Kochendorfer reaches rare win milestone
500th career victory for St. Edmond boys coach
It’s hard to get Adolph Kochendorfer to show much emotion during the basketball season.
The long-time leader of the St. Edmond boys typically tries to keep his feelings in check, hoping that will play out on the court with his players.
But following Saturday night’s 73-57 victory over Iowa Falls-Alden, Kochendorfer had a much different perspective.
The win marked the 500th in his coaching career, making him just the 43rd coach in Iowa history to reach that number. Kochendorfer, in his 31st season overall, is now 500-220 — which includes 341 triumphs with the Gaels.
Following an announcement of the milestone, St. Edmond players huddled around Kochendorfer to congratulate him — much to his surprise.
“Yeah, I definitely didn’t expect that kind of reaction,” Kochendorfer smiled. “That means a lot. This is a fun group of kids and they are great to coach.
“I’ve had a lot of good players over the years and a lot of great assistant coaches, and that’s how you get to 500 wins. The kids have bought into what we wanted to do here, which was play good defense, move the basketball and play hard.”
The Gaels (8-5 overall, 6-2 in North Central Conference) did all of those key attributes last night, jumping out to a commanding 23-8 lead on the Cadets (6-6, 4-4). Andrew Gibb scored the first 12 points for St. Edmond, finishing with 23.
Will Woodruff recorded a triple-double, scoring 12 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists, while senior Charlie Doyle had a double-double with 12 points and 10 assists.
“We came out and really played hard,” Kochendorfer said. “After an emotional win (Friday night over Humboldt), I wasn’t sure how we would play. But we came out and did exactly what we wanted to.
“Will has played so much basketball that his vision on the court is incredible. And both Andrew and Charlie were getting open and hitting their shots.”
As a team, St. Edmond shot 15 of 21 from the field in the opening half, including 6-for-8 from three. Gibb was 5 of 6 with 17 points at the break, while Doyle had nine. They combined to go 9-for-11 from behind the arc.
“With Andrew and Charlie, they know that if they work the ball inside-out and reverse it, they are going to get those open looks,” Kochendorfer said. “That’s what they did and that’s what we want out of them if it’s in the flow of our offense.”
The Gaels continued to push toward the win, building their lead to 61-34 behind a 6-for-6 start from the field in the fourth quarter. Gibb hit two more triples, and Woodruff dropped eight points in the frame.
Nick Simpson added 13 points off the bench, while Jake Heidenreich had six points and eight rebounds. Sean Flaherty also grabbed four boards.
Kochendorfer took over in 1994 and directed St. Edmond to its first 20-win season in 13 years. The following year, they reached the state tournament.
The Gaels cut down the nets in 2000, and have earned four runner-up finishes since.
Along with his time on the sidelines at SEHS, Kochendorfer also coached at Granville Spalding and St. Thomas Aquinas in Freeport, Ill.
“We’ve had some really good players and that makes it easier on a coach,” he said. “It was also nice that my son (Jackson) could be part of this win.”
The Gaels return to action Monday night when they host Clarion-Goldfield/Dows.
ST. EDMOND 73, IOWA FALLS-ALDEN 57
St. Edmond — Matt Bennett 0-0 0-0 0, Andrew Gibb 7-9 0-0 23, Jake Heidenreich 3-6 0-0 6, Charlie Doyle 4-8 0-1 12, Will Woodruff 4-4 4-6 12, Jackson Kochendorfer 0-3 0-0 0, Sean Flaherty 1-1 0-0 2, Nick Simpson 5-8 3-3 13, Sean Newell 0-0 0-0 0, Patrick Bocken 0-0 0-0 0, Isacc Lursen 0-0 0-0 0, Nick O’Brien 0-1 0-0 0, Mitchell Rasmussen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 24-40 7-10 73.
Iowa Falls-Alden — Devin Sheridan 2-4 4-6 8, Benjamin Steinfeldt 1-7 0-2 2, Tyjon Rose 4-10 3-6 12, Luke Haverkamp 2-7 4-4 6, Jace Ites 5-15 7-9 18, Tate Muilenburg 2-4 1-2 5, Luke Rubow 0-1 0-0 0, Jack Wibholm 0-2 2-2 2, Adam Long 1-1 0-0 2, Charlie Puffer 0-0 0-0 0, Brady Janssen 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 17-59 21-31 57.
Quarter scores: St. Edmond led 23-8, 42-24, 68-42. Three-point goals: St. Edmond 9-16 (Gibb 5-5, Doyle 4-6, Kochendorfer 0-3, Simpson 0-1, O’Brien 0-1); Iowa Falls-Alden 2-15 (Sheridan 0-1, Steinfeldt 0-1, Rose 1-6, Haverkamp 0-2, Ites 1-5). Total rebounds: St. Edmond 30, Iowa Falls-Alden 31. Steals: St. Edmond 11, Iowa Falls-Alden 15. Blocked shots: St. Edmond 3, Iowa Falls-Alden 1. Turnovers: St. Edmond 25, Iowa Falls-Alden 15. Team fouls: St. Edmond 20, Iowa Falls-Alden 15. Fouled out: Woodruff.