Jeff Stowers is sitting at home and talking about music. The 72-year-old Simon Kenton High School girls basketball coach used to have vinyl records. Even though his albums are long gone, Stowers still holds a handful of music acts near to his heart, including James Brown, The Isley Brothers, Ohio Players, The Gap Band, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Nowadays, though, he listens to his favorite music via radio and streaming.
“Music to me can be very enjoyable and relaxing,” said the coach.
When Stowers was a student-athlete at what was then known as Northern Kentucky State College, sometimes he heard live music at Regents Hall, a venue that occasionally drew major tours. One of the acts he saw was Sly & The Family Stone. The group’s music was as much a call to the dance floor as it was a sermon on social consciousness. Stowers, a freshman after attending high school at Covington Latin and later Covington Catholic, was digging that scene.
On September 28, 1973, Stowers joined the rest of the Norse basketball team to see the concert. However, the band was very late in arriving at Regents Hall, repeating a trend of tardiness at other shows, a few of which had to be rescheduled or canceled. Some attendees were aware of the band’s no-show reputation and after a long wait, more than a few threw down their tickets and walked out.
“It was before they had permanent bleachers at Regents and we went around and picked the tickets up off the floor,” said Stowers. “After a lot of people left, the band finally showed up and we got to see them play. It was cool.”
It was also revelatory.
“I’ve always loved music, and I’ll never forget that night,” he said. “Even today, if I want to get into a good groove, I’ll play something I can take some steps to. I’ve done that with the girls, but they don’t know what to think.”
In step with each other
Later in the day, Simon Kenton senior standouts Anna Kelch and Haylie Webb are preparing for a 4:30 p.m. practice in the school gym. They’re talking about team defense and dance moves. Kelch jokes that if the Pioneers defend well, dancing may follow.
“We’re all friends. We’re comfortable with each other and that goes onto the court and allows us to be unified on defense,” said Kelch, a Georgetown College commit. “And we get excited when we win.”
The 18-1 Pioneers have been winning a lot of late thanks in large part to a suffocating man-to-man defense, led by senior stopper Megan Gadzala. The Pioneers rank 16th in the state in scoring defense, yielding just 37.9 points per game. If you’re an opponent, they’ll make you sweat. And that makes them want to shout when they are successful at being stingy.
It wasn’t too long ago that coach Stowers was so delighted by the way his team was playing, he busted a move. “He’s got some groove. Not bad, kind of goofy,” said Webb, a Thomas More University recruit.
The seniors like seeing the lighter side of their coach, whose brand of “tough love” has won him nearly 600 career games, six region tournament titles and a dozen district crowns. “Sometimes on the sidelines, he’ll literally start dancing because he’s happy we won or he’s happy with something we did,” Kelch said. “It’s amusing.”
Away from the court, Stowers lives the retired life of a family patriarch, finding joy in his five children and 12 grandchildren, the youngest just six months old.
“Grandchildren, they’ll keep you young,” he said. “I’ve got my first great-grandchild coming up pretty soon.”
Togetherness fuels optimism
Simon Kenton is nearing a critical stretch in the schedule that will go a long way in determining its fate this season. To this point, the Pioneers have been making sweet music together with nary an in-state loss. They won their first 11 games before suffering their lone defeat against a team from Florida. Then they won their next seven games.
“Sweet music is about right,” Stowers said. “They’re all together as one. They play hard. I have a lot of good defenders. They know if you don’t play defense, you don’t play.”
The Pioneers are off to one of their strongest starts in years. If they keep winning, team goals such as another 32nd District tournament championship, another 8th Region title and a repeat state tournament berth are all within reach.
“Our goal is to win state,” Kelch said.
That is music to the coach’s ears. The next month and a half will reveal whether the rhythm the Pioneers have found can hold under postseason pressure. Stowers believes the early-season harmony can carry into March.
“They’ve all been part of the same system for so long that they know what to do, and they know it starts with defense,” said the coach. “A lot of these girls have been to state twice, so they’ve been in the spotlight and won. Our three seniors, Gadzala, Kelch and Webb, keep it all together. They are tight. The rest understand when they talk.”
Turning connection into competitive edge
The Simon Kenton roster is loaded with college-bound talent. Webb, a double-double waiting to happen, leads the team with 9.4 rebounds per game and all regulars with 55% field goal shooting. She is second in scoring behind junior point guard Brynli Pernell with an average of 13.4 points. Pernell, also a Thomas More recruit, averages 17.9 points. Kelch is second in rebounding and third in scoring at 9.2. Gadzala, a Thomas More soccer recruit, is third in rebounding and second to no one on defense.
“Megan’s the key to what we do,” Stowers said. “We put her on the other team’s best player, and she doesn’t say a word. She just plays defense.”
The Pioneers feature several talented youngsters including sophomore Bella Ober, a top defender who holds an offer from Northern Kentucky University. She averages 5.5 points per game. Stowers says eighth-grader Angela Kabeya provides “instant offense” off the bench while averaging 7.9 points and shooting nearly 45% from 3-point range.
“Our whole worry was finding a bench and then we lost a girl to injury,” Stowers said. “But we found a bench. I can go nine or 10 deep.”
Freshmen Naomi Krohman and Piper Couch and seventh-graders Emma Peetz and Nina Krohman are on the rise. Stowers believes he has one or two excellent players in each class beginning in the seventh grade. The coach says another key component of the Pioneers’ success is the players’ parents.
“They are very supportive,” the coach said. “They help raise funds. We were able to take a trip to Tampa and play good competition. The parents support our commitment to involve the players in the community through volunteer work, teaching them a work ethic and life lessons. Couldn’t do it without the parents.”
When it comes to getting the most out of his players, the coach doesn’t dance around the issue.
“The girls know I’m for them,” Stowers said. “It’s all about building relationships early, competing and becoming better people. We can teach you enough so you can get some scholarship money to help pay for college and get an education. But it’s up to you to want all that. If you do get that from your players, you can win some games.”