Baker Caught up in Wilson Tradition

Just take a few tiny steps into Wilson high school during the first week of July each summer and you will hear a loud, commanding voice echoing through the hallways. It’s camp week for over a hundred young basketball players and all eyes and ears are fixated on one coach giving instructions, offering encouragement and perhaps most important, challenging them to try harder.

That teacher and the voice you hear is that of Brian Baker, who has been involved with the Wilson Boys and Girls Summer Camp for the past 18 years. Baker is also the head coach of the girls varsity basketball program at Wilson, a member of the Niagara-Orleans (NO) division. 2020 will be his 13th season at the helm.

Baker works the camp alongside Brett Sippel, the Wilson boys varsity head coach and a host of others, mostly from the NO. “I’d put this group of coaches up against any in all of WNY,” Baker said. Eric Klump (Newfane) and Justin Gerstung (Akron) are among the coaches working this camp.

Baker says that all of the coaches bring their own style and philosophy. The coaches do a great job of instructing the campers but at the same time are making mental notes themselves so that they can use the same drills when they are back in season.

“The campers are always learning but we as coaches continue to learn as well and pick up new things,” Baker said. “Everybody here gets better each day.”

Baker believes this is the longest running basketball camp in Niagara County, with 130-150 registered campers this year and many of them continue to return, year after year. There have been attendees who have travelled from as far away as California, Michigan and Indiana just to name a few. The camp is open to both boys and girls entering grades 2 through 11 with the 2nd to 7th graders going in the morning and the older kids in the afternoon.

The attendees are split up into two groups with the more advanced working out in the high school gym. Often times a player or two will be bumped up to the elite squad due to their hard work. When I visited on Tuesday, two campers had been moved up that afternoon.

Among the volunteers working this camp was recent Lakemen graduate Steve Frerichs (class of ’19). Frerichs was a three-sport athlete at Wilson and will attend Morrisville State, a D-III college located about 30 minutes east of Syracuse. He will play football this coming fall. “I’m here to help out and do whatever they ask me to do,” Frerichs said. Steve was the 2017 Niagara Gazette Player of the Year and in addition to his athletic ability, he also earned high marks in the classroom.

“It’s great to have recent players around the kids. It gives the campers an idea of what hard work and determination looks like. Steve is probably one of the best examples, he’s the total package and I’m thrilled to have him here as well as Joel Feagin, Joe Parrott, Tyler Truesdell, Mac Musall, Julie Reagan and Brennan Moxham.”

This camp focuses on skill development throughout the session, playing only one game per day. The basic fundamentals are broken down slowly and practiced over and over. Players might not pick things up right away and that’s ok. “Usually by the time the next season rolls around you see the hard work pay off,” Baker said.

Many of the individual skills that the campers work on daily at camp are skills they can work on at home and that is heavily encouraged throughout the week. Coaches focus on teaching the fundamentals through instructional drills and team competitions.

“All of the coaches talk to these players about getting better each day and not just on the court. Many of the skills we are teaching will help them in their daily lives, years from now,” Baker said. “We ask each player to get 1% better every day by the time they leave here. Two of the things coach Sippel stresses to everyone is to be a good person and to try your best. A few other things we want them to do is to make eye contact with the person you are talking too. Whether it’s a coach, an official, a teammate, anybody. That’s a good life lesson to take with you when you are going for a job interview. There are a lot of tools that are taught here that each camper can take with them and use in their everyday life.”

Baker will be entering his 13th season as the Lakewomen head basketball coach. He had a couple of his current players practicing with the boys and each were holding their own.

Sippel and others will move on to Lockport high school for another week of summer basketball camp.

Baker will continue working with some of his players during the offseason before going on vacation in August to see his family in Florida.

The level of play continues to get better each season in the Niagara – Orleans league and the Wilson Summer camp is a big reason why.