Idyllwild Community Center Sports

By Johnny Wilson
ICC Director of Programs & Recreation

Adult Basketball
March Madness came early this year at the Idyllwild School Gymnasium, as the five local teams in the ICC Adult Basketball League squared off in a single-elimination bracket tournament last Thursday night.

The stakes were high and the competition fierce. All five teams had strong intentions of taking home the first-place trophy, and it showed on the court. Each match-up had an added layer of urgency, physicality, sweat, and determination.

The two lowest ranked teams — #4 seed Team Black (Posey) and #5 seed Team Red (Nunn) — started off the tournament in the one quarterfinals game, while #3 seed Team White (Beagle), #2 seed Team Blue (Smith), and #1 seed Team Grey (Mabery) had an automatic ticket to the semifinals for ending the regular season with the three best records.

Team Red (Nunn) has some attendance issues during the regular season, but they managed to assemble just in time for the playoffs — and when this team has their full roster of six players, it is a force to be reckoned with. But Team Black (Posey) had no intentions of making it easy, as Capt. Toby Posey set the tone for his team by draining long-range jump shots and fighting for every rebound.

His teammates did what they could to help, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with Capt. Matt Nunn of Team Red and his two-headed monster: the dual-threat father-son combination of Brian and Griffin Kretsinger.
When the clock expired, it was Team Red (Nunn) ahead in points, as they would move on to the semifinals to face #1 seed Team Grey (Mabery).
The first semifinals game consisted of a familiar rivalry throughout the season: #2 seed Team Blue (Smith) vs #3 seed Team White (Beagle). Capt. Buddy Beagle of Team White and his “Two Towers” — Chris Tanner and Alex Valle — controlled the boards in this game as they would grab the rebounds and pass it to their outside sharpshooter Wes Patterson who is deadly with his 3-point shot.

However, it was the speed and smart passing by Carl Dewese, Jeff Adams, Tino Macias and Kyle Owen that made the difference, as Capt. Michael Smith led Team Blue with his strong defensive skills, accurate shooting, and sheer desire to win. Team Blue (Smith) managed to narrowly defeat their rival Team White (Beagle) and would move on to play in the championship game.

The second semifinal game was #5 seed Team Red (Nunn) vs. #1 seed Team Grey (Mabery). Team Red (Nunn) was gaining momentum from their recent victory in the quarterfinals game and had high hopes coming into the semifinals. Yet Team Grey (Mabery) had the skills and stamina to outdo their opponents with their sudden fastbreaks, quick-thinking passes, and pin-point accuracy with their jump shots.

When the game clock wound down to zeros, Team Grey Capt. Jake Mabery and his three wingmen — Sean O’keeffe, Noah Rutherford and Danny Peebles — were victorious over Team Red (Nunn) and would go on to face Team Blue (Smith) in the final championship game of the season.
The third-place match was Team White (Beagle) vs. Team Red (Nunn) who was not going to go quietly into the night. Although Matt Nunn and the two Kretsingers were the driving force for Team Red, we cannot go without mentioning their supporting cast of Travis Garrison and David Kenyon who had some great assists and a few baskets of their own. This combination of playmakers was enough to defeat Team White (Beagle) and earn a third-place finish.

And now, the final championship game: #1 seed Team Grey (Mabery) vs. #2 seed Team Blue (Smith). This was a very physical game where each point was hard-earned as both teams cranked their defense levels to 11. Every pass was contested, every jump shot was nearly blocked and every time a rebound was up for grabs, it was a physical battle for possession. When the halftime buzzer sounded, Team Grey (Mabery) was ahead by just 1 point. And there was still another half to be played. This game could have gone either way.

The second half was similar to the first: big defensive plays and hard-fought points. With only a couple of minutes left on the clock, it was 56-year-old Peebles who hit a clutch bank shot to give Team Grey (Mabery) a slight edge. In the end, there just wasn’t enough time for Team Blue (Smith) to even the gap, as Team Grey (Mabery) goes on to win the 2024 ICC Adult Basketball League championship by a mere 4 points.
Great job to second-place Team Blue (Smith) and congratulations to first-place Team Grey (Mabery). What an exciting end to a great season!

Standings Place
Team Grey (Mabery) First
Team Blue (Smith) Second
Team Red (Nunn) Third

Team White (Beagle) Fourth
Team Black (Posey) Fifth

Adult Volleyball
In local volleyball news, it’s been a series of upsets lately at Buckhorn Camp’s Peace Center, which continues to reaffirm that, in sports, anything could happen in any given match.

Idyllwild Brewpub had a hot week when they won against Forest Lumber 3-0 Tuesday Feb. 6, then defeated second-place Idyllwild Garage the following Thursday 3 games to 1. However, their fire was extinguished Tuesday, Feb. 13 by BBI Construction with a clean 3-0 sweep; BBI Construction was still celebrating from their Feb. 8 overtime win when they handed Village Hardware just their second loss of the season.

And the Red Kettle had a taste of the glory as well last Tuesday as they commanded a 3-0 victory over Forest Lumber.

With the playoffs lurking right around the corner in mid-March, the playoff picture is slowly coming into focus. Who’s in, who’s out? We will find out March 12 when the 2024 ICC Adult Volleyball playoffs are set to begin.

Standings
Wins Losses
Village Hardware 9 2
Idyllwild Garage 8 3
BBI Construction 8 4
Idyllwild Brewpub 6 6
Forest Lumber 2 9
Red Kettle 1 10

Youth Baseball
Registration is open for the 2024 season of ICC’s Youth Baseball League. The season is set to start April 8 and runs to May 30 at Idyllwild School’s Top Field. There will be three divisions: T-ball for ages 4-6, minor league baseball for ages 7-9 and major league baseball for ages 10-13. For more information and to sign up, visit www.idyllwildcommunitycenter.org.
Adult Softball

Coming this summer, the 2024 ICC Adult Softball League will be taking place during the months of June and July at Idyllwild School’s Top Field. Further details coming soon. Stay tuned.