Athlete of the week: Kirsch fights through injury, scores 1,000th career point

WHITE LAKE — Jacob Kirsch suffered an elbow injury in the final football game of the season but that didn’t stop him from competing on the court.

“He is fiercely competitive and is playing injured,” Kimball/White Lake boys’ basketball head coach Kamden Miller said. “That injury could have sidelined him for the entire (basketball) season, but he chose to play with the pain and has adapted his game to compensate for the injury.”

With his decision to fight through the pain, Kirsch accomplished a feat that most players often fall short of.

The WiLdKat senior scored his 1,000th career point against Lyman Feb. 5. Kirsch finished with a game-high 20 points and seven rebounds to lead his team to a 55-44 victory.

“He is a great player and very deserving of his accomplishments,” said Miller, whose team is 11-5 this season. “He’s easy to work with and is a joy to have as a player.”

Alongside his 20-point showing last week, the senior guard scored in double figures twice more.

Kirsch recorded another game-high performance with 21 points in Kimball/White Lake’s 65-52 loss to Dakota Christian. He scored 14 points for the WiLdKats in a 73-49 victory over Parkston Saturday.

For his efforts, Kirsch has been named The Daily Republic’s athlete of the week, an award voted on by the newspaper’s sports staff.

This season Kirsch, who averages 16 points per game, has led the team in scoring three times and has recorded a season-high 30 points.

Miller said Kirsch scores most of his points as result of his defensive effort.

“Defensively, he is all over the place,” Miller said. “He’s very instinctful and makes a lot of steals. He turns a lot of those steals into transition layups and makes highlight type of plays.”

Kirsch and the WiLdKats take the court against Wessington Springs as a part of a doubleheader at 8 p.m. today in Wessington Springs.

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