P.C. Coaches Talk About Boys All Conference Selections

The Malta Mustangs, North Country Mavericks, and Dodson Coyotes boys basketball teams all landed athletes to their respective All-Conference teams in 2023.

The Mustangs took second place in the 2023 State B Boys Basketball Tournament, as well as the 2023 Northern B Divisional Title. The Coyotes and Mavericks competed hard but weren't able to make it out of the competitive 3C District Tournament.

Malta landed three athletes on the 2B District's 2023 All-Conference List including senior Jared Eggebrecht, who earned All-State honors and first-team honors. Sophomore Bohdi Brenden also earned first-team honors, and sophomore Treyton Wilke was named to the second-team.

Dodson senior Mikey Jaynes and North Country sophomore Blaine Downing were named to the 3C All-Conference List. Downing was third on the list and Jaynes was seventh. Downing also earned Defensive Team honors.

Mavericks Head Coach Haakon Fredrickson issued a statement about Downing.

"Blaine did an amazing job for this basketball team. A few of his individual accomplishments were leading the team in scoring, rebounds, steals, and blocks. He is an extraordinary young player that will continue to make waves in Class C basketball. I am excited to see how he will continue to develop and help the North Country Maverick Boys team in the coming years."

Dodson Head Coach Clayton KillEagle spoke about Jaynes.

"Michael Jaynes is an outstanding guard that carried quite a heavy workload. We relied on Mikey to make the right decisions at the right times. Since taking over for the Dodson boys basketball program Mikey was a 20-plus points per game offensive player, and a key defensive player causing chaos for opposing ball handlers. It was a pleasure to have gotten the opportunity to coach Mikey for the last month and a half of his high school career. He has been an MVP caliber player and leader. He made my job as head coach that much easier because I could rely on him to lead our offenses. He carried much determination in his drives to the basketball when we needed him to. Along with being a determined player, Mikey always showed a good attitude. After our loser out game at districts, to ease some of the heart ache, I let him know how bright his future looks just if he carries that determination with him for the rest of his life because I truly believe that.

The PCN caught up with Coach Costin, who had plenty to say about his Mustang All-Conference Athletes.

"I am just really happy for Jared," Coach Costin said. "I thought that it was a really nice honor for him."

Coach Costin said that Eggebrecht had matured a lot over the last couple of seasons, and his growth was really apparent this season.

"He just became a very solid leader for us on the floor," Coach Costin said. "He led by example with his hard work and play, as well as vocally."

Eggebrecht was tasked with defending athletes of different heights and athletic abilities.

"Jared always stepped up to the challenge and never hesitated and he did a good job," Coach Costin said.

Eggebrecht's toughest task came when fellow senior Eli Hanson, a 6'5" post, was hurt in the middle of the season. Jared was tasked with playing the post position.

"The funny part is that he never hesitated," Coach Costin said. "He just smiled a little bit and said, sure, I will do it. Whatever needed to be done for our team, he did. And did willingly."

Coach Costin said that he played very unselfish basketball and worked hard for the team.

"He is definitely a kid that we are really going to miss next year," Coach Costin said. "We kind of had a nickname for him. We called him Lunch Pail because he just came to work everyday and did his job. That's kind of what we want out of our kids."

In addition to Coach Costin pointing out that he was an outstanding citizen off of the court, Coach Costin also pointed to the fact that Eggebrecht is this year's Malta High School Valedictorian.

Coach Costin was also asked about Brenden, who stepped up as Malta's starting point guard this season.

"Bohdi had a lot of responsibility," Coach Costin said. "He played point guard for us and did a tremendous job. He led our team in assists this year and had just under 14 points a game."

He said that Bohdi did a great job defending against other guards this season and continued to commend Brenden on the offensive side of the ball.

"As a sophomore, to come out and play point guard, that is a hard thing to do," Coach Costin said. "You have to be a good decision maker and play a lot of unselfish basketball. Bohdi had a tremendous season for us."

Coach Costin also talked about Wilke, who made several big shots for the Mustangs throughout the season.

"He obviously would be the guy to hit those (shots) when we needed them," Coach Costin said.

Coach Costin also said that Wilke did a great job attacking the paint late in the season.

"As the season went on, he was more than just a three point shooter out there," Coach Costin said. "He was getting to the rim and finishing at the rim. I thought that was a big improvement for him. He was a good rebounder for us and he would get a body on opposing players."

He also said that as the year went on, Wilke became a better defender.

"As a sophomore, to do some of the things that he did, was pretty impressive," Coach Costin said. "I just thought that Treyton's total game this year, we saw a lot of improvement in it. The offensive end stands out a little bit, but overall his whole game got better."

He said that Wilke's play caught the eye of the other coaches in the conference, so he got voted in.