David Lash spent his summer working on the family farm. He says it was a great reminder of what life could be like if he took up farming after college. (He’s likely not talking about just getting to bed early.)
Other than farm work, Lash helped a couple weeks at the HU Basketball Camps and played in a 3-on-3 league in Monoquet. He says it was really a "different" brand of basketball, but was good competition.
David has two sisters. Laura is a senior at Anderson University this year, majoring in nursing (and running cross-country) and Sarah is a senior at Tippecanoe Valley HS.
Lash saw action in 11 games last season, scoring 9 points and grabbing 7 rebounds along with 2 steals and 1 block. He had 5 points in the Siena Heights game and had 4 rebounds when Marian came to town.
He says he’s glad to be back to school now, socializing with friends and spending time in the gym again. He figures his toughest class this fall will be chemistry, and he’s not the first one to say that.
Luke worked at the HU Basketball Camps and on the family’s huge 8,000 acre farm. He reports that his parents celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary this summer and they all found time for a trip to Florida, simply to get away and relax for awhile.
Luke has older twin sisters, both of whom are involved in real estate. One lives in the Chicago area; the other is still in Rochester. He notes his brother-in-law in Rochester works for New Holland, which keeps things lively. The Smith farm is all John Deere.
Luke also has a younger brother who raced four-wheelers a year ago, finishing fifth in his class nationally. But, after a shoulder injury, his brother decided continuing the fun wasn’t worth the risk. He’ll graduate from Rochester HS this December and will join Luke at Huntington starting the second semester (to major in Exercise Science).
Unfortunately, Luke had his own health issues this summer. It all started with a "simple" tonsillectomy, but a subsequent
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infection put him in the hospital for three days. He’s doing fine now, but he lost 12-15 pounds that he’s still trying to regain.
Smith had a great freshman year. After scoring 24 points in HU’s exhibition game versus Athletes in Action, Luke went on to become a regular (21 minutes a game). He averaged 5.0 points and 1.7 rebounds a game last season and scored 10 points or more in five games.
In total, Luke had 165 points along with 49 assists and 22 steals. His high game was 13 points at Goshen, but he also had 11 points and 5 rebounds versus Marian in the first MCC Tournament game last year.
Luke says he’s glad to be back on campus. Small wonder; his girl friend from home has joined him at HU this year. He reports that the team is really working hard and they’re all anxious to start basketball.
Neil Stoffel simply didn’t have any time for vacation this summer.
Stoffel worked the HU Basketball Camps, did landscaping work for his dad’s company Stoffel Landscaping, did construction work for Allen County Builders, lifted weights on a regular basis (adding some muscle), and played (and won) a 3-on-3 tournament in Warren along with Luke Smith. After all of that, he’s glad to be back at school.
Neil has two older sisters. Rachel has just graduated from IPFW and now has her first teaching job in Fort Wayne. His second sister, Lauren, is officially a junior at St. Josephs College in Rensselaer, but she is studying abroad (in London) this semester.
Stoffel played in 19 games as a freshman. He scored 19 points and had 12 rebounds along with 2 assists and 2 steals in his 105 minutes on the floor. You can bet there will be more playing time this season.
Neil has enjoyed college so far. "The guys are great," he says of his teammates. "I know I’ll learn a lot from them all again this year. We also have a great coaching staff and I hope to elevate my game." He thinks his toughest class this semester will be Business Organization.
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David Lash
Luke Smith
Neil Stoffel
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