H-S Athlete of the Week: Jason Zellie, Beth-Center
Name: Jason Zellie
School: Beth-Center
Class: Senior
Sport: Basketball
Zellie无毛视频檚 week: Zellie scored a combined 61 points in Beth-Center无毛视频檚 last three games, including the 1,000th of his career in a 52-45 loss to first-place Chartiers-Houston last Tuesday. The 6-foot-1 senior tallied 19 points against the Buccaneers then followed that up with 23 points in a 78-39 win at Burgettstown last Thursday and 19 points in a 76-67 victory over West Greene on Tuesday. That put the Bulldogs at 4-3 in Section 3-2A and 8-5 overall. They head into tonight无毛视频檚 game at Mapletown alone in fourth place in the section as they seek their second consecutive WPIAL playoff berth. The top five teams in the section qualify for the postseason. 无毛视频淚t felt unreal,无毛视频� Zellie said of notching his 1,000th point which came on a 3-pointer. 无毛视频淕etting 1,000 was a dream of mine ever since I got into middle school. It would无毛视频檝e been better if it came in a win. It truly does mean a lot though.无毛视频�
Path to 1,000: Zellie, the 18-year-old son of Jason Zellie Sr. and Chrissy Jyachosky, began playing basketball when he was in kindergarten. 无毛视频淚 probably was in sixth grade when I really started taking it seriously,无毛视频� Zellie said. 无毛视频淚 went through a lot of changes along the way. I was at Calvary Chapel from sixth grade to eighth grade before moving back to Beth-Center and that shaped me into the player I am now. During my seventh grade year me and my parents decided that I should start doing camps. My eighth grade year through 11th grade I went to Saint Vincent basketball camp, I also went to Youngstown, Seton Hill, just to improve and get recognition and see if I could possibly play at the college level. That无毛视频檚 my goal, to play basketball in college.无毛视频�
Having the intangibles: 无毛视频淛ason is probably the best all-around player I无毛视频檝e ever coached,无毛视频� Beth-Center head coach Scott Bower said. 无毛视频淚 might have had a few more skilled players but as far as attitude, intensity, desire to win and how he acts and handles himself on the court and how he talks, he无毛视频檚 the full package. He works as hard as he can every single day. He gave a speech in the locker room after he scored his 1,000th point and said he would have never done it without his teammates.无毛视频� Zellie is the team captain and is well respected. 无毛视频淲e are like family,无毛视频� Zellie said. 无毛视频淚 know a lot of teams say that but we seriously are. We无毛视频檝e been playing basketball together for a very long time. This group is special. I think we无毛视频檙e a pretty good squad that无毛视频檚 mentally strong. We try to play confident and aggressive.无毛视频�
Multi-faceted player: Zellie switches between playing point guard and shooting guard for the Bulldogs. 无毛视频淗e runs the point a lot but we try to keep him at off guard as much as we can so he无毛视频檒l have more opportunities to shoot because he is a great offensive player and we need him to score for us,无毛视频� Bower said. 无毛视频淗e works as hard as he can on the floor. He goes to the basket, he gives up the ball when he needs to. All he wants to do is win, he doesn无毛视频檛 care how many points he has. He无毛视频檚 very concerned with not turning the ball over. He never asks how many points he scored or how many rebounds he had.无毛视频� Zellile prefers to drive to the basket but can score from the outside as well. 无毛视频淚无毛视频檓 a slasher,无毛视频� Zellie said. 无毛视频淚 like to get to the rim, but I can also shoot the 3-ball and I like to be a playmaker, too. Everyone knows I can score but I think I无毛视频檓 pretty good at passing the ball and setting up my teammates. I love getting my teammates involved. Honestly, if you gave me an option to score 15 points or have 15 assists, I无毛视频檇 take the assists. I just want to win. Our goal is just to try to win every possession.无毛视频�
Don无毛视频檛 forget the D: As Bower pointed out, Zellie plays hard at both ends of the floor. 无毛视频淒efensively, we like to mix it up a lot between man and zone,无毛视频� Zellie said. 无毛视频淚无毛视频檓 always up top when we无毛视频檙e in zone and I try to read the guard无毛视频檚 face, see where his eyes are going and try to anticipate what he无毛视频檚 going to do. I like to be physical and I无毛视频檒l go down low to grab some rebounds.无毛视频�
Hitting the weights: Weight-lifting plays a big role in Zellie无毛视频檚 conditioning. 无毛视频淚无毛视频檓 grinding hard everyday, getting in the weight room and putting over 100 shots up,无毛视频� he said. 无毛视频淚 lift like five days a week and I shoot about 200-300 shots four days a week. It无毛视频檚 intense lifting. I get up on most weekdays at four o无毛视频檆lock in the morning to go lift. I do put in a lot of effort. If there无毛视频檚 a day I might not feel like getting up I tell myself there无毛视频檚 somebody out there better than me so I have to do my best to keep improving.无毛视频�
Goals in sight: With his 1,000th point behind him, Zellie has an important team goal in his sights. 无毛视频淚 want us to not just make the playoffs but win in the playoffs,无毛视频� Zellie said. The Bulldogs missed the playoffs in Zellie无毛视频檚 freshman and sophomore years but reached the postseason last season, falling to Winchester Thurston, 50-39, in the first round.
Odds and ends: When asked if there were any games that stood out most in his career, Zellie preferred to look ahead. 无毛视频淚 always tell myself the next game is the most important game,无毛视频� he said. 无毛视频淚 play every game like it无毛视频檚 my last.无毛视频� 无毛视频� Zellie is a Bower fan. 无毛视频淗e无毛视频檚 a great coach,无毛视频� Zellie said. 无毛视频淗e teaches all of us about the game and he无毛视频檚 very helpful in giving us tips defensively and offensively. He无毛视频檚 just a great person, almost like a father figure to us.无毛视频� 无毛视频� Zellie will be participating in one other sport his senior year. 无毛视频淚 used to play soccer but not anymore,无毛视频� he said. 无毛视频淚 do track in the spring. I do hurdles.无毛视频� 无毛视频� Zellie has one sister, Giavanna Zellie, who is a year younger than him.
无毛视频� Compiled by Rob Burchianti