Trinity Lutheran High School showcased some of the top middle school basketball talent from the area Friday, hosting a junior all-star game.

The event, in its second year, had a boys game and a girls game with players from Immanuel Lutheran, St. John’s Sauers, Lutheran Central, St. Peter’s, White Creek, St. Bartholomew and St. Ambrose participating.

“This is all about the kids,” Trinity girls varsity coach Mike Lang said. “Our athletic director, Aaron Rudzinski, had the idea last year to put this together. We bring everyone together and have fun with it. It brings good fellowship out.”

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In the first game, the gold team defeated the blue team 59-42.

The gold team was led by 28 points from Immanuel eighth-grader Dylan Fields. He had 12 points in the first quarter and made three 3-pointers in the game.

Lutheran Central’s Levi Stahl led the blue team with 12 points.

Fields, who played against two of his teammates, was named the most valuable player of the game.

“That first play of the game, when I came up and hit a step-back off a screen, I thought I might go off in this game,” Fields said. “I wanted to be a team player. I wanted to get eight or nine assists, but I was also open, so I shot it.

“It’s fun playing against your friends. You don’t always get to do that since you go to the same school. You get to know other people and have fun out there.”

Trinity varsity boys coach Brian Stuckwisch said the event had a good response last year, which is why the school conducted the all-star game again in 2018.

“I asked the boys who played in it last year, and they said they wanted to do it again this year,” Stuckwisch said. “All of the area schools play and compete against each other in season. It’s good to have a fun game instead of going back and forth at each other.”

Some of the high school players from Trinity also cheered from the benches.

“The (high school players) have been talking to a lot of (the players) since the summer,” Stuckwisch said. “They come from the same schools. They’re glad to see them progress and root for them when they advance to the state and national tournaments.”

In the girls game, it took two overtimes to decide the winner.

St. Ambrose seventh-grader Bailey Tabeling of the gold team hit a 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left to tie the game at 31.

In the second overtime, the gold team was able to get the edge at 35-34.

Tabeling was named most valuable player with 19 points, and Lutheran Central’s Maddy Hackman topped the blue team with 16 points.

“(Earning MVP) shows me that I need to keep doing what I’m doing, and I need to keep a positive attitude,” Tabeling said. “It was really fun. We’re all close and friends. We were all smiling. Everyone picked each other up.”

Rudzinski said the all-star game is a unique way to showcase local talent.

“We want to try and showcase the talent that’s in our school system,” he said. “This gives them an opportunity to play in front of a big crowd. They get to join forces with kids they usually don’t get to play with.”

Lang said the school plans on hosting the game again for years to come.

“We try to work our feeder schools hard,” he said. “We want to get out there and make contact with them. It’s also special for them to come out here and play. We’ve really tried to make them as special as they can when we have them out here.”

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BOYS

Blue team

• Levi Stahl, Lutheran Central
• Weston Romine, St. Peter’s
• Mitchell Hackman, Immanuel Lutheran
• Sam Schepman, St. John’s Sauers
• Marcus Brooks, Immanuel Lutheran
• Neil Likens, St. Bartholomew
• Logan Brown, White Creek

Gold team

• Dylan Fields, Immanuel Lutheran
• Sam Friend, Immanuel Lutheran
• Micah Baumgartel, St John’s Sauers
• Will Rieckers, St. Peter’s
• Kade Hill, White Creek
• Liam Kreis, Lutheran Central
• Peter Coriden, St. Bartholomew

GIRLS

Blue team

• Grace Schrader, Immanuel Lutheran
• Maddy Hackman, Lutheran Central
• Lucy Norman, St. Peter’s
• Saige Stahl, Immanuel Lutheran
• Katelyn Schepman, St John’s Sauers
• Kayla Goecker, Immanuel Lutheran

Gold team

• Kailene Cockerham, Immanuel Lutheran
• Emma Schepman, St John’s Sauers
• Ellen Zabor, St John’s Sauers
• Bailey Tabeling, St. Ambrose
• Kelsey Jo Wischmeier, Lutheran Central

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