High-scoring Kahlig to lead Indians

There is a lot to be said about Greg Kahlig.

The Fort Recovery High School senior returns to lead the boys basketball team in every conceivable statistical category.

He has already signed to play basketball next season at the University of Findlay, which is currently ranked ninth in the NCAA's Division II.

As a junior, he became the 13th player in FRHS history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.

He was named the Midwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year, and selected to the All-Ohio third team.

"That's a nice building block to start working around," said Indians coach Brian Patch, whose team will open the regular season at home Friday against Memorial (St. Marys). "He creates a lot of mismatches for us.

"What really makes him special is not only can he score himself, but he sets the rest of our team up because he draws so much attention to him."

Taking advantage of the opportunities set up by all of the attention drawn to Kahlig will be a key for the Tribe this season. Patch said he hopes his squad's success this summer without Kahlig, who was away because of football, will help the other players in those situations.

"I think (having a lot of success without Kahlig) kind of surprised our kids a little bit," said Patch. "They can step up when called upon to be able to make some plays. The thing we're going to need to work on is being more consistent with that."

Consistency from Kahlig is almost a given.

A year ago he averaged 23 points per game and led the Indians to their second consecutive sectional title. He was also the Tribe's leader in rebounding (8.2 per game), blocks (24), free-throw percentage (79) and 3-pointers (23).

This season he will be the returning leader in assists (51) and steals (24) after playing 31.4 minutes per game last season.

Barring an injury, Kahlig will likely break Fort Recovery's all-time scoring record in January. The mark of 1,418 points set by Ken Heiby has stood since 1969.

"For him, I think it would be a record that would be well-deserved because he's worked so hard for it throughout the years," said Patch. "You've got to kick him out of the gym. During football he's in there shooting at night, and he's in there twice a day in the summer.

"He's one of those kids that works so hard that he deserves the praise and recognition that he gets. ... I think that's a special record that will probably stand for a while.

"Obviously he's a pretty special player. He can do a lot of things for us."

To start the season seniors Michael Gaerke and Cody Fiely, junior Ryan Schoen and freshman Wade Gelhaus will join Kahlig in the starting lineup. Patch said senior Craig Tobe, the Indians' No. 2 scorer last season at eight points per game, is making his way back from a football injury and will also be in the starting lineup this year.

Jason Pottkotter and Shane Brunswick round out the varsity group.

Tobe is the only returning starter along with Kahlig. Fiely averaged 11.4 minutes in 16 varsity games last season, and Gaerke saw action in 12 games.

"Basically we're not going to be a real deep team," said Patch. "Seven guys are going to log a lot of minutes. ... Those guys will have to be able to handle that."

Ryan Schoen will be the Indians' point guard, filling a position held by the combination of Toby Metzger and Frank Thien for the last four years. Tobe, Fiely (1.7 points per game) and Gelhaus are the likely candidates to carry the scoring load behind Kahlig.

"We expect some big things out of Wade," said Patch of the 6-foot-3-inch transfer from Mississinawa Valley. "We think he can be a special player for us down the road. ... For him it's about learning our system. ... For us he's going to provide scoring and ball handling."

The Indians hope to improve on last season's 3-6 Midwest Athletic Conference finish. But their ultimate goal is tournament success, where they hope to start by earning a third straight sectional title for the first time in school history.

"Our goal is to try to get better every time we go out there," said Patch. "The ultimate goal obviously is to make a tournament run, to get past district, which we haven't done in a while."[[In-content Ad]]