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Volume 56, No. 14
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CHESTERLAND NEWS Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Your Community Newspaper Since 1967
West G Grad Receives Lifetime Lifting Award By Brian Lavrich sports@karlovecmedia.com Jeremy Hartman, a West Geauga graduate from 2001, recently was awarded the Society of Weight Training Injury Specialist Lifetime Achievement Award for strength and conditioning. Hartman, 41, was given the award while being a featured speaker at the SWIS Symposium in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. This follows Hartman winning the USA Powerlifting National Coach of the Year award in 2023. “It’s been an honor the last couple of years to be Coach of the Year and earn a Lifetime Achievement Award,” Hartman said. “You work hard and great things happen. It motivates me to do more and help more people.” Hartman lives in Bargersville,
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West Geauga graduate Jeremy Hartman was awarded the Society of Weight Training Injury Specialist Lifetime Achievement Award for strength and conditioning. Hartman was given the award while being a featured speaker at the SWIS Symposium in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.
Ind., and runs Hartman Performance Training.
“We have a variety of powerlifters and other athletes,” Hartman said. “We have wrestlers and track athletes. Volleyball and football. “A lot of my athletes I train in person, but we can train on-line. I have different options.” Currently Hartman said he has about 60-70 clients and four or five assistant coaches. After graduating from West G, Hartman attended Bowling Green State University. His first job after college was a strength coach for a high school in Fort Wayne, Ind. Hartman was an accomplished wrestler at West G, but ultimately decided to follow another path. “I looked at scholarships, but strength and conditioning is my love,” Hartman said. “It changed me. Helped me with my confidence. I wanted to pursue it more.
“I want to keep growing it (his business), keep developing people. I want to help people and educate coaches, spread the knowledge.” Hartman credited Chesterland’s Gary Congin for starting him on the path of strength and conditioning. “Gary Congin with the West Geauga Lions, he really encouraged me,” Hartman said. “He said it’s up to you to succeed.” Hartman said he fondly remembers his time growing up in Chesterland and could see moving his business to Geauga County. “I have a lot of great memories,” Hartman said. “I want to play it back and help others. I could get back to Geauga County and Chesterland. “My proudest moments now is seeing my athletes become successful and not just athletically, but with their families and in life.”
Community Meetings
West Geauga Basketball Preview
Lear
Leonard
Renner
Whiting
Boys to Play Fast, Dominate on Defense
By Alan Kornspan sports@karlovecmedia.com The Wolverines boys basketball team has shown great improvement over the last two seasons under the leadership of third-year head coach Micah Young. Before Coach Young took over in 2022, the Wolverines had only won four games in two seasons. But after winning 10 games in the coach's first season, the Wolverines improved to 14-9 last season. Certainly a catalyst for the Wolverines' new success would be the excellent play of senior Landon Lear. In fact, Lear who earned AllOhio Division II Honorable Mention, was one of the top offensive players in Northeast Ohio, averaging 23.1 points per game. Lear is excited about the upcoming season.
“I think we have a really strong team returning this year,” Lear said. “We only lost two guys from last year. I feel like we have some pretty good shooters on the team.” Lear also has a lot of confidence in his teammates to put the ball in the basket. “I really feel like if I am not scoring, I'm still going to feel confident in our team because I know I can get the ball to people and other people can score,” he said. Likewise, Coach Young emphasized that the Wolverines return a lot of experienced players who can contribute both offensively and defensively. “We got a lot of guys coming back that played a lot of minutes for us,” Coach Young said. “We return six out of our top eight from last year.” With the depth that Coach See Boys • Page 3
Beckrest
Borz
Platt
Zaffiro
Fast-Paced, Up-Tempo Basketball Focus for Girls By Alan Kornspan sports@karlovecmedia.com Returning many players who got valuable varsity minutes last year, the Wolverines girls basketball team feels positive about its chances for success this season. Offensively, Wolverines Head Coach Brandon Stewart, who starts his fourth season at the helm, said that keys to such success will be taking care of the basketball and playing at an up-tempo pace. Coach Stewart has also been focused on improving his team's halfcourt offensive execution which, at times, caused his team to struggle last season, when the Wolverines finished 7-15. Helping execute the plan will be sophomore Faelyn Beckrest. As a freshman, Beckrest was West Geauga's starting point guard
and leading scorer, averaging over 14 points per game. She expressed excitement about the upcoming season and directing the offense. “I am just going to try to get other people open and pass as much as I can,” Beckrest said. Beckrest will also look for her teammates in a fast-paced, up-tempo offense in which the Wolverines will try to outrun their opponent. “Mainly (we will) be trying to outrun teams, trying to get people open quickly,” she said. “We don't have as big of people as normal as other teams do, but we still have fast people.” In addition to Beckrest, Coach Stewart said the Wolverines have many guards who will contribute offensively. In particular, he will look for backcourt contributions from freshman See Girls • Page 3
Listed are upcoming public meetings and executive sessions for December. Chester Township: Dec. 4, 7 p.m., Zoning Commission; Dec. 9, 7 p.m., Board of Zoning Appeals; Dec. 12, 6:30 p.m., Board of Trustees; Dec. 26, 6:30 p.m., Board of Trustees. All meetings are held at the Township Hall, 12701 Chillicothe Road, unless otherwise noted. Russell Township: Dec. 5, 2 p.m., Board of Trustees; Dec. 18, 4 p.m. – Citizens’ Park District, 6 p.m. – Zoning Commission; Dec. 19, 7 p.m., Board of Trustees. All meetings are held at Russell Town Hall, 14890 Chillicothe Road, unless otherwise noted. West Geauga BOE: Dec. 16, 7 p.m., regular meeting. All meetings are held at the BOE Community Room, 8615 Cedar Road, unless otherwise noted.
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