Winter sports underway

As the winter approaches many people are excited about the holidays, snow, and the cold. However, for many Bulldog enthusiasts the most exciting part of the snowy season is the sports that heat up. The boys basketball team is looking to have another successful season as it did a year ago, reaching the first round of the state tournament at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, led by rising star DJ Carton.

As a sophomore last season, Carton was third in total points on the varsity squad with 189 on the season. Carton led the team in points per game with 10.5, had the highest three point percentage with 35.7 percent, and led the team in assists with 57. Carton’s publicity has skyrocketed since last winter, being offered by a plethora of Division I colleges in the Midwest and his popularity growing each day.

247sports.com, a prep athlete review system, ranks Carton in the 2019 class (four-star) 121st overall in the nation, 23rd in the nation for point guards, and second overall in the state. Some top schools that have offered him a spot include Wisconsin, Marquette, and Iowa to name just a few of the many that he has been in contact with. Carton is the only returning starter from last year’s team and will look to take a leading role as the team begins the season.

The girls basketball team is a very different dynamic than the boys this season. The girls return all of the starters from last season which includes UMKC commit Emily Ivory who has been an impact varsity player since her freshman year.

Last season, Ivory led the team in a majority of categories like otal points (357), points per game (16.2), field goal percentage (46.2 percent), threes (69), steals (32), and blocks (14). Aso returning from last season is junior Kylie Wroblewski who commanded inside the paint last year. She was second in total points behind Ivory with 219 and led the team in both offensive and defensive rebounds with 50 and 81, respectively.

Behind Wroblewski in total points last season are Grace Erpelding and Erin Hatch (161 and 146). The two led the team in assists with 30 each on the season last year. The team looks to utilize the chemistry that has been established to reel off wins consistently this year to reach not only a MAC title, but the Wells Fargo Arena as well.

Right down the hallway from the basketball courts is the pool, where the boys swim team is preparing for another great season in the lanes. The team returns the best swimmer from last season, senior Caleb Aman, who dominated the events, leading the team in five of the eight individual events and in the top three for the other three individuals last season.

He received Iowa’s swimmer of the year for his achievements last winter and was a finalist for the Quad City Salute to Sports Male Athlete of the year. Most importantly, however, Aman captured three state titles in his junior season and was an named an all-American for his 200 medley.

Aman committed this fall to the Division I University of Wisconsin-Madison program among his multiple offers across the nation.

Aman will be the center point of the team this year and will look to his teammates to bring the group to the promising level of the roster. Of the schools in Iowa that have started competing (Bettendorf not being one of them yet), Aman’s times from last year outperform the best in the state so far in four of the eight individual events and all three of the Bettendorf relay times from last year beat the state records this season so far as well.

The boys swim team is seemingly a promising group that will look to find success behind top-of-nation Aman.

Bettendorf winter sports are heating up for some competitive seasons across multiple sports that will showcase the best the Bulldogs have to offer.

The basketball season is underway while the swim (and wrestling and bowling, yet to be covered) programs are preparing for the competitive year to start. Check out the Growl online for updates and top stories about the winter sports and all athletic activity at Bettendorf.