At the end of the ‘92-’93 season, team and individual honors came pouring into Wahoo. The Warriors had gone wire to wire as the top team in both polls. Most of the team awards had become routine for the Wahoo program, sort of a “to do” list: Holiday Tournament Champion, check; Conference Season Champion, check; Conference Tournament Champion, check; District Tournament Champion, check; #1 rankings in the Omaha World Herald and the Lincoln Journal Star, check. The All Class ranking in the Omaha World Herald could be described as the cherry on top of the Wahoo 1993 sundae, but in truth, it was more like a side dish. Becoming the fourth lower class team to end the season ranked the #3 team all class was certainly a noteworthy accomplishment. But it wasn’t really any part of the team’s focus. It was something Coach Anderson would call “nice.” However, it was the most subjective of Wahoo’s post season awards. As Joel Weyand put it, in regards to Wahoo’s relation with the Class A teams, “you can’t really say we’re better, because we don’t play them.” But he did add that he thought the Warriors would be “competitive.” Probably not part of the “to do” list, but the #3 All Class ranking would be a notation at the bottom of the list: “Yep, we did that, too.”
As far as individual honors for the 1993 team, they were as plentiful as would be expected of a team that had achieved so much, and one that had done so with five players averaging in double figures. The dominance of Wahoo in the Capitol Conference would have suggested that all five starters be recognized as All Conference First Team. But that just doesn’t happen, so only Joel Weyand and Mike Hancock received the First Team Award. Justin Anderson, Greg Hain, and Travis Toline were all voted Second Team. Weyand and Hancock also made First Team honors in area selections by both the Wahoo Newspaper and the Fremont Tribune. For state wide honors, it was again Weyand and Hancock on the Class B All State team. Weyand was also selected as First Team All Class and was the honorary captain of the team. It was the highest award received by a Wahoo player, matching Jason Glock’s selection in 1991.
It was quite a collection of awards, but perhaps the most revealing was the selection of Weyand, Hancock, and Toline as Class B All Tournament by both state newspapers. Such was Wahoo’s dominance of the state tournament. In addition, Weyand was on the All Class team. Just how ascendent was this Wahoo team? Consider that the perceived “weak” link in the team had been the center position -- Travis Toline. By state tournament time it became evident that there was no weakness as Toline showed Wahoo had an impressive inside game to go with the outside speed and shooting. Toline’s quick and powerful post play and what became a “signature” reverse layup during the district and state tournaments, along with his ability to run the court, made him a force that opposing teams could not ignore. Coach Anderson: “I really felt at the end of the year our roles were solidified, not that they hadn’t been all year. We got Travis Toline involved in the offense. He’s probably a forward and not a center, but for us he had to play there.”
And there was one of the keys to the Warriors’ success in 1993 -- role players. Sometimes that term suggests a player with perhaps less skill, but a willingness to work hard and make a contribution to the team effort. It seems inappropriate to apply the term to any player that averaged over ten points a game. But Wahoo had five players in double figures in 1993 -- scoring was part of each of their roles. So was dishing out assists. So was forcing turnovers. And so was rebounding (even though Coach Anderson called them a “weak” rebounding team). The one role they had all been willing to play was “team player.” Coach Anderson had pointed out at the start of the season that in order for this team to achieve its lofty goals, all of his very capable players would have to set aside their individual aspirations. They had done so and in the end had garnered individual recognition as well. Achieve individual awards? -- check! (although it probably should have been more)
What about the future? It certainly looked bright. Three of those double figure scoring starters would return in 1994. There was an inside and an outside game. There was a system built on aggressiveness and teamwork that was success personified. But it would be a new team. Mike Hancock, Greg Hain and Travis Toline would have to mesh with new players who had little or no varsity experience. But a couple of factors would keep the coaches confident. First of all, Wahoo’s success had continued at both the freshman and junior varsity level in 1993. The junior varsity team was undefeated and the freshman team was 6 - 1 (losing only to Class A Fremont). Secondly, very quietly during the latter part of the 1993 season, a freshman had been called off the bench more and more frequently. Mike Simons had scored 14 points in the Valley game. He had connected on six of seven freethrows in the Aquinas game. And he played in all four quarters against Schuyler, scoring 10 points. Coach Anderson said he was “excited” about the prospects for 1994, adding that he hoped they could “blend together.”
Another reason for Coach Anderson’s excitement was there would be a higher level of competition. In 1993, Lincoln had hosted a tournament made up of selected Nebraska schools, mostly Class A, and high level out of state competition. In 1994, Wahoo was invited as one of eight Nebraska schools. All those who had been wanting to see Wahoo match up to the bigger schools would get their wish. On Wahoo’s future “to do” list: Gather together a group of talented players -- check. Line up some competition that will challenge those players -- check. Go after another state championship -- pending.
After the season ending loss of 1992, the coaches and players had incessantly expressed that the Warriors were out to reclaim their Class B title. Joel Weyand and Justin Anderson had guaranteed it. The lopsided victory over Hartington Cedar Catholic in the state championship game erased 99% of the pain felt from the 1992 loss to Ogallala. There would always be that small tug of regret and the wistful thoughts of what might have been (141 consecutive wins?). But then, who knows? Maybe the hunger created by that loss was part of what propelled the 1993 team to such heights. It was all part of a magical mixture that had created a team that never let up; one that was not averse to dispensing a little “french pastry;” a team that sought out and destroyed all competition; a team that the coach called “explosive” and a “complete team.” Above all, it was the Wahoo team that achieved redemption -- check!
