have always talk about shooting free throws during you work outs, especially when your tired and breathing hard.  Then shooting a 100 after every work out to grove your shot!  FREE THROWS can win you a big game and can haunt you and cost you a game.  In both games tonight the FREE THROW LINE played a very big role.  It nearly cost Louisville & Michigan a shot at the NATIONAL title game.  So when working on your game find time to shoot some free throws.  Run a few full court sprints or sideline sprints before you shoot yours.  Oh yeah always keep track this will help give you feed back.  If your not breathing hard then your not in a game like situation.  Get out there and get better.

WARNING!

The Surgeon General has issued a severe WARNING!  The flu epidemic is just about over!  Brace yourself for a new epidemic!!
MARCH MADNESS, it is already started and it is starting to moving rapidly across the country.  Yes it is HIGHLY, I repeat HIGHLY contagous.  There is NO KNOWN CURE, and the is NO VACCINE for it.  Symptoms include but are not limited to, Yelling loudly at the big screen TV, jumping up and down on a buzzer beater, sittting on the couch for hours watching games,  taking your ipad to the bathroom to watch games, staying up way to late to watch games and phoning the office and letting them know how sick you are, and you can't make it in.  The SURGEON General expect this epidemic to beat at it peak this next week end stating that Thursday though Sunday will be the worst four days!
He also said that friends who have these and other symptoms seem to get better if they can stay together to watch the NCAA tourney and let this disease run its course.  Getting involved in brackets also seems to lessen the effects of this epidemic.  GOOD LUCK
Coach Joe Hillock

STATE CHAMPIONS

Tonight in Richfield the Bryce Valley MUSTANGS won the state championship in double over-time.  They have been close a couple of times but tonight was their night!  So happy for the entire community.  As most people know it is more than just the players and coaches who win!!  There is so much more.  So Congratulations to the MUSTANGS enjoy this great achievement!

Coach Joe Hillock

Oh yeah and the team at HILLOCK SPORTS are happy to have you representing our brand!!

BEAVER FANS=AWESOME

I really want to thank our fans this year!!  They were awesome.  The last 2 home games the upper deck was full and the enitire house was packed about as full as it could get.  Our student section was great.
The Blue Crue (a group of 8-10 student crazies) was beyound great this whole season.  Last year they came to a game dressed as KISS.  This year they came as cowgirls when we played Kanab and of course when we played Enterprise we even had BIG BIRD thin the house.  I hope we can find some of the younger students to step up and take these guys place as they all graduate and will be missed.  Due to our very loud and roudy crowd our gym is one of the toughest gym in the entire state for opposing teams to play in!!

Last of all thank you to the fans that travel to the away games no matter what the weather is.  We really do appreciate you loyal support!

Hope to see a huge BEAVER crowd aup at the first round game next Saturday in Orem!

BEAVER FINISHES REGULAR SEASON

Beaver finishes the regular season with a 15-3 record winning their last 4.  Their league record ended up 5-3 tied for second place.  After a late night coin toss to determine the 2nd & 3rd seed for the state tournament Beaver ends up as the 3rd seed.  Beaver is coming off their last four games play their best basketball of the year!  Next Saturday at Orem the first round will be play and the Beavers will take the court at 3:30.  Their opponent is still to be determined.  It will be either Summit Academy or South Summit.

Beavers J.V. team end the year with a record of 12-6 and the freshman team finished 16-0.
With some hard work this spring and summer these young kids have a chance to get some playing time next year as the grow and mature. 

Our new assistant coach Ruben Vasquez will be handling the 8th-7th & 6th grade traveling teams.  They will be playing a full spring schedule of nearly 16 games and a tournament at the end of the season.

MENTAL TOUGHNESS

What is it and can I get me some!
Mental toughness is defined as- a collection of attributes that allows a person to preserver through difficult circumstances and situations.

I think that MENTAL TOUGHNESS is the confidence in your ability to perform at a high level in those tough situations.  You get that confidence from practice!  Yes I said practice, hours and hours, over and over those skills you need to be at your best when your best is needed.  In other words putting yourself in those tight and tough situations in your daily practice work outs.  Then the out come will become automatic or a muscle memory reaction.  Think of shooting a free shot with the game on the line, if you have practiced this shot hundreds of times (with consequences) then your chance of making this shot is greatly increased.
Why? Because you have put youself in the pressure cooker at every work out and practice session, every day, 3 dribbles-sight in the target-deep breath-slowly exhale-SWISH!

So now the question is can I get some or develop some mental toughness?
I think you already know my answer, YES!  Here are a few steps that I know will help you along the path to MENTAL TOUGHNESS.
1) When doing your individual work outs the must be GAME SHOTS-FROM GAME SPOTS-ALWAYS AT GAME SPEED
2) You must DEMAND more of yourslef, every day and in every drill.
3)You must CORRECTLY repeat the skill set you are working on over and over until it is an automatice response.
4) Put CONSEQUENCES on the out comes of your work outs.  If I don't make 85 out of a 100 free throws I will run, and then shoot another 100.
5)  Pay the price and get into the best SHAPE of your life.  Do extra to get there, so you can give your absolute best, when your best is needed. The more physical toughness you have the easier it will be to develop the MENTAL TOUGHNESS  you need.

Good luck get after and finish up strong.  Then this summer when your working out on your own, start to develop that MENTAL TOUGHNESS!!
Good Luck!

BEAVER GIRLS WIN REGION TITLE

 Beaver gilrs basketball team wins tonight 38-32 and takes home the region (league) championship!  Congratulations goes out to coach Jon Marshall his staff & the team!!  Keep it going and good luck at the state tournament!!  GO BEAVER!!!!

HALL OF FAME INDUCTEE

Tonight I saw an amazing young lady get inducted into the Southern Utah athletic Hall of Fame!!  She is the best POST player I have ever had the pleasure to coach!!!  More than all of that she is great person.  She is so desrving of this award!  She had it all as T-Bird, she had GAME, in the class room - around campus - and on the court.  After her playing career finished I was lucky enough to have her join my staff as an assistant coach and she played a huge roll in our success.  Then she changed gears and moved into athletic administration and was wonderful at that (Man is she talented)!!  Now she is the assistant commissioner of the Summit conference.  What can't this Lady do??  I know her parents are very proud tonight!  There will never be a #00 !!!  Congrats Myndee Kay Larsen!! You are now a HALL OF FAMER!!!!!!

OH I need to mention that her very talented sister EVIE, who also played for me at SUU did Myndee's hair tonight for the event -AMAZING!!

BEAVERS WIN #12

Beaver wins for the 12th time tonight on the road in Parowan.
Getting off to a very good start was the key tonight as the Beavers NEVER gave up the lead and won 54-53.  This ends a very tough 4 game road swing.  Now the Beavers come home for 3 in a row starting next Wednesday night vs. the Kanab Cowboys who will be coming to KT Gym off their huge win over Enterprise.  WE need a packed house for these last 3 games.  If you haven't been to a game yet NOW IS THE TIME to come out and support the BEAVERS.

Also mark the Feb. 8th. game on your calanders, come out &  help us HONOR our seniors players and also our BRAVE MEN & WOMEN who serve in the Military.  Any member of our military past or present is invited to the game.  The BEAVERS want to thank them all for the service to our country and the community as they protect our freedoms.

Beaver back on track!

Beaver got back to their winning ways Friday night in Kanab.  On the road for a league game the Beavers took on avery tough Cowboy team.  It was a very close game the entire way.  Beavers DEFENSE was the key in the second half holding the Cowboys to 4 points in the third.  As the game stayed close in the fourth quarter the Beavers made some defensive stops a couple of long 3 pointers and timley free throws to seal the victory 42-39.  Beaver is now 11-1 on the year and moves to 1-1 in league play. 

As I talked about during Christmas break I am still working on my thoughts regarding mental toughness, so stay tuned for that release.

GO BEAVER!!!!!

BEAVER BACK ON THE HARDWOOD

The 8-0 Beavers get back on the court tomorow night in Lindon, UT with a road game vs. Maeser Prep.  Having practiced when they could during the CHristmas break, the Beavers have this game and another on Friday before they enter into very tough Region play.  GO BEAVER