En route to scoring his 2,000th high school point, Andrew Dalton’s Ava Bears have looked to him for leadership. But if you ask his teammates, like senior Blayne Mendel, he’s meant for even more.
“He’s smart enough to be the president,” said Mendel.
“Oh gosh, I’m surprised he didn’t say he could be vice president or something,” said Dalton.
The team’s second all-time leading rebounder already knows what his first act would be in a Dalton-Mendel administration.
“For sure I’d make hunting season, ya know, depending on population size, maybe extend a little longer,” said Dalton. “A few more tags or something. I don’t know.”
Dalton’s love of turkey hunting hasn’t led to “the big kill,” yet.
“Still waiting to get that one,” he said.
But Head Coach Damon Seiger says the skills he’s honed in the backwoods of Ava’s fertile hunting grounds show up on the court.
“As far as the competitive nature of hunting, absolutely,” said Seiger. “He’s not going out there to kill Bambi I can tell you that. He’s out there to get the biggest and the best there is.”
And who wouldn’t want their president to lead the way Dalton does.
“I feel like for a good team, the heads of the team, they can’t ask people to do stuff that they don’t do themselves,” said Dalton.
“He’s one of those guys who, if they have a bad night, you catch him back there early in the morning,” said Mendel. “Sometimes he doesn’t wait. Sometimes he’ll be in the gym after the game. He’ll wait for everyone to leave, and after the doors close, he’s back in here already.”
“He’s the ultimate leader,” said Seiger. “He leads by example but isn’t afraid to hold people accountable. And as a coach when you hold him accountable, he responds.”
Dalton has led his Bears to a hot start this season, and the hunt is on for a third straight district title.
It reminds his coach of the 1971-1973 teams that made back-to-back state quarterfinals, led by Dalton’s great uncle, Terry Ewing.
“This has been the best three years that we’ve been able to put, for this community, on the basketball court, in almost 50 years,” said Seiger.
Thanks in large part to Ava’s all-time leading scorer, and this week’s Arby’s Athlete of the Week.
