Hartford Press Box

Hartford boys basketball team tips off winter sports schedule this week!

Over the past few days, we witnessed some of the first flakes of the season in our little area of southwest Michigan and will turn the calendar from the month of November to December. Normally, this would bring about sadness, as we see outdoor activities take a back seat to indoor activities. Let’s be honest, it’s too cold to be outside for a prolonged period. However, the change in seasons also brings with it new sporting events, which will begin in earnest this week!

Hartford may only feature just three sports during the winter months: basketball, competitive cheerleading and wrestling, but Husky fans can bet their bottom dollar that the schedules will be jam-packed full of action to finish the year, as well as when we flip the calendar into 2024. They may take a short break for the holidays (Christmas and New Year’s), but fans are encouraged to be in attendance to support their favorite athlete(s) and team(s)!

The 2023-24 winter sports season will begin this week, as the men’s varsity basketball team will tip their campaign off with a pair of road non-conference contests. The Huskies will have made their season debut before this column is released, as they traveled to Watervliet on Tuesday, Nov. 28, for a showdown with the Panthers. Head coach John Johnson will also lead his newest squad on the court later in the week, when the group travels to Fennville on Friday, Dec. 1, for a matchup with the Blackhawks. The team will follow this stretch with three games next week; Marcellus Howardsville Christian (Dec. 4), Our Lady of the Lake Catholic (Dec. 6), and Comstock (Dec. 8).

The newest edition of the Hartford Lady Husky varsity basketball team will make their season debut next week, with one home game on the schedule against Marcellus Howardsville Christian, set for Tuesday, Dec. 5. Having won a district championship the year prior, expectations were high last season, even as the team was in a rebuilding phase and welcoming in a new head coach, Kaitelyn Arreola. The result was a season with an 8-15 record, one that ended with a first-game loss in the postseason. Arreola will return to the bench again this winter, with the hope of fielding a team that will make an impact in conference and postseason play.

In addition to the Lady Husky basketball team, the Hartford wrestling program will make their regular season mat debut next week, with a pair of dates on the calendar. The wrestlers will start with a road trip to Hudsonville on Wednesday, Dec. 6 for duals that will feature the host Eagles and East Kentwood, before traveling to the Galesburg-Augusta Individual Tournament on Saturday, Dec. 9. Head coach Matthew Nilson has a great group of returning wrestlers that was a standout group during the 22-23 conference season, while also taking home a district championship trophy as a team, as well.

Finally, fans of loud cheers and thrilling stunts will have to wait until after the New Year, as the Hartford competitive cheerleading program will not perform in competition until they take part in the first conference jamboree of the season at Gobles on Thursday, Jan. 11. The squad is currently practicing hard and will be under the direction of a new head coach, Sarah Briley. As of this writing, their schedule will feature a total of six events, followed by the district competition in mid-February.

As usual, the Tri-City Record and the Hartford Press Box will be your number one source for all things Husky / Lady Husky athletics this winter! Stay tuned to our newspaper for all the sports action that is set to be contested over the next few months – we know you are going to be excited to see how well the teams compete.

As always, GO GREEN! GO WHITE!