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Karchinski joins 1,000-point club

By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor


DE PERE – West De Pere High School senior Jake Karchinski is well known for his prowess on the football field, but the 6-foot-5, 252-pounder is pretty good on the hardwood, too.

In a Feb. 19, 85-74 win over Menasha, Karchinski pumped in 18 points to surpass 1,000 points in his high school career.

“It’s very special,” said Karchinski, who is a University of Iowa football recruit and a three-year starter on the basketball team. “I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and coaches. It was a dream come true. In my mind, I just take every shot with confidence. My coaches have always said that every shot taken with confidence is a good shot.”

Karchinski, a defensive lineman for the 13-1 state runner-up football team this past fall, will be studying education at Iowa.

“I was getting a few looks for basketball in college,” added Karchinski. “Until I got the football offer from a Big 10 school, I was in between playing basketball or football. I couldn’t pass that offer up.”

It marked the second time in a week that an area player eclipsed the milestone, with De Pere’s Rachel Kerkhoff doing so Feb. 16.

“Jake is very deceptive in his speed and agility,” said West De Pere boys’ basketball coach Andy Werner, who has been coaching the Phantoms for 10 years and has never had a losing record in his tenure. “Over the years, he’s really diversified himself. As a sophomore, he was a mid-range jump shooter, as a junior we posted him up a lot more and now as a senior, he has developed a three-point shot. He can drive, post up, shoot and do a lot of different things. He’s a matchup nightmare – if you play someone small on him, he will post up. If teams put a bigger guy on him, he can shoot from the outside or drive to the basket.”

Even though Karchinski is going the football route, Werner feels he could effectively play college basketball as well.

“He’s had a lot of interest from college basketball programs,” Werner said. “There’s really no one chasing him now for basketball, though – he’s going to Iowa, but he could definitely play at the next level.”

Karchinski is not the prolific scorer that 2015 graduate and current UW-Green Bay player Cody Schwartz was, but Werner said he’ll end his career near the top five in scoring at West De Pere.

“He’s got such a soft shot,” Werner added. “When the ball hits the rim, it just bounces very softly. He’s had a few games over 30 points in his career, but he’s just been consistent. He’s nothing flashy, but we know he’s good for 15 points every game.”

The Phantoms host Marinette March 1 in a WIAA Division 2 regional opener at 7:00 p.m.

After starting the season 2-6, West De Pere has won 11 of its last 14 games.

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