By: Carter Sexton
You only get one chance a year to make a run in the playoffs, and one mistake can ruin it all. These performances at the end of the season mean a lot to fans. For some, games are emotionally taxing. For others, there’s always next year.
The Hamilton Boys’ basketball team has experienced its share of ups and downs over the past decade. As the season comes to a close, we can look back on the boys’ postseason runs over the past ten years.
Starting in the 2014-15 season, Brant Haverdink’s first year as the varsity basketball coach, this team ended with a record of 13-8, one of the two winning records in the next ten years. However, they lost to Unity Christian in the district quarterfinal.
Coach Haverdink said, “We lost to a Unity Christian team that we had beaten twice in the regular season, but one of our starters was suspended and another key contributor was out with an ankle injury.”
In 2015-16, Hamilton basketball dropped to a 4-17 record, losing in the semifinal round of districts against Holland Christian after beating Zeeland West in the first round. The next two seasons weren’t much better. The 2016-17 team ended with a 6-15 record and a loss to Holland Christian in the quarterfinals. Then, in 2017-18, the team finished at 3-18 and lost to Unity Christian, also in the first round. In the 2018-19 season, the boys finally made it to the district final with a record of 9-14. They beat Allegan and Hopkins in the quarter and semi-final games. However, they feel short of a district title, in yet another loss to Unity.
In the 2019-20 season, Hamilton boys’ basketball received Nick Kronemeyer as the new head coach to replace Coach Haverdink, who coached for five years as the varsity head coach.
In Kronemeyer’s first year, the team ended with a record of 6-15 and lost to Benton Harbor in the second round of districts after earning a bye in the first round. The following year, the team improved to 9-7 but fell to Holland Christian again in the district quarterfinal.
The 2021-22 season was the Hawkeyes’ turning point in the postseason. After receiving another bye, this team won in the second round against Hastings. However, it fell short of another district championship after a loss to Holland Christian. Although this team finished the season with a record of 7-15, it showed hope for years to come.
The following year, the team looked sharp. The regular season ended with a record of 22-5. Hamilton hosted districts that year, and they looked promising to win a district title. The boys beat rival Holland Christian in the quarterfinals and South Haven in the semifinals. The 22-23 team would play Allegan in the district final game, which Hamilton would win on their home court for the first time in 35 years.
After the district finals, we travelled to Niles to take on Marshall in the regional semifinals. This game was exciting for the team as it ended in a buzzer-beating tip into the hoop and resulted in a win for the Hawkeyes. As we had one of our best seasons ever, only one team can win it all. We would fall short in the regional finals to South Christian, who ended up losing in the State final game.
With expectations high for the 2023-24 season, the Hawkeyes would go back to another decent year with a record of 11-13. The team would earn a bye in districts, win against Wayland in the semis, and make it back to yet another district final game. However, Holland Christian beat this team to stop the back-to-back district championship dream.
Postseason Games from the Last 10 Years |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Record | Dist. Qtr. | Dist. Semi. | Dist. Final | Reg. Semi. | Reg. Final |
| 14-15 | 13-8 | L Unity Christian | ||||
| 15-16 | 4-17 | W Zeeland West | L Holland Christian | |||
| 16-17 | 6-15 | L Holland Christian | ||||
| 17-18 | 3-18 | L Unity Christian | ||||
| 18-19 | 9-14 | W Allegan | W Hopkins | L Unity Christian | ||
| 19-20 | 6-15 | BYE | L Benton Harbor | |||
| 20-21 | 9-7 | L Holland Christian | ||||
| 21-22 | 7-15 | BYE | W Hastings | L Holland Christian | ||
| 22-23 | 22-5 | W Holland Christian | W South Haven | W Allegan | W Marshall | L South Christian |
| 23-24 | 11-13 | BYE | W Wayland | L Holland Christian | ||
This year, the team ended the regular season with a record of 10-12 and will play on Wednesday, February 26, against Wayland. The team plans on repeating their runs in the past three seasons and reaching the district final for four years straight, as long as they beat Wayland. The team started 1-8, only beating Grand River Prep, but then the team turned the season around when everyone was doubting them.
“So, what’s different about this team is I think they just made a choice about six, seven weeks ago that they believe they can win games and believe in each other and I think that they’ve played as hard as any team I’ve coached and they’ve been as focused as any team I’ve coached.” Coach Kronemeyer talked about how this year’s team is set apart from all the other teams he’s coached.
Senior Gabe Schrotenboer says that the team just needs to “stay connected during good and bad stretches.”
Kronemeyer adds to this by saying, “It just comes down to a 32-minute game. Like who is going to play better, who’s going to play more connected, who’s going to not let the atmosphere get to them that night, and yeah it’s interesting.” […] “I think it comes down to believing and who can be the more connected team.”
Hamilton basketball has changed in the past ten years. They’ve gone from a one-and-done team to a team you can watch in the finals. Though there have been good times and tough times, Hamilton basketball keeps fighting through it all.