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Schutte excited to continue his career at Concordia

LAUREL — Why not celebrate a state basketball title your senior year of high school by finding out you can keep playing in college?

That’s exactly what Laurel-Concord-Coleridge’s Noah Schutte is going to do after he and the Bears claimed the Class D1 state title in March and recently finalized his collegiate destination – Concordia University of Nebraska in Seward.

“It’s a really good program and it’s definitely a big step,” Schutte said. “I am not going to be able to walk in and just do whatever I want. I will have to work for it and it’s not going to be easy. I thought it was the best fit for me. I see myself having the most success there.

“They rely on each other and have a great weight program and coaching staff. It’s a team that I want to be a part of and I feel it is good for me.”

Schutte averaged 24.6 ppg and 13.1 rpg for a 26-5 Bears squad that steamrolled to the state title only a few short days before the state shut down all sports amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, the Bulldogs went 24-10, won the Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament title and made it to the NAIA national tournament.

“Standing behind him, being a part of his accomplishment was a great thing,” Bears’ head coach Todd Erwin said. “Noah being the steady, level-headed athlete will continue to do for the Bulldogs what he has done for the LCC Bears program for the last four years, and that is whatever his team needs him to do to be their best.

“The bonus with Noah and that statement is that with his hard work, dedication, and some God-given talent Noah can do it all. He can play every position and does it calmly and quietly, needing no recognition: He just does it for the team.”

Schutte said Concordia “definitely shoots a lot more threes than the other teams,” and he acknowledges that is a departure from where he got most of his prep points, by being a force in the paint.

“I am definitely going to have to work on my outside shot more,” Schutte said. “They like to get down in transition too which I always played with my high school team and just run-and gun.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has limited Schutte’s ability to get ready for the next level as he can only do so much to prepare for a team sport which requires working with teams in a time of limited social gatherings.

“They tell us to try to do whatever we can at home,” he said. “I run as much as I can on the road and I try to do a lot of playing and game speed as much as I can depending on the weather outside. The gym is still closed, but for now it’s nice to at least get back into the weight room.”

Schutte said that he isn’t sure what he will major in but may lean toward something in the area of business.

One thing he can apply in his studies was living through a pandemic that came so close to denying him a chance to play for that state title.

“We were definitely lucky to get it in,” he said. “It was great to win the state championship. It was a great experience for us. We knew we were down there for a reason and all of our community was down there supporting us.”

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