By GREG KEIM
THE GOSHEN NEWS
April 29, 2008 10:03 am
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Going from one winning program to another, Westview High School senior Justin Yoder has decided to continue his basketball career at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Yoder was leading scorer on last season’s 24-2 Westview team which advanced to the Class 2A semistate before the season ended with an 83-70 loss to eventual state champion Fort Wayne Luers.
“I felt very comfortable at Cornerstone,” Yoder said. “I enjoyed the head coach, the assistants and the players. I also wanted to go to a program that has a chance to win.”
During the past six seasons, Cornerstone has enjoyed as much success as any NAIA Division II school.
Coach Kim Elders has guided the Golden Eagles to four Final Fours, three 30-plus win seasons and one national title. Elders tops all coaches with 179 victories during the same period of time.
“Cornerstone is only 90 minutes away so my family can come and watch me play,” Yoder said.
Both of Justin’s older brothers — Derek and Jared — played at Huntington after graduating from Westview.
“Both of my brothers liked Huntington, but I think they understand my decision to go to Cornerstone,” he said.
“I saw them play a lot of games at Huntington. I know my ball handling has to improve. The tempo of the game is faster and there is a lot more pressure on the ball.
“Plus, I need to get stronger and quicker. But the coach seems to think I have a chance to come in right away and play as either the shooting guard or point guard.”
Yoder netted 448 points as a senior, 295 as a junior, 234 as a sophomore and five as a freshman to finish with a career total of 982.
He shot 57 per cent from the floor and 84 percent from the free-throw line as a senior. He was an honorable mention all-state selection and was named to the Hoosier Basketball Magazine Top 100.
The Warriors won both the Northeast Corner Conference tournament and regular season titles in 2007-08. The team also won a school-record 23 consecutive games.
“Coach (Rob) Yoder runs an intense practice at Westview and we need that as preparation for college,” Yoder said. “We also run a five-man motion offense that a lot of colleges do so I’m already familiar with the system Cornerstone runs.”
Justin is a son of Roger and Jolene Yoder of Topeka.
He plans to study elementary education at Cornerstone.
“I plan to teach and coach,” he said.
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