Lynda (Clevidence) Erickson- Mom & Coach

Lynda (Clevidence) Erickson played for the Streaks in 1990 & 1991. She was a very athletic post player. She was not afraid to be physical, and sometimes the refs thought too physical. Lynda was a great teammate, who understood what it meant to play hard. She was very coachable. When you spoke, she listened with her eyes. Lynda helped create a positive culture on our team with her attitude.  

She went off to Illinois Wesleyan, and I never saw her again until 7-8 years ago. Her daughter was playing basketball for Dunlap. Lynda has not changed, and was easily identifiable in the crowd. 

I wanted to do this Q/A with Lynda to talk to her about being a mom to four very athletic children. I find it interesting to hear how “athletic moms” parent “athletic children.” And the other big thing I wanted to talk to Lynda about is her coaching career. Lynda has been a youth coach for her kids as they have grown up, and now she is sophomore girls basketball coach at Dunlap HS. We need former female athletes to get into coaching, so it is exciting to talk to Lynda about her coaching journey. 

Barry Swanson- Rivalries & 1966

In 1960’s, Galesburg basketball teams took the floor with warmups that declared “Streaksburg,” and the players had their last names across the back of their jerseys. From the moment they took the floor, it was obvious the Streaks program under John Thiel was a special program. Not only was Galesburg one of the elite teams of Illinois. Galesburg with Thiel, Quincy with Sherril Hanks, and Pekin with Dawdy Hawkins made western Illinois the center of Illinois basketball. 

In the second part of questions with Barry Swanson, he focuses on the Pekin and Quincy rivalries, and the magical year of 1966. 

Barry Swanson- Looking Back

 

The John Thiel era of the late 1950’s thru the early 1970’s was an exciting time in Galesburg. Boys basketball took over the community. Galesburg had just built a new high school, and a new gym. Everyone in town wanted season tickets to see their beloved Streaks play, and every boy in town wanted to play for John Thiel.

 

Barry Swanson grew up in the Thiel era. He was inspired by the teams of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. He was able to live out the dream of playing for the Streaks in 1964, 1965, and 1966. It meant playing in front of a packed houses every night.

 

My first experience with Barry was when he returned to coach the “Ponies” (Soph Streaks) for the 1974-5 season. I was just out of college, and was his assistant on the 1975 team. I had fun living out my dream of being a coach, and realized how much I had to learn. It was fun and exciting, in part as our team went 22-0. Eventually I moved over and coached girls basketball, and Barry went onto become the Streaks varsity boys coach.

 

Barry Swanson has a unique perspective on Galesburg boys basketball. He grew up watching the Thiel teams of Bumpy Nixon, played for the Streaks in the 1960’s glory days, and then coached Galesburg. I appreciate he was willing to share some of his memories of these times. I am posting his responses into two different posts. The first post I ask him about growing up in Galesburg, playing in the 1960’s, Dale Kelley, John Thiel, the 1976 team, and teams of the 1980’s. Later I will post with the focus on the Galesburg, Pekin, and Quincy rivalries of the ‘60’s, and the 1966 season. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

 

Stef Mitchell- Tough & Confident

 

Stef Mitchell was a great shooter for the Streaks from 1991-1995. She could do a little bit of everything. She could handle the ball vs pressure and she could pass. Today she still ranks #9 all-time in assists with 364. She could score from threes but she could also post up. Today she is still the #10 all-time scorer for GHS with 1135 points. She had the height to guard multiple positions, to post up, and to rebound.

 

The biggest thing she brought to the Streaks program was a combination of a toughness and of a confidence. She started as a sophomore in 1993 on a team dominated by seniors- Christy Hickey, Heather Aten, and Ann Henderson. They went 26-4, and lost a heartbreaker in the Sectionals. To play as a sophomore on a mainly senior team is not easy, you are tested. This experience helped shape her over the next two years.

 

A huge part of Stef’s competitive strength came from her experience as an all-state golfer. In golf, you are out there by yourself. As a golfer, she learned to handle tough situations. That personality gave her an edge that she brought to the basketball court. After golf, often it seemed like tough situations basketball were easy for her to handle- she seemed competitive but calm.

 

Sean Hanlon & the Hanlon Party of 5

 Sean Hanlon had a great high school career at GHS. He earned a D1 scholarship to Northwestern and was able to live the dream of every basketball player, to play basketball at the highest level. But he also experienced the underside of D1 when he experienced a coaching change with the new coach creating a completely different atmosphere.

 

Sean married Karla Emery, and today they live in Colorado with their three children. We have lived next door to Sean’s parents for the last 20 years so we have gotten to enjoy watching Sean’s family growing up from a distance.

 

I got Sean to answer some questions about his college basketball career, his career, and his active children.

 

Cadwells Going Into GHS HOF

Melissa Cadwell

Twin sisters, Melissa and Melinda Cadwell are going into the GHS Athletic Hall of Fame this year. They were outstanding guards for the Streak’s 1990 team who were WB6 Champs and ranked #14 in Illinois (two class system). They join teammate Tiffany Sibley into the HOF.

 

As teams try to build to be champions, often there is that one team that gets in the way. In the NBA in the ‘80’s the Pistons had to get by the Celtics. Then in the ‘90’s the Bulls had to get by the Pistons. Those tough losses are painful as you can’t get over the top.

 

Our 1988 and 1989 teams took the step of winning our first Regional titles, and got the tradition of winning Regionals, winning 20 games, and being ranked in the top 20 going. For the Streaks, we couldn’t get past Moline in the late ‘80’s. The Streaks had a 7-29 record vs. the Maroons since the start of girls basketball thru the ‘80’s. In 1988 and in 1989, the Streaks advanced to the Sectional only to lose each year to Moline. Going into the 1990 season, Galesburg had lost 14 straight games to Moline. But things were to change during the 1990 season.

1969 Streaks- Elite 8

Galesburg finished 2nd in State in 1968, and had high expectations going into the 1969 season. 

1968- The Streaks Were Great in ‘68

The 1968 Silver Streaks were one of the most explosive teams in Galesburg HS history. They raced to a 27-3 season. 

Leadership by Kaylee Miller

Team culture involves the behaviors expected of each other, the level of work ethic desired, attitude toward each other and the coaches, and having a shared vision of goals. A positive team culture does not just happen, it is built. Coaches can try to build a championship culture, but the most successful teams have players who are effective leaders, who build the culture. Kaylee Miller is one of those leaders who has the ability to change the direction and culture of a team. She shares her beliefs about how to be an effective leader, and what she has to say is outstanding advice for all of us. 

What Makes A Great Teammate?

Camellia is a very good teammate- she gets it as far as supporting her team and her teammates. But I thought it would be better for an actual teammate to write about Camellia as a teammate.

The following was written by Kaylee Miller:

Camellia is such a good teammate because she is the definition of a good friend. I’ve always thought a good friend is someone who is kind, caring, and supportive of your successes. Camellia is just that; she is the person who would jump up and down for any small success you may have! She is a diligent worker in every aspect of her life, and that includes basketball. 

Out of every teammate I’ve ever had, she is the most diligent person when it comes to watching film and being “game prepared.” She was always the person to have the film up before games or know exactly what the other teams plays were.

She is a great teammate because she leads by example. Even if Coach Massey or Coach Barshinger were not talking to her specifically, she would listen intently to improve her game as well. 

Leadership by Chelsea Stevenson

Leaders come in all different forms. There are so many ways to express leadership, whether it is by a verbal actions or simply doing things the team can and should follow.

Showing leadership can mean cheering your team on during practice when a play goes wrong, cheering for them while doing the ladder, or simply saying “good shot” when someone shoots. Simple actions like that gets everyone moving and being verbal together.

Not every team has that one person to get everyone motivated to speak, but there are always players who show leadership by their actions. Getting dressed for practice and coming out to shoot makes everyone else want to hurry and get out there too. It makes the team ready to get things going and let’s the coaches know the team is serious! Or having a player simply listen to the coaches corrections and fixing the mistakes they pointed out helps everyone. Always be supportive of your team, even the younger players. Everybody makes mistakes and it is always good to be a positive role model.

It is better to have good leadership in some form at practice than it is to have no connection and feel like the practice is dragging on with no energy. Plus, that could involve having to run for a “not so focused” practice.

And while the players are stuck in quarantine there are ways to still be a leader. Grab and ball and just practice shooting up to yourself, or going outside and shooting for 45 minutes a day. A little time each day can go a long way. Motivating friends to get outside is leadership. Posting a picture of yourself on snapchat showing you’re outside shooting is leadership because it may make other players want to go out as well.

It is so much better being a leader and not a follower. Do what is expected and it will make the coaches and other players much happier. And it will lead to a fun season! 

Leadership by Coach Daniels

I believe that a player can be an effective leader by leading by example. If a player is able to set a tone for practices and off-season workouts and be consistent all the way through teammates will soon follow along. Once everyone gets on the same page that is when great success will come.

Right now during the stay-at-home players can be leaders by being reliable and communicating with their teammates. Reaching out to your teammates and seeing what they did to better their game that day. I know coach Massey has sent workout challenges out to all the players, so I would make sure that at the end of each week your name shows up in the completion of the challenge. This will show your teammates that they can rely on you to continue to work. Always remember what you do when nobody is watching is what separates a champion from everyone else.

Streaks Culture

We believe these five characteristics must be the heart of our team culture. The five characteristics allow us to be stronger together as a team, and produce a family atmosphere.

#1- Humility

Humility allows us to understand we have room to grow and improve in our lives.

Humility allows us to understand we can’t do it alone, we need other people.

#2- Passion

We can impact other people not just by what we do, but how we do it. We can be an energy giver with our love, our energy, and our work ethic. Nothing great can be achieved without enthusiasm.

#3- Unity

Basketball and life are team sports, together we always achieve more. We are tougher together.

#4- Servanthood

The best teams in life, help each teammate become better versions of themselves. Servanthood is our ability and willingness to help our teammates.

#5 Thankfulness

Gratitude must be a constant drumbeat. Don’t forget to express your appreciation. And, appreciate and learn from each circumstance, both success and failure.

These five pillars of culture were taken from Dick Bennett, successful high school and college coach.

MINDSET

MINDSET is the theme of our off-season workout program. Players came up with MINDSET. Letters of MINDSET represent qualities we think will be important for our development as players, and our development as a team in the off-season.

MOTIVATION- For you to be successful in the off-season, it must start with you being high motivated. For us to be successful as a team, your motivation must be contagious. Your work and your enthusiasm must help motivate your teammates.

IMPROVEMENT- Our focus in the off-season must be on improvement. Each of us individually must get better, and that will make us better as a team.

NEVER- We can never be negative, and we can never quit.

DISCIPLINE- Discipline means we are willing to workout even when we really don’t feel like working out. Discipline means we pay attention to little details so we execute the fundamentals correctly.

SACRIFICE- We must be willing to sacrifice our time to keep improving. We need to be willing to sacrifice our personal interests for the interests of the team.

ENERGY- No one is ever successful in life with a lukewarm approach. Energy is what allows us to play harder and to work harder than our opponents.

TEAM- Ultimately our level of success is determined by our commitment to each other- to our team. We must be together to succeed.  

Lexi Daniels- What Her Teammates Say

Lexi was part of some very successful high school teams. As a junior, the Streaks went 27-8 and made it to the Sectional finals before losing a heartbreaker to the eventual State Champs. Her senior year, the Streaks were 30-4 and ranked #3 in Illinois.

Lexi never played any Freshmen or Frosh-Soph basketball, she was on the varsity all four years. She invested hours and hours in the off-season to become one of the greatest three point shooters in school history. Her abilities earned her All-State recognition her last two years.