Experience leads to 5-1 start

Although we canít bring you up-to-date coverage of D 49 athletic events and programs, we can bring you in-depth information about players and coaches and their game-day achievements. Steve Wood, special education teacher and head baseball coach at Calhan High School, is our new sports columnist!The Falcon boysí basketball team is off to a flying start. At 5-1, the Falcons are a team to be reckoned with in the Pikes Peak Conference. The Falcons started the season with a tough 2-point overtime loss to Wasson, but have won five straight since then and are getting stronger.The five wins were over Denver West, Palmer, Colorado Springs Christian, Mitchell and Pueblo Central. The most impressive win may have been at CSCS as the Falcons beat the Lions, 61-40. It was the first home loss for CSCS in three years!The Falcons are led by senior point guard and team captain Nick Lenhard, who, as a sophomore, was part of the team that went to the ìSweet 16î two seasons ago. Lenhard believes ìwe are off to the best start in school history! This team plays harder than any team I have ever been on.îLenhard, an Academic 1st Team All-Conference athlete last year, is a leader both on and off the court. He has impressed his coach with his leadership skills. ìCoach Cox has asked me to take my leadership role to the next level. I have taken some of the younger players under my wing, like sophomore Shaun Livecchi,î Lenhard said. ìHis older brother, Marcos, did the same for me two years ago when I was a sophomore, and now I am just returning the favor.îìNick is always in the gym. His intense work ethic is filtering down to the underclassmen,î said Greg Cox, who is in his second year as coach. ìHe is a true leader in the way he is always pushing his teammates in a positive way to be better. Nick hates to lose, and when we lost to Canon City last year in our first round playoff game, our team developed an urgency to win this year. We now have a ërefuse to loseí attitude.îCox points to last summer as a turning point. ìThe hard work that our guys put in over the summer, through our 30-game schedule and our ëbigger, faster, strongerí conditioning program, is really paying off now,î he said. ìThis team has a great work ethic, and everyone on the team is buying into it.îWith the return of all the starters from last season, including Lenhard, the Falcons have experience and confidence.Lenhard credits his coach for the teamís work ethic. ìWe have very intense practices. We practice hard, like a game,î he said. ìCoach Cox has helped me so much. He has brought so much basketball savvy. He knows the game, and he is here for us.îìThe strength of this team is that we are very athletic. We donít have the big 6 feet 8 inch post player, but we have athletes,î Cox said. ìWe have a couple of 6 feet 2 inch and 6 feet 3 inch players who can play much bigger ñ they have to. Senior Daniel Snyder, who grabbed 10 rebounds Ö against Pueblo Central, has improved greatly in the post. He is playing with much more authority on the boards and is shutting down the opposing post player. He knows that his role is to rebound. And because of our size and athleticism, we can push the ball and run the floor.îìAnd all of our guys run the floor, including our younger players, like Shaun,î Lenhard said. (Livecchi had a double/double against Pueblo Central, with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Lenhard had 10 assists.)The senior leadership also includes guards Tyler Burley and Tyler Stover. ìOur guards are always pressuring the ball and forcing turnovers. Our defense is another strength,î Cox said. ìIn that first overtime loss to Wasson, we held them to just 55 points. We gave CSCS their first home loss in three years by holding them to just 40 points. Our game plan is to play great defense and make our free throws. In that first loss to Wasson, we shot under 50 percent from the free throw line (11/23) and we lost by just 2 in overtime. Thatís why we prioritize hard work, defense and free throw shooting.îSpeaking of defense, the Falcons are allowing just 47 points per game through the first six games.ìWe emphasize a ëfamilyí atmosphere here at Falcon,î Cox said. ìEveryone contributes to our success ñ we donít rely on one or two players. Every game, we see a different player step up and make a difference.îThe team expects to get stronger in January with the return of another senior, Brodie Hicks, who has been out with a broken finger injured during football season. Hicks is another great athlete on this team who, in addition to playing football and basketball, also runs track as part of the relay team. Hicks, who will play football at the U.S. Air Force Academy, will be an added force for the Falcons as they begin conference play in January and head into post-season play.ìWe play with what we call ëover-the-edgeí effort,î Cox said. ìEvery night, we push ourselves to give 110 percent. A lot of coaches donít like to use the 110 percent analogy, but we do. We have a ërefuse to loseí attitude. These are fine young men here at Falcon Ö very respectful. As an educator and a coach, it is my responsibility to inspire them to be their best.îPikes Peak Conference Standings as of 12/19/12: