The symmetry is maddening.
For the past five seasons, the
Faith Christian (Arvada, Colo.) boys basketball team has finished with the exact same record: 26-1.
"If we can do that again, we'll take it," Eagles coach Andrew Hasz said. "Because we've already lost one this season."
Nathan Rindels, shown in a gamefrom his sophomore year, is the leadingscorer on this year's edition of theFaith Christian basketball juggernaut.
Photo by Dennis Marpuri
The Eagles are the gold standard in Class 3A hoops, a designation that strengthens with each accumulated championship. They have won four straight and are making a beeline for five behind top scorer
Nathan Rindels and a supporting cast that appears just as potent as in previous seasons.
The Eagles entered the weekend 12-1 with the lone loss to Gilbert Christian (Ariz.) in December in the Christian Cup Tournament.
"You definitely acknowledge the past and it's nice having a winning background," said Rindels, who averages 22.5 points. "We definitely don't ignore it, but each year is a new team, new players, new roles."
The recurring 26-1 record wasn't initially met with reverence, because the lone loss occurred in the semifinals in 2006-07. It was a 55-53 decision against Eaton that had the Eagles engaging in wait-til-next-year hopes.
How about wait until the next four years? Or more than that?
In 2007-08, the Eagles upended Colorado Springs Christian to get the run started. Peyton was the victim the following season. Then it was Aspen. Last year, the Eagles upended Metro League rival Jefferson Academy (Arvada) to make it a four-peat.
You won't hear much crowing from the devoutly religious school, whose players and coaches often deflect glory to God and are among the most approachable individuals in high school sports. That being said, some quiet confidence has to carry over after all that success, right?
"What we've been blessed with is, with these kids, there seems to be a belief that they're going to find a way to be successful," Hasz said. "That's a good thing. There's never any quit or giving up or feeling like it's hopeless. Through the successes that they've had, there has become a healthy expectation in some ways."
Like many programs fortunate enough to put together a lengthy title run, Faith Christian views each season as its own entity, replete with its own storylines and idiosyncrasies that completely separate it from the others.
In 2007-08, it was the three-headed monster of Jobi Wall, Nick Gill and Chase Grabau. In 2008-09, Stephen Dennis was the man. The 2009-10 team was all about balance, with several players contributing and none more than Joel Hegarty. Last season, the Eagles replaced all five starters. Rindels began to establish himself as a top-notch scorer and
Derek McCartney began to evolve into a terror in the post.
This season, overcoming injuries has become one theme as McCartney,
Adam Finnefrock,
Alex Albright and
Austin O'Donnell all have been banged up. The principal theme, however, has to be Rindels' ascension into one of the finest scorers in school annals. He scored 20 or more points in 10 of the first 13 games.
"I think this year we needed someone to score a little more," Rindels said. "Although I still feel that on any given night a different guy can step up. Just last week against Jefferson Academy, I only had 11 points and
Christian Cambier, a junior, scored 13 in the fourth quarter."
One common factor throughout the title run is that there always has been a Rindels on the squad. Deron Rindels was part of the first three, the latter with younger brother Nathan averaging 5.4 points as a sophomore. Deron Rindels wasn't as gifted a scorer as Nathan, averaging 9.5 points as a senior, but was a key component.
Players such as the elder Rindels have allowed the mindset of winning to be passed along, and the carryover is still well and alive today.
"The carryover is probably just experiences and the things that you learn from the experiences," Hasz said. "Personnel changes so much that every year is unique and different. The focus each year is on what that particular team has, and it's great if we can tap into the experiences some of our returning players have had in the past."
