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What are some of big storylines heading into Cheboygan-area winter sports season?

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What are some of big storylines heading into Cheboygan-area winter sports season?

CHEBOYGAN – Fall sports season is still very much in session.

At the same time, it’s never too early to look forward to winter sports, especially in the Cheboygan area.  

As we wrap up fall and prepare for a long and likely very exciting winter, here’s some storylines I’m watching out for over the next few months.  

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Will the Cheboygan boys break out in 2024-25?  

My excitement meter always goes up when basketball starts, and why not begin with a team that has the talent to break out this season?  

That would be the Cheboygan boys, who are young but have all sorts of potential under head coach Jason Friday. While the Chiefs graduated some key seniors, they return sophomore Gavin Smith, who delivered an outstanding freshman campaign. Players expected to contribute on varsity are junior twins Carson and Andrew Kiefer, sophomore Nolan Schley, and perhaps even sophomore Landon Gahn, who starred on Cheboygan’s junior varsity team.

From what I saw out of Smith last season, as well as the success Cheboygan had at the J.V. level, the Chiefs could be in for a thrilling campaign. Even if there are growing pains for some of the younger players, this team is well equipped to have success over the next few seasons.  

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Can Inland Lakes girls win more titles?  

Last winter was a rousing success for the Daryl Vizina-coached Inland Lakes girls, who captured both outright Ski Valley Conference and district championships, with the latter being won at rival Onaway.  

With the Bulldogs returning several impact players, including Brooklyn LaBrecque and Chloe Robinson, they should have a great shot to win multiple titles again.  

But there will be challengers standing in the way, including the Cardinals, who came up short of glory after bowing out in district finals in each of the last two seasons. With the senior guard duo of Kailyn George and Charlotte Box back, John George’s Onaway girls will have a great chance to finish the job.

What about the Onaway boys?  

Speaking of Onaway, the boys been an absolute joy to watch in recent years. But now, coach Eddy Szymoniak and his Cardinals have the great challenge of sustaining their success without the excellent tandem of Jadin Mix and Austin Veal, who graduated last spring. Those two were so instrumental to the Cardinals’ success, and it’ll be incredibly difficult to replace them. On the flip side, perhaps no coach in the area finds a way to just make it work more than Szymoniak.

Thankfully for Szymoniak, he returns senior Mason Beebe, who could be poised for a huge winter, as well as fellow senior Luke Lovelace, a solid shooter and scrappy defender. It’ll be tough to win the Ski Valley and even a district crown, but Szymoniak and the Cardinals have surprised before.

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Hockey action soon?  

Don’t look now, but coach Seth Duncan and his Cheboygan Chiefs open their hockey season with a pair of games in the Upper Peninsula next weekend.  

The bad news? They’ll be without arguably last season’s best player in Warren Farver, who now plays for the Soo Indians AAA team. That’s a major blow for the Chiefs, but they still return the likes of Ethan Shepard, Noah Gingrich, Brody Carter and others.  

I have no idea what to expect from the Chiefs on the ice this season, but it’ll be an opportunity for Duncan to turn things around after a difficult debut campaign.

Contact sports editor Jared Greenleaf at jgreenleaf@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @sportsCDT 

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