Tigers impressive to begin season
By Casey Krautkramer
Stratford’s varsity boys basketball team is unbeaten at 3-0 to begin the 2024-25 season. The majority of the 17 varsity boys basketball players were members of the Stratford varsity football team’s 14-0 team this year, so they definitely know what it takes to win games no matter what sport they are playing.
Curt Schmidt is in his 21st year as Stratford’s varsity boys basketball head coach. His oldest son, Chandler Schmidt, is his varsity assistant coach this season. Chandler Schmidt was a senior guard on Stratford’s 2019-20 boys basketball team that finished the season with an undefeated 240 record after it was cut short because of COVID-19. Longtime Marathon varsity girls basketball head coach and Stratford JV-1 boys basketball head coach Bill Knetter returns this season. Stratford boys basketball alum Derek Austin also returns as JV-2 coach.
Stratford lost three starters in Curt Schmidt’s youngest son, Brady Schmidt, along with Henry Zaleski and Payton Glenn to graduation from last year’s squad that had a 20-6 record after losing to Marathon in the WIAA Division 4 regional championship for the second
See TIGERS BASKETBALL/ page 20
STRATFORD VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL - Introducing the 2024-25 Stratford varsity boys basketball squad. Team members, pictured from left to right, front row are players Trygve Aschenbrenner, Gavin Meyer, Ryan Christopherson, Hardol Arcos Perez, Jack Remus, Thomas Bangart, Coltan Breit and Drew Bruesewitz; back row: Assistant coach Chandler Schmidt; players Brooks Vanderhoof, Jett Schoenherr, Kaden Foster, Brady Berg, Riley Spindler, Caleb Wrensch, Reid Miller, Alec Chapel, Will Kraus and head coach Curt Schmidt.
PHOTO BY JENNY CHAPEL Tigers basketball
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straight season. Stratford finished third in the Marawood South Conference with a 12-4 record behind Auburndale, 13-3, and undefeated conference champion Marathon, 16-0.
“We beat Marathon in the regional final in 2022,” Curt Schmidt said. “Marathon had exceptional talent the last three years. We have to play well even though we have started our season late the last three years because of the football team winning three straight state championships.”
The Tigers’ top returning players this season are senior guards Caleb Wrensch, Alec Chapel, Reid Miller and Drew Bruesewitz and senior forwards Jett Schoenherr and Kaden Foster.
Stratford’s top newcomers to the varsity squad who will see playing time this season are senior forward Brady Berg, junior guard Brooks Vanderhoof and sophomore guard Riley Spindler.
The Tigers don’t have much height this season. Berg and Foster are the tallest key players but they are each only six feet, one inch tall. Junior reserve forwards Coltan Breit and Ryan Christopherson are the tallest players on the team. Stratford does have some speedy players in Breit and Schoenherr who were members of last spring’s 4x100-meter relay team that captured the WIAA Division 3 state championship.
“We are smaller and quicker so we will need to make it a full court game,” Curt Schmidt said. “We will always be a predominate man-to-man defensive team but we will mix it up. We will need to shoot well because we are not very tall.”
Stratford’s lack of height hasn’t affected the team winning games thus far this season. Stratford began the 2024-25 season on Dec. 2 with a 64-52 road win against Neillsville. Bruesewitz scored a gamehigh 26 and Spindler added 10 points against the Warriors. Chapel and Vanderhoof paced the Tigers with seven rebounds each. Vanderhoof led the team with four steals and three assists.
The Tigers then edged the Prentice Buccaneers, 68-66, in their first road test this season. Bruesewitz led four Stratford players in double-digit scoring with 20 points and seven rebounds. Vanderhoof contributed 16 points while Schoenherr added 13 points and Spindler had 10 points. Vanderhoof led the team with six assists and four steals.
Stratford returned home on Tuesday to destroy Athens, 72-32. Foster led the Tigers with 18 points. Curt Schmidt was able to unload his bench at the end of the game to give the younger players some varsity experience. For example, Christopherson scored a basket on a nice giveand-go play. Junior guard Hardol Arcos Perez drove to the hoop for a basket and junior forward Jack Remus made a basket just before the final buzzer sounded.
