February 13, 2024
Basketball, wrestling, and band seniors were honored on February 6 between the girls’ and boys’ basketball games with Des Moines Christian. We spoke with the basketball seniors about their years playing for the Cardinals.
For those of you that played high school sports, when you think back to those years, you remember your ‘friend friends’ and your ‘sports friends.’ Sometimes those were the same, but ‘sports friends’ have a special place in your heart and mind. As it turns out, kids these days already know about this phenomenon.
“It’s a very particular relationship,” said Rowen Fisk, “because they’ve seen you cry. They’ve seen you get mad. They’ve seen you complain about a ref. They’ve seen you on all your good and bad days. They’ve seen you every day in school and after school. Even if they’re not your best friend in a social setting, you can go to any one of your teammates and they’ll be your teammate no matter what. So it’s just very different when you’re around your team. It’s a different relationship than just a friendship.”
Ty Forcht had similar thoughts.
“Coming in every day and working with the same guys,” he said, “it builds a bond. And when you’re at school every day—a small school like this and you see everyone—the bond you build transfers on the court, and you can tell we have a connection with each other. We know how each other plays. It definitely helps being here and just knowing everyone and being around everyone for all these years.”
Of the 12 Cardinal seniors, 11 of them have been playing basketball and other sports together since 3rd or 4th grade. (Reagan Ridout transferred to Earlham last year.) Over all those years, the memories of the wins and losses fade a bit, but the critical attachments that are made among young teammates do not.
“We went through all of the stages of not only basketball, but a life journey,” said Lily Conry.
“Playing all those years together, we really got to know each other,” added Jeret Petersen. “We played all these tournaments, and we may not have won all of them, but that losing—we did that together. But we’ve won a lot together, too.”
In 3rd and 4th grade, the actual basketball might not be that great, but the kids can and do learn important lessons that become more important the older they get—in basketball and other aspects of their lives.
“I remember that moment where you kind of grow up a little bit,” said Fisk. “When I was 11 or 12, it was always, ‘It’s your fault, it’s your fault! It’s this person’s fault!’ But we all kind of realized together ‘It’s my bad. Over and next.’ And that’s the best way to handle a game.”
The Cardinal boys have eight seniors this season. In a school this small, that’s an unusually high number. Kids that don’t get a lot of playing time by the time they are sophomores usually don’t stay out. Owen Hulbert, Aidan Hulbert, and Kayl Gulling have only a few minutes of varsity playing time between them over the years, but they never even considered not being a part of this team. For all of their efforts, they were rewarded with spots in the starting lineup on Senior Night.
“It was a big deal,” said Owen about the start. “All these guys around us are just great community. And we keep coming back for them and each other because we love each other. We’re out here to play good basketball, from the bench, from anywhere. Just making sure that we’re here for each other.”
Fans see the kids perform during games, but they don’t see what goes on in practice. The ‘bench guys’ are working just as hard as everybody else and helping the kids that get their name in the paper a lot to improve on a regular basis.
“Every part of the team is important,” said Aidan Hulbert. “If we didn’t have those people that played at every level, we wouldn’t be able to play the people that start on the floor every night. And just feeling that love at every level is important.”
Starters and regulars appreciate what these teammates do.
“It doesn’t show up on the stat sheet,” said Morrison, “but when I take a charge, they’re the first ones to cheers us on. Someone hits a 3, they’re standing up. They’re giving us celebrations.”
As a member of the Cardinal bands, Kayl Gulling is a star. On the basketball team, not so much. But that doesn’t matter to him. He embraces his role.
“Outside of basketball, people wouldn’t look at me and think I’m a basketball player,” he said. “But when I get on the basketball court, it’s a whole new family. Everyone supports me no matter my skill level. They’re just great people to be around, at the end of the day.”
Current Cardinals are role models for future Cardinals. The seniors have embraced that role. They hope that kids and fans alike will remember all their physical feats, of course, but how they carried themselves, as well.
“We want everyone to feel like they have a role,” said Gulling. “Whether you’re playing the full 32 minutes, or you don’t play at all. Everyone has a role.”
Both the Cardinal girls’ and boys’ teams lost on Senior Night. The seniors’ basketball careers are almost over. There were plenty of other reasons for the seniors to be unhappy that night, but they weren’t. No one should have been hanging their heads. The big picture was clear.
“There’s just a lot to celebrate about this group and these people,” said Conry. “It’s not a sad moment. I think that this is a really great step in our lives and we’re going to go on from this.”
Earlham Echo 
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