NT_031419

42 | March 14, 2019 | The Northbrook tower sports
northbrooktower.com
Boys Basketball Player of the Year
Martinelli stays true to himself in big year
Michal Dwojak, Sports Editor
Dom Martinell never
shied away from scoring.
Ask any of his teammates
from the teams he
played on growing up and
they’ll most likely say the
Glenbrook South junior
carried the load when it
came to scoring the basketball.
Time hasn’t really
changed Martinelli, and
that worked out to the
Titans’ favor. The South
player averaged 24.6 ppg
this season and scored 812
points during the year. He
scored when head coach
Phil Ralston needed him
to, leading the Titans to
a historic season where
they won 24 games — one
game shy of their all-time
record — and earned their
first IHSA regional title in
a decade.
Martinelli’s leadership
on and off the court is why
he earned 22nd Century
Media’s 2019 Boys Basketball
Player of the Year
award.
While scoring has always
come second nature
to him, the junior knew he
wasn’t the sole reason for
the team’s historic season.
“I love it,” Martinelli
said of scoring. “It’s not
just me; there are so many
other people on the team
that make as big of an impact
as I do. I love to score
and put my team in a position
to win.”
The Titan credited his
breakout junior year to a
Ralston challenge over
the offseason. Martinelli
wasn’t happy with his
sophomore year, so he
wanted to improve different
elements of his game.
Ralston challenged him to
change his shooting style,
which would improve with
some modification. He
spent most of the offseason
putting shots up whenever
he could. He would
spend two hours practicing
before or after summer
Glenbrook South boys basketball player Dom Martinelli earned 22nd Century Media
2019 Boys Basketball Player of the Year award. 22nd Century Media
games and practice with
senior Will King, making
sure this season would be
special for the departing
seniors.
While there were times
Ralston would want to
leave the gym so he could
go spend time with his
family, he would never
complain about a player
who had the worker’s
mentality Martinelli does.
“I have not seen a kid
that has dedicated himself
as much as he can to making
that improvement occur,”
Ralston said. “He’s
one of those kids first on
the floor and last one out.
“He is a real special and
unique kid. He’s a fierce
competitor.”
The hard work paid
off. Martinelli took not
only the Central Suburban
League by storm but
the state by storm with big
performances against the
best in the state, including
Evanston. While the
Titans impressed, Martinelli
was there scoring,
making Ralston’s offense
work with his teammates
making sure to get him involved.
“I wanted to become one
of the hardest players to
guard in the conference,”
Martinelli said. “The only
way I could do that was
working hard every day.”
Glenbrook South went
on win its first IHSA regional
in a decade, setting
up a rematch with
top-seeded Evanston. The
Titans fell to the Wildkits,
with Martinelli scoring
32 points in the loss. Like
most of the Titans, the junior
looked on realizing
the season they worked
hard for was over.
But that only motivates
him to become a better
player for his final year
with Glenbrook South, remembering
a special team.
“It just shows all the
hard work our team put
in,” Martinelli said. “To
have such a great season is
just a blessing.”
This Week In ...
SPARTANS Varsity
Athletics
GIRLS TRACK AND FIELD
■March ■ 14 - at CSL Conference
Invite, 4:30
p.m.
BOYS TRACK AND FIELD
■March ■ 15 - hosts CSL
Conference, 4:30 p.m.
BOYS WATER POLO
■March ■ 15 - at Evanston
Invite, 4:15 p.m.
■March ■ 16 - at Evanston
Invite, 8:15 a.m.
■March ■ 19 - at Niles
West, 6:30 p.m.
■March ■ 21 - hosts Deerfield,
6 p.m.
GIRLS WATER POLO
■March ■ 14 - hosts New
Trier, 6:30 p.m.
■March ■ 19 - hosts Niles
West, 6:30 p.m.
■March ■ 20 - hosts Libertyville,
5 p.m.
BOYS GYMNASTICS
■March ■ 21 - at Niles
West/Evanston, 6 p.m.
SOFTBALL
■March ■ 14 - hosts Resurrection,
4:30 p.m.
■March ■ 16 - at Buffalo
Grove, 11 a.m.
■March ■ 18 - at Barrington
Spring Fling,
4:45 p.m.
■March ■ 19 - at Barrington
Spring Fling,
4:45 p.m.
■March ■ 20 - at Barrington
Spring Fling,
4:45 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
■March ■ 15 - hosts
Glenbrook North Quad,
5 p.m.
■March ■ 16 - hosts
Glenbrook North Quad,
10 a.m.
■March ■ 18 - at New
Trier, 6:30 p.m.
■March ■ 20 - hosts Libertyville,
5 p.m.
GIRLS BADMINTON
■March ■ 15 - at Buffalo
Grove Invite, 8 a.m.
■March ■ 18 - at New
Trier, 4:30 p.m.
■March ■ 21 - at Deerfield,
4:30 p.m.
BOYS LACROSSE
■March ■ 21 - hosts Warren,
6:30 p.m.
GIRLS LACROSSE
■March ■ 14 - hosts
Maine South, 6 p.m.
■March ■ 16 - at Stevenson,
2 p.m.
■March ■ 18 - hosts St.
Ignatius, 6 p.m.
■March ■ 19 - at Palatine,
6:30 p.m.
■March ■ 21 - at Evanston,
6:15 p.m.
BASEBALL
■March ■ 16 - at St. Rita,
11 a.m.
■March ■ 19 - at Holy Trinity,
4:30 p.m.
■March ■ 21 - hosts
Ridgewood, 4:30 p.m.
BOYS TENNIS
■March ■ 16 - at New
Trier, 4 p.m.