Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

There are many local athletes that have done great things over the course of 2019 but one stands out above them all.

When a basketball player scores 20 points, he or she starts getting attention of local basketball fanatics. When that player gets to 30 points they place their name on the list of great players at their school but when a player gets 40 or more the feat reaches college scouts.

When the Bulldogs of Claiborne High School traveled to Jellico they faced another great athlete in Gracin Gerber. Gerber was a middle school player at Clairfield that dropped in over 50 points in a single game against Forge Ridge; however, the spotlight wouldn’t be on Gerber it would be on Claiborne’s own Kade Beeler.

Beeler spoke about how the game began for him, “It felt like just another game. I hit a couple tough shots out of the gate and they just kept falling for me.”

The shots started adding up and after he had dropped in eight three pointers plus his two point baskets and free throws his total ended at 44.

Beeler has always been capable of breaking out at any time and he used to score lots of points in middle school but he never was so on that teammates passed on open shots just to give him looks. Beeler spoke about his teammates, “I had a decent game the night before which was against David Crockett. I think I had about 17. I come in to every game with that type of confidence though but my teammates were huge, they would pass up open shots to get me looks.”

Nothing was really different that night except that most of his shots fell in. He spoke of being in the zone, “Yeah you just get in a zone that you feel like you can make anything you shoot.”

The November 22 game will be etched in the history books of Claiborne High School basketball and Beeler knows he did something special and when asked if he could reach 50 one night he added, “It means a lot to me. I’ve put a lot of work into this and to see it pay off like that it means the world to me. 50 would just be an insane accomplishment.”

When asked who he would like to thank for getting him here Beeler said, “The people I’d like to thank is obviously my parents. Also my teammates, and all the coaches I’ve had up to this point.”

The Bulldogs have a great opportunity to compete for a district title and if Beeler can help produce points like he has been this season they may just reach that goal.

Bulldogs Head Coach Corey McGinnis said it best, “Kade had 44 tonight with eight made threes!’

The Bulldogs won the game 86-81.