Patriot pair make ACAC first team

Michael Schlechty and Cole Stigleman played big roles as the Patriots blazed their way to the regular season conference title.

They were rewarded accordingly.

Schlechty, a Jay County High School junior, and Stigleman, a senior, were named to the Allen County Athletic Conference first team as the league released its all-conference teams March 6.

South Adams had one earn second team honors.

Schlechty led the Patriots (14-10, 6-0 ACAC), who won the regular season title for the first time since joining in the 2014-15 season, with 10 points per game. In the five ACAC games he played, Schlechty tallied 9.2 points per game. He was second on the team with 3.8 rebounds per game and played in all but one of the Patriots’ 24 contests.

Stigleman scored 10.3 points per game against ACAC foes while registering 9.4 points per game for the season. 

The senior guard finished his career with 500 total points, which ranks 33rd in program history. In four years, he played in 93 games for Jay County, helping the Patriots to a 62-34 record in that span. They also won the ACAC tournament championship in the 2016 season.

Lars In’t Groen, a South Adams senior, earned second team All-ACAC honors. He and the Starfires were 5-18, and tied for last in the conference with Bluffton at 1-5.