A rare breed of Tigers
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| 2010 Co-BCR Athletes of the Year Scott Roseberg (left) and Brik Wedekind show off the tools of their trade in front of the Princeton High School trophy case. The Tiger duo each played multiple sports at the varsity level for all four years of high school, a first at PHS, raking in 23 varsity letters between them. (BCR photo/Kevin Hieronymus ) |
PRINCETON — For the past four years, there have been two constants for the Tigers of Princeton High School — Scott Roseberg and Brik Wedekind.
It all started when Tigers’ football coach Dave Smith and soccer coach Jason Bird inserted the wide-eyed freshmen into their varsity rosters in the fall of 2006. After getting a chance to dress varsity in their fall freshman campaigns, the duo started receiving more letters than the North Pole at Christmas time, eventually rivaling the alphabet in snagging letters as they laid claim to a combined 23 varsity “P’s” during their careers at PHS.
According to the BCR’s research, no athlete in modern PHS history, including all-around stalwarts like Lew Flinn, Dick Hult, Scott Matthews and the Wahlgren and Robbins brothers, had ever lettered in multiple sports during all four years of high school before the pair accomplished the feat this school year.
Wedekind, who recently verbally committed to play football and baseball at Monmouth College, took things a step further, gaining varsity status in three sports from his freshman to senior campaign.
Roseberg just missed out on duplicating his classmate’s feat, taking four letters in both soccer and basketball, but sitting out his junior season on the baseball diamond to concentrate on his soccer career, a move that helped land him a spot playing in college at Cedarville University.
This year, the duo combined to lead the Tigers’ hoops squad to its second straight regional title on the hardwood, and the baseball team to establish a new PHS school record with 21 wins. Each athlete also had successful seasons in the fall, with Wedekind quarterbacking the Tigers on the gridiron and Roseberg laying claim to BCR Soccer Player of the Year honors on the pitch.
For their accomplishments on the field of play this school year, and for their contributions to PHS athletics the past four years, Roseberg and Wedekind are the 2010 BCR co-Athletes of the Year.
The BCR sat down with the pair to talk about their careers and successful senior seasons at PHS.
BCR: How nervous were you coming in as freshmen and finding yourselves on varsity?
SR: I was real nervous, I wasn’t really confident of my abilities coming in freshman year, and playing with an older group of guys, I was scared.
BW: I wasn’t nervous about playing the game, but I was nervous about going out and playing with other guys I didn’t really know and didn’t play with at all.
BCR: What was the reception you got from the upperclassmen?
BW: I thought they accepted me really well.
SR: Absolutely, the same here. They were really nice about it.
BCR: So there was no freshman hazing or anything like that?
BW: No, not at all.
BCR: After starting on varsity in different sports your freshmen year, was it a relief to join up together on the basketball varsity?
SR: Yeah, it was kind of nice having another guy I grew up with and played sports with forever on the team.
BW: I got to play some sophomore football with my buddies, but playing with Scott on varsity basketball, when I didn’t know anybody else, was a relief.
BCR: Looking back, do you think coming in as freshman helped your development as athletes?
BW: Absolutely.
SR: The more experience you get the better you become. You know what it takes to win games.
BCR: Fast forward to your senior year this year. You two accomplished a lot, what does it mean to go out like you did as seniors?
BW: I think I can speak for both of us and say it means a lot to us. To go out with a bang like that — we didn’t finish the way we wanted, but we still had strong seasons.
BCR: What was the highlight of your senior season?
SR: That’s a tough question to answer, because I know postseason-wise we wish we would have done a little better, won some more games or whatever. But, I’d say the whole basketball season was a lot of fun, for me anyway, team dinners and just bonding with the guys and winning a lot of games.
BW: That’s probably my highlight too, only losing three games all season and getting 24 wins.
BCR: What were some of your disappointments in your senior season?
SR: Obviously, losing to Winnebago (in sectional basketball), we’d really like to have had that one ...
BW: The regional championship in baseball, the past two years.
SR: ... and the regional championship in soccer.
BCR: You mentioned the Winnebago game, were you disappointed having to play them in sectionals a second straight year?
SR: I don’t think we were bummed about it. I was pumped to play them.
BW: I don’t think any of our teammates were bummed about playing them, we wanted to play them again, to have that chance, but we just didn’t execute and it didn’t happen.
BCR: This season in baseball you two helped set a new record for wins in a season (25-6), what does it mean to leave a legacy at PHS with a team like that?
SR: That’s pretty sweet that we were on a team that’s going to be in the books at PHS, I just wish we could have had a regional too, but it’s still pretty impressive.
BCR: Brik, you had some doubts your sophomore year about whether you were going to go out for football, are you glad you did?
BW: My dad said he wasn’t going to push me, and he didn’t at all till doubles started that year. He finally sat me down and said “You’re going to regret this, but it’s your choice.” The next morning I took my sheet up to Dave Smith, the coach at the time, and said “I want to be a quarterback.” It took a few weeks for me to get the starting job back, but I finally got it.
BCR: Scott, you didn’t go out for baseball your junior year to work on soccer, talk about that decision. Was it hard?
SR: Yeah, just from the fact that you’re not on the team with the guys you’ve always been on the team with, it was different. At the same I knew I loved soccer and wanted to compete in college, so I just wanted to work on my game.
BCR: Brik, what do you think Scott’s best attributes are as an athlete and a teammate?
BW: Probably his leadership and his presence on the floor. In basketball guys look to double him, and it leaves me or somebody else open to score.
BCR: Scott, how about Brik?
SR: He’s hard working I’d say, hands down. Especially in the offseason, I’ve never seen anybody work harder in the weight room and stuff, getting better and getting their body prepared to play everyday.
BCR: You both played three sports apiece at Princeton, which was your favorite and why?
BW: Probably football is my favorite. The coaching staff, I loved being around them. I loved going to practice every day even though it wasn’t the greatest practices. Just being around all those people and I had most of my friends out there my junior and senior season. I liked being quarterback, the leader of the team, and almost making the playoffs, being one game short.
SR: Soccer, obviously. Like he said I loved going to practice everyday. Basketball was pretty close actually, I love high school basketball, everybody gets into it, the atmosphere you play in is absolutely incredible.
BCR: Scott, you’re going to be playing soccer for Cedarville University next year, will you be making the call-up to varsity again as a freshman?
SR: I don’t really know what’s going on with that situation, but obviously I’m going to work hard and do what I can next year, we’ll see how it goes.
BCR: Brik, what are your college plans as of now?
BW: I finally verbally committed to Monmouth ...
SR (laughing): Finally! You verbally commit in July?
BCR: What sports are you looking to play at Monmouth. Will you be making varsity your freshman year?
BW: Football and baseball. I think I’ll be learning behind a quarterback who will be playing in the NFL the next few years (D III Player of the Year, Alex Tanney). I’m pretty excited to be playing behind him, hopefully I’ll get the second-string job.
BCR: Looking back do you think you got everything you wanted to out of your careers at PHS?
BW: I don’t think we could have asked for anything more. We were both brought up as freshmen to varsity; that’s about as high as you can go.
SR: Individually it’s been awesome. I wish there would have been a state tournament at some point, that would have been awesome, but not a whole lot you can do about that.
Comment on this story at www.bcrnews.com.
The Scott Roseberg File:
Soccer
2009 BCR Player of the Year (15 goals, 7 assists)
Unanimous NCIC All-Conference
Chicago Fire Academic All-State
IHSA All-Sectional selection
Four varsity letters
Will continue career at Cedarville University, Cedarville, Ohio
Basketball
2010 BCR co-Player of the Year, (averaged 9.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg)
NCIC Lincoln First-Team All-Conference
Helped PHS to 27-3 record and regional championship
12th all-time PHS scoring, 936 points.
Four varsity letters
Baseball
All-BCR Honorable Mention 2010
.318 batting average, 5 doubles, 1 home run
Helped PHS to a 25-6 record (new school record for wins)
Three varsity letters
The Brik Wedekind File:
Football
NCIC Lincoln First-Team quarterback and punter
All-BCR First-Team kicker, Second-Team quarterback
Completed 52-125 passes for 886 yards, 8 TDs
Passed for a school record 1,732 yards junior season (2008)
Four varsity letters
Basketball
NCIC Lincoln Second-Team All-Conference
7.4 points, 3.2 assists per game
Helped PHS to 27-3 record and regional championship
Four varsity letters
Baseball
2010 All-BCR First Team
NCIC Lincoln Second-Team All-Conference
6-2, 2.98 ERA, 62 strikeouts pitching
.313 average batting average, 15 RBIs, 4 doubles, 3 homers, 14 stolen bases.
Helped PHS to a 25-6 record (new school record for wins)
Four varsity letters
Jesse Brandt, PHS basketball coach on bringing both Scott Roseberg and Brik Roseberg up to varsity as freshmen:
“They both filled a need for us at the time. Scott was a solid consistent player who we knew we could get consistent rebounding and scoring from. Brik came up to handle the ball for us when Ethan Smith got injured. He did well as a freshman and grew tremendously over the four years.”
Dave Smith, former PHS football coach, on coaching Brik Wedekind:
“Tremendously talented athlete who started both offensively and defensively. Also, he was a phenomenal punter. I put a lot of responsibilities on him by starting him at QB and free safety. In my opinion, I thought Brik was the most talented athlete I had seen at PHS in my four years. Good kid who I truly liked coaching. Fun athlete to watch.”
PHS soccer coach Jason Bird on Scott Roseberg:
“It was an easy decision to bring him up (as a freshman); he was the best defensive player on the field. What he did over four years is to bring Princeton soccer to another level of play. He has to be the best overall player I have coached. He played every game hard. We never had to worry about Scott with his grades, attitude or effort. He is a great young man with a great future ahead of him.”
