MONARCHS LOOKING TO REPEAT FREEDOM CONFERENCE TITLE WITH VETERAN CAST
OF PLAYERS
WILKES-BARRE -- The men's basketball team has high aspirations after
wining the 2007 Freedom Conference championship and earning a spot in
the NCAA Division III National Tournament.
The Monarchs, who were 19-9 last season, return a talented, veteran
squad that figures to enable King's to again challenge for the
conference crown.
J.P. Andrejko, who begins his seventh year as the
Monarchs mentor, welcomes back an experienced squad that consists of
eight seniors, including four returning starters and the team's top five
scorers from last year.
Leading the list of veterans is 6-4 senior
point-guard Jamie Cousart (Holland/Holy Ghost Prep), a two-time
first-team All-Freedom Conference selection. The Monarchs standout and
team co-captain has led
King's in scoring last season with 13.5 points per-game, while standing
second with 6.6 rebounds and first in distributing 4.4 assists.
Cousart, who has grown an inch since last season, provides a difficult
matchup for opposing teams with his ability to go to the basket and post
up smaller guards. In his three-year career, Cousart has 925 points with
485 rebounds and 333 assists.
Senior Vince Scalzo (Shickshinny/Northwest),
a 6-4 power forward, is also back after earning second-team
all-conference honors for the second straight year. Scalzo averaged 12.5
points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists each contest. Although undersized,
Scalzo possesses a variety of low-post moves and uses both hands equally
well. He enters his final season with 1,009 career points while totaling
409 rebounds and 164 assists.
Senior Kofi Dwebeng (Voorhees,
N.J./Eastern) returns to his starting
off-guard spot after posting 2006-07 season averages of 10.0 points, 2.6
rebounds, and 2.5 assists while standing second on the team with 42
three-pointers. In his three-year collegiate career, Dwebeng has totals
572 points, 144 assists, 176 rebounds, and 77 three-pointers. An
unselfish, team-first player, Dwebeng was selected by his teammates to
serve as a 2007-08 team co-captain
The Monarchs' fourth returning starter is senior 6-6
center John Soboleski (Ashley/Hanover
Area) who added 9.0 rebounds while
contributing with team highs of 6.7 rebounds and 36 blocked shots while
shooting a team-best 59.2 (87-146) percent from the field.
Soboleski came into practices in the best shape of his career and
figures to be one of the top post players in the conference. In his
three-year career he has totaled 694 points, 414 rebounds, and 92
blocked shots while shooting 55.2 percent from the field.
Other key returnees include senior forward Ryan
Nenstiel (Zion
Grove/Weatherly), who transferred to
King's last season mid-year from Division II East Stroudsburg University
and averaged 9.4 points and 2.0 rebounds with 24 three-pointers in 15
games with the team. With half a season under his belt and a full
pre-season to become even more familiar with his teammates, Nenstiel is
expected to have an even bigger impact on the team.
Also back is senior forward Jim Welsh (Philadelphia/Archbishop
Ryan), a 6-3 sharpshooter who came off the
bench to drain 49 three-pointers a year ago and has knocked down 136
treys during his career. In his three-years at King's, Welsh (right)has
provided the Monarchs with instant offense, netting almost all of his
573 career points off the bench.
Senior Jared Black (Philadelphia/St.
Joseph's Prep) is another senior
three-point specialist who adds depth to the lineup while junior
Shawn Swim (Wilkes-Barre/Coughlin)
also adds back-court depth at the shooting
guard slot.
Senior Nate Alcott (Perkiomenville/North
Penn) and sophomore Josh Kovalski (Mountaintop/Crestwood)
are both competing for time at the back-up
point-guard position, while junior Ian Gilmartin (Pittston,
Pa./Seton Catholic) and sophomore Jim
Schule (Philadelphia/Father
Judge) will provide relief at power
forward and small forward respectively. Sophomore Mike Wagner (Shickshinny/Northwest Area)
moves up from the jayvee team and hopes to
contribute at shooting guard.
Freshmen who could make an impact include 6-5 forward-center Kevin
Conroy (Chatham, N.J./Chatham)
and 6-2 rookie point-guard Adam Brasky
(Batavia, N.Y./Batavia).
Freshman guard Chris Hacker (Reading/Holy
Name) and freshman forward/center Harry
Schlichter (Benton,
Pa./Benton) will also look to earn
minutes,
"With all the experience we have back, we expect a
lot of good things to happen," Andrejko noted. "We have four starters
returning and a few others who have had a significant amount of playing
time which should help us be well-prepared. Our senior class has been
through a lot during their careers in terms of playing big conference
games, conference tournament games, and NCAA competition so I think we
have a group of young men who are going to be poised, know how to play
the game, and know how to win. I think the conference is going to be
very challenging this year and we are going to have to play well night
in and night out. The type of competition we play in our conference is
very good and this group of players has been there before. With what we
have back, we do expect to have a successful season."
King's
College 133 North River Street Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711
1 (888) KINGS PA
Leading the list of veterans is 6-4 senior
point-guard Jamie Cousart (Holland/Holy Ghost Prep), a two-time
first-team All-Freedom Conference selection. The Monarchs standout and
team co-captain has led
King's in scoring last season with 13.5 points per-game, while standing
second with 6.6 rebounds and first in distributing 4.4 assists.
Cousart, who has grown an inch since last season, provides a difficult
matchup for opposing teams with his ability to go to the basket and post
up smaller guards. In his three-year career, Cousart has 925 points with
485 rebounds and 333 assists.
Senior Vince Scalzo (Shickshinny/Northwest),
a 6-4 power forward, is also back after earning second-team
all-conference honors for the second straight year. Scalzo averaged 12.5
points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists each contest. Although undersized,
Scalzo possesses a variety of low-post moves and uses both hands equally
well. He enters his final season with 1,009 career points while totaling
409 rebounds and 164 assists. 
Senior Kofi Dwebeng (Voorhees,
N.J./Eastern) returns to his starting
off-guard spot after posting 2006-07 season averages of 10.0 points, 2.6
rebounds, and 2.5 assists while standing second on the team with 42
three-pointers. In his three-year collegiate career, Dwebeng has totals
572 points, 144 assists, 176 rebounds, and 77 three-pointers. An
unselfish, team-first player, Dwebeng was selected by his teammates to
serve as a 2007-08 team co-captain
The Monarchs' fourth returning starter is senior 6-6
center John Soboleski (Ashley/Hanover
Area) who added 9.0 rebounds while
contributing with team highs of 6.7 rebounds and 36 blocked shots while
shooting a team-best 59.2 (87-146) percent from the field.
Soboleski came into practices in the best shape of his career and
figures to be one of the top post players in the conference. In his
three-year career he has totaled 694 points, 414 rebounds, and 92
blocked shots while shooting 55.2 percent from the field.
Other key returnees include senior forward Ryan
Nenstiel (Zion
Grove/Weatherly), who transferred to
King's last season mid-year from Division II East Stroudsburg University
and averaged 9.4 points and 2.0 rebounds with 24 three-pointers in 15
games with the team. With half a season under his belt and a full
pre-season to become even more familiar with his teammates, Nenstiel is
expected to have an even bigger impact on the team. 
Also back is senior forward Jim Welsh (Philadelphia/Archbishop
Ryan), a 6-3 sharpshooter who came off the
bench to drain 49 three-pointers a year ago and has knocked down 136
treys during his career. In his three-years at King's, Welsh (right)has
provided the Monarchs with instant offense, netting almost all of his
573 career points off the bench.